We recommend using an optical smoke alarm in hallways, living rooms, dining rooms and bedrooms, as they are good at detecting smouldering fires from soft furnishings and are less likely to be set off by cooking fumes from a connected kitchen.
Heat alarms are recommended for kitchens and garages as they do not sound false alarms from cooking fumes, vehicle fumes or steam.
Ionisation alarms are being phased out due to the small amount of radioactive material used in the detector chamber. Safelincs recommends optical smoke alarms where ionisation alarms were previously used.
Reviewed: 14/09/2023 (doc:536 V1.0). Our articles are reviewed regularly. However, any changes made to standards or legislation following the review date will not have been considered. Please note that we provide abridged, easy-to-understand guidance. To make detailed decisions about your fire safety provisions, you might require further advice or need to consult the full standards and legislation.
