Elyria, OH Fire Regulations: Smoke Detectors (2026)

Section 1394.01 requires smoke detectors in all residential buildings under construction or built after the chapter took effect, and Section 1394.02 extends the requirement to every existing residential building with two or more dwelling units. Inside a unit, Section 1394.04 puts the detector in the immediate vicinity of, but outside, all sleeping rooms. Section 1394.03 adds a detector in each sleeping room of a dormitory, rooming house or boarding house. In buildings with three or more dwelling units, Section 1394.05 adds detectors in every common hallway on each level, common laundry room, common sitting room and common basement or cellar, with at least one in each section of a subdivided basement.

Taller buildings carry heavier duties. Existing residential buildings of more than five stories, and buildings of more than four stories built after Ordinance 84-116 took effect on May 21, 1984, must connect detectors in areas outside individual units to an annunciator panel that shows the floor of activation and links to the fire alarm monitoring panel at the Headquarters Fire Station or to a central station. Section 1394.10 sends installation plans to the Building Department for review by the Bureau of Arson and Fire Prevention before work starts, and the installer must be registered with the Department and certified by the office of the State Fire Marshal. Detectors and installations must meet NFiPA 72E (1982) and NFiPA 74 (1980).

Section 1394.11 splits upkeep. Owners of buildings of five or fewer stories maintain detectors in shared areas, must tell tenants how to test the detector and which battery it takes, and must inspect detectors in vacant units so they work before the key is presented to a prospective tenant. The occupant is responsible for testing and maintaining the detector inside the unit, including battery replacement. If a detector fails and a new battery does not fix it, the occupant reports it in writing and the owner has seventy-two hours to repair or replace it. Section 1394.14 gives anyone found in violation thirty days from notice by the Fire Marshal or another law enforcement officer to correct it.