Alexandria, VA Fire Regulations: Smoke Detectors (2026)

Sec. 8-1-53, in Article D of the building code, applies the smoke detector mandate to any building containing one or more dwelling units, any hotel or motel, and any rooming house. Detectors may be battery or AC powered as long as they conform to the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code. The owner has an annual certification duty: at the start of each tenancy and at least once a year after that, the owner must inspect the detectors and furnish the tenant a certificate confirming all detectors are present, have been inspected, and are in good working order.

Day-to-day responsibility shifts to the tenant for interim testing, repair, and maintenance of detectors inside a rented or leased unit, though the owner keeps that duty for hallways, stairwells, and other common or public areas of multifamily buildings. Once a tenant gives written notice that a detector is malfunctioning, the owner must service, repair, or replace it within five days. Sec. 8-1-54 puts enforcement in the hands of the fire marshal and the director of the department of code administration, who apply the powers and procedures of the city's fire prevention code to the smoke detector article.

Sec. 8-1-55 clarifies that meeting the smoke detector article does not excuse an owner from every other applicable requirement of the VUSBC and the rest of Title 8, Chapter 1 of the city code.