Recently, a fire occurred in an 11-story apartment that primarily housed elderly people, although it was not labeled as a senior living building. Six people died and multiple people were injured as a result of the fire. Constructed sometime in the 1960s, the building owners had its fire alarm system replaced about 7 years ago. A report stated that many of the occupants delayed exiting the building because the system, which reportedly operated correctly during the fire, had initiated numerous false alarms in the past. The media quoted many residents as saying they initially took their time evacuating because they were accustomed to false alarms.


This incident raises many questions, including whether elderly people—some with mobility issues—should live in an unsprinklered, 11-story building? I will leave that question for others to argue. 


However, you, as a professional contractor, must understand the importance of installing a fire alarm system in any multifamily residential complex, especially when retrofitting or upgrading a system that serves occupants who may need more time to evacuate.


Your profession is all about life safety. When replacing an existing fire alarm system, look at the requirements for the replacement based on current codes. Never make the common mistake of selling a one-for-one replacement, putting new devices and appliances in the same locations as the old equipment. It may be inexpensive because you can reuse the existing wiring and raceway infrastructure. But, even assuming the existing system worked properly before, you’re demonstrating a lot of confidence that the infrastructure has retained its reliability.


Why should a one-for-one replacement concern you, since the system must have met the code when originally installed? That might be mistaken for two reasons: a change in the code since installation or a change in the occupancy.


Never assume the system met the code when it was installed. The codes—and maybe the use or occupancy of the building—have changed since the original installation. Maybe the owner had the system installed voluntarily before the building codes required a fire alarm system for the particular occupancy or use. Perhaps the age of the occupants in the apartments has changed over the years.


A typical one-for-one replacement of the audible appliances assumes the current system met the code requirements. If you make that assumption, I suspect your acceptance test for audibility would fail. Then, it becomes pretty hard to make a claim for a change order for additional audible appliances when you promised the customer an installation that would meet the code.


If you installed the replacement system in an existing apartment building, how would you ensure that it met the code-required minimum sound level of 75 decibels measured at the pillow level in each bedroom if you did not carefully review the previous locations of the audible notification appliances? You will not achieve that sound level from the audible appliances installed in the hallway.


If the building has an elderly population, it becomes even more important to install the low-frequency sounders in each bedroom, although the code now requires these regardless of the occupants’ age. Also, what about visible appliances? The requirements for strobe placement have changed and, depending on the existing appliance placement, you may need to install additional visible notification appliances to meet the new code requirements.


Before you start any installation where you intend to replace an existing fire alarm system, determine the false alarm experience and operational reliability of the existing system. Review the smoke detector locations and determine compliance with the code-required spacing and location. Determine whether the environment surrounding the existing locations cause the smoke detectors to become prone to false alarms.


If a customer asks you to evaluate an existing fire alarm system for potential replacement, you cannot perform that evaluation strictly based on equipment. The owner may insist that all past false alarms occurred because of equipment issues and that replacing the system with new equipment from a different manufacturer will solve the false alarm problems. Don’t base your judgment on such an assumption.


If you install any major brand of UL-listed fire alarm equipment, the equipment will not generate false alarms. In virtually all cases, poor design, installation and maintenance cause false alarms.


As a professional fire alarm contractor, you need to take the responsibility and invest the time to completely review the existing fire alarm system and everything that could affect the system design before agreeing to take the easy out of a one-for-one replacement.


As shown in the example at the beginning of this article, always keep in mind that false alarms can lead to a loss of life. What you do is important.