Sterling Heights, MI Fire Regulations: Smoke Detectors (2026)
Key Facts
- New construction
- Wired power + battery backup
- Battery type
- 10-year sealed lithium
- Applies to
- Multi-family common areas, rentals
- Low-battery signal
- Required
Summary
Sterling Heights' local Fire Code amendments require new-construction smoke alarms to run on building wiring with battery backup, and mandate 10-year sealed lithium batteries in multi-family common areas and rental dwelling units.
907.2.11.6 Power source. In new construction, required smoke alarms shall receive their primary power from the building wiring where such wiring is served from a commercial source and shall be equipped with a battery backup. Smoke alarms with integral strobes that are not equipped with battery back-up shall be connected to an emergency electrical system in accordance with Section
604. Smoke alarms shall emit a signal when the batteries are low. Wiring shall be permanent and without a disconnecting switch other than as required for overcurrent protection. In addition to the requirements of the Housing Law of Michigan, Public Act 167 of 1917 as amended by Public Act 64 of 2004, all residential multi-family properties shall utilize a 10-year lithium sealed battery for the battery backup of smoke alarms in all common areas, and all residential rental properties shall utilize a 10-year lithium sealed battery for the battery backup of smoke alarms in each dwelling unit. The term "residential rental properties" includes, but is not limited to, hotels, motels, bed and breakfast facilities, homes, and other residential spaces offered for use as short-term or long-term dwellings in exchange for payment or other forms of consideration. Exception: Smoke alarms are not required to be equipped with battery backup where they are connected to an emergency electrical system that complies with
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2026 S-46: Local legislation current through Ord. 509, passed 5-19-26).
Full Breakdown
Under IFC § 907.2.11.6 as locally amended, new-construction smoke alarms must draw primary power from building wiring and carry a battery backup, wired without a disconnect switch beyond normal overcurrent protection, and must signal when batteries run low. Alarms with integral strobes lacking battery backup must instead tie into an emergency electrical system. On top of Michigan's Housing Law, the city adds its own battery-type mandate: every residential multi-family property must use 10-year sealed lithium batteries for common-area smoke alarms, and every residential rental property must use the same 10-year sealed lithium battery in each dwelling unit.
Violations & Fines
Violations of the Fire Prevention Code are enforced by the fire code official; under the Code's general penalty (§ 1-9), noncompliance is a misdemeanor punishable by up to a $500 fine and 90 days imprisonment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Sterling Heights require a specific smoke alarm battery?
Can a new home use battery-only smoke alarms?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Sterling Heights
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