Yakima County, WA Fire Regulations: Smoke Detectors (2026)

030 reproduces Chapters 3 through 8 of the International Property Maintenance Code, 2018 Edition, including the fire safety chapter that governs existing structures countywide outside the cities. 2 requires single- and multiple-station smoke alarms in every existing Group I-1 (institutional, such as assisted living) and Group R occupancy, which covers houses, duplexes, and apartments. 2 spells out where alarms go in Groups R-2, R-3, R-4, and I-1 regardless of how many people live there: on the ceiling or wall just outside each sleeping area, inside every room used for sleeping, and on every story of the dwelling unit, including the basement but not crawl spaces or uninhabitable attics.

2 requires them to be interconnected so that one activating alarm sounds all of them, audible over background noise with doors closed; listed wireless units satisfy the interconnection rule without new wiring. Alarms placed too close to a kitchen or bathroom are addressed separately: ionization alarms must sit at least 20 feet from a permanent cooking appliance (10 feet with an alarm-silencing switch), photoelectric alarms at least 6 feet, and any alarm must clear a bathtub or shower door by at least 3 feet. 3 must come from the building's wiring with battery backup, except that existing buildings not undergoing construction, or without commercial power, can run on battery alone, and any battery alarm must signal when the battery runs low.

1 cover units that already comply with the code in force at construction, or where a fire-alarm-connected detector substitutes for a standalone alarm. The Yakima County Building and Fire Safety Division, part of the Department of Public Services, administers and enforces this chapter.