Haverford, PA Fire Regulations: Smoke Detectors (2026)
Key Facts
- Who must install
- The owner of the dwelling
- Placement
- One per level and one in each bedroom
- Power
- Primary power or sealed ten-year battery
- CO detector
- Outside entrance to any bedroom or sleeping area
- Multifamily alarm
- Monitored system, certified each year
- Max fine
- $1,000 plus costs
Summary
In Haverford Township, owners of one- and two-family dwellings must install smoke detectors on each level and in each bedroom, powered by the building's primary power or a sealed ten-year battery, plus a carbon monoxide detector outside bedrooms. Multifamily owners add a monitored fire alarm system certified every year.
B. It shall be the responsibility of the owner of new and existing one- and two-family dwellings to install smoke detectors powered by the building's primary power or a nonremovable (sealed) ten-year battery. Smoke detectors must be installed as follows: one on each level of the dwelling and one in each bedroom. In addition to the required smoke detectors, the dwelling must be equipped with a carbon monoxide (CO) detector located outside the entrance to any bedroom or sleeping area. Combination smoke/CO detectors are permitted. C. It shall be the responsibility of the owner of new and existing multiple-family dwellings (buildings containing three or more apartments units) to install smoke detectors and carbon monoxide (CO) detectors in each unit in the same fashion as described for one- and two-family dwellings. ... All fire alarm systems must be inspected, tested, and certified each year by a qualified licensed fire alarm inspector.
Full Breakdown
Section 104-13 of the Haverford Township Code, amended by Ord. No. 2965-2022, puts the detector duty on the owner, not the tenant, for new and existing buildings in Haverford Township, Delaware County.
One- and two-family dwellings come first. Smoke detectors must run on the building's primary power or a nonremovable (sealed) ten-year battery, with one on each level and one in each bedroom. The dwelling also needs a carbon monoxide detector outside the entrance to any bedroom or sleeping area, and combination smoke/CO detectors are permitted.
Multiple-family dwellings, meaning buildings with three or more apartment units, need smoke and CO detectors in each unit in the same fashion. The common areas must carry a monitored fire alarm system made of a fire alarm panel, system smoke detectors, manual pull stations and audible horn/strobe devices. Every fire alarm system must be inspected, tested and certified each year by a qualified licensed fire alarm inspector, and copies of the certification stay on site for Township inspection.
Mixed-use buildings with residential units above nonresidential space follow subsection D: smoke and CO detectors in the residential unit like a one- or two-family home, plus one smoke detector interconnected with the nonresidential unit's smoke detection system.
Related duties in the same section include fire extinguishers placed so no one travels more than 50 feet to reach one, with at least one for each 2,500 square feet of floor area in residential rental properties, and illuminated exit signs in multifamily buildings. The Director of Code Enforcement and the Chief Fire Code Official administer these items, and rental occupancy inspections under § 104-11 check them.
Violations & Fines
Failing to install required detectors or maintain the certified alarm system violates Chapter 104. Under § 104-8, conviction before a District Justice of the Peace brings a fine not exceeding $1,000 plus costs of prosecution, up to 90 days in the county jail if the fine and costs are not paid, and each day in violation is a separate offense. The owner, not the tenant, carries the responsibility.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where must smoke detectors go in a Haverford Township house?
Is a carbon monoxide detector required too?
Who is responsible for detectors in a Haverford Township apartment?
What about apartments above a store?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Haverford
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