Bothell, WA Fire Regulations: Smoke Detectors (2026)

Section 907.2.10, as rewritten by the Bothell City Council in BMC 20.08.061, requires listed single- and multiple-station smoke alarms complying with UL 217, installed in accordance with Sections 907.2.10.1 through 907.2.10.7 and NFPA 72. The local text adds a layer that applies notwithstanding any other provision of the chapter: smoke detection devices go inside all dwelling units occupied by persons other than the owner on and after December 31, 1981, and inside all dwelling units built or manufactured in this state after December 31, 1980. Smoke alarms must also be installed in all dwelling units prior to conveyance by deed by the owner or grantor.

Equipment and installation follow the International Fire Code, the International Residential Code, and nationally accepted standards, together with rules promulgated by the State Fire Marshal under Chapter 34.05 RCW, the Administrative Procedure Act. Responsibility is split. Installation of smoke alarms is the owner's job. Maintenance is the tenant's job, and the tenant must maintain the device as specified by the manufacturer. When a dwelling unit is vacated, the owner must make sure the smoke detection device is operational before anyone is allowed to re-occupy the unit.

The section carries its own penalty clause, so a landlord who skips installation or a tenant who neglects the device is exposed to the same capped fine. Enforcement runs through the Bothell Fire Department's Fire Marshal, and BMC 20.08.100 separately makes violations of Chapter 20.08 BMC a misdemeanor punished as set forth in BMC 1.24.010. Smoke alarms inside dwellings are distinct from the commercial fire alarm systems regulated in Section 907.2 and the false alarm response fees in Chapter 20.09 BMC.