How Many Alarms To Install-Categories & Grades; Fire Risk Assessment; Categories Of System - Ei Electronics Ei141 Installation Instructions Manual

2. HOW MANY ALARMS TO INSTALL
- CATEGORIES & GRADES -
The advice here follows the guidance in British Standard
BS 5839-Part 6: 2004 in general (for further information
see the BS standard itself).
The main reason for fitting Smoke & Heat Alarms in
dwellings is to ensure that when there is a fire, sufficient
early warning is given so that everybody can escape
safely.
This means that the fire alarms should ideally be located
near all potential sources of fires and that the alarm
should be heard throughout the house – particularly in
the bedrooms.
It is also important that nuisance/false alarms are
minimised to ensure the units are not disabled or
ignored.
The BS standard gives guidance on:
- how many alarms to install
- what type of alarm to use
- where to position alarms
The above points will depend on the type of dwelling to
be protected and the level of fire risk.

Fire Risk Assessment

The 'Grade' and 'Category' of system that should be
installed depends on the fire risk. The risk assessment
is based on a combination of probabilities:
- fire occurring
- injury or death to occupant
- system operating correctly with a fire
- early detection and warning to occupants in the event
of a fire.
The greater the risks, the more comprehensive and
reliable systems are needed.

2.1 Categories of System

There are three Categories of LD systems for Life
protection in Dwellings that can be installed, depending
on the fire risk and regulations.
Please see following pages for detailed information.
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