Kitsap County, WA Fire Regulations: Smoke Detectors (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing chapter
- KCC Ch. 14.10, existing multi-family buildings
- Deadline
- Installed by July 1, 2000
- Device type
- Approved photoelectric smoke detector
- Location required
- All sleeping areas
- Applies to
- Level I, II and III Group R Div. 1 buildings
- Enforcing official
- Kitsap County fire marshal ("chief")
- Jurisdiction
- Unincorporated Kitsap County only
Summary
Kitsap County requires owners of existing multi-family Group R, Division 1 buildings, hotels, motels, apartments, condos and congregate residences of three or more units, to install photoelectric smoke detectors in every sleeping area and certify compliance to the fire marshal. The rule applies only in unincorporated Kitsap County.
On or before July 1, 2000, the owner shall install in all sleeping areas of all Level I, Level II and Level III buildings, an approved, listed photoelectric device which senses visible or invisible particles of combustion. Such devices may be battery powered. Using approved forms, the owner shall certify to the chief that the devices have been installed as required in this section and are working properly.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4864424; v0 updated 2025-12-08; through 12-08-2025).
Full Breakdown
10 of the Kitsap County Code, "Fire and Life Safety Requirements for Existing Multi-Family Residential Buildings," sets smoke detector, alarm, evacuation and inspection standards for existing Group R, Division 1 buildings, defined as hotels, motels, apartment buildings, congregate residences and condominiums. The chapter sorts covered buildings into three tiers: Level I (fewer than three floors, more than four units), Level II (three or more floors, fewer than seventeen units) and Level III (three or more floors, seventeen or more units). 030, owners of every Level I, II and III building had to install, in all sleeping areas, an approved, listed photoelectric device that senses visible or invisible combustion particles by July 1, 2000; battery-powered units are allowed.
Owners must certify to the fire marshal, using approved forms, that the devices are installed and working. 080 requiring a minimum score of 80 points within ten years of the December 6, 1999 ordinance. 090 depends on meeting the smoke detector requirement along with the chapter's other standards. This chapter, and the smoke detector mandate within it, governs only unincorporated Kitsap County; Bremerton, Port Orchard, Poulsbo and Bainbridge Island enforce their own fire codes.
Violations & Fines
The chapter does not set a standalone smoke-detector penalty; a building without the required certified photoelectric detectors fails to qualify for the Section 14.10.090 certificate of compliance and remains subject to the annual fire marshal inspection under Section 14.10.070. Owners of Level III buildings that also miss the 80-point fire safety matrix score can be referred to the Dangerous Buildings Code (Chapter 14.04) for repair, rehabilitation, demolition or removal action by the chief.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Kitsap County require smoke detectors in single-family homes?
What kind of smoke detector satisfies Section 14.10.030?
Who enforces the smoke detector requirement?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Kitsap County
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