What is a "Housing Fire Alarm"?

What is the "housing fire alarm" that must be installed in all houses?

Due to the revision of the Fire Service Act, installation of a housing fire alarm in new homes is mandatory from June 1, 2006. All existing homes were obliged to install by May 31, 2011, and all homes were obliged to install housing fire alarms. There are several types of fire alarms, and the performance will vary slightly depending on the manufacturer. The fire alarm is for your own protection, so make sure you have the correct knowledge and install it properly. Here, we will explain the fire alarm for homes.

Reasons for installing fire alarms in homes
To begin with, a fire alarm is a device that detects a fire and gives an alarm, or the person who discovers the fire operates it to give an alarm. Housing fire alarms come in both power and battery types, and are typically mounted on the ceiling or the top of a wall.
Currently, it is compulsory to install a housing fire alarms in a house, but there is no penalty for not installing it. However, due to the obligatory installation of fire alarms, the number of fatalities due to fire is decreasing year by year. Protect yourself and your family from a fire by thinking why you have to install a fire alarm, rather than simply thinking, “If we don't have any penalties, we don't have to install it.”

Early detection of fire & prevention of escape delay
By installing a fire alarm, you can expect early detection of fire and prevention of escape delay. According to the announcement by the Fire Department, out of the fires that occurred in 2017, accidental fires accounted for 70.5% of the total, and most of them were caused by carelessness and mishandling in handling fire. Cigarette fires are the most common, followed by arson, stove, and bonfire. Tobacco fires are mainly caused by misfires caused by sleeping cigarettes and cigarettes left unlit. Therefore, if a fire can be detected early and the fire can be extinguished early, the damage can be prevented from spreading.

In addition, the cause of the most fatalities in the fire accident that occurred in 2017 was burns, followed by carbon monoxide poisoning, of which 46.8% of the fatalities were “escape delay”. In each case, if you can detect the fire early and escape, you should be able to reduce the damage as much as possible.

About installation place of fire alarm for house
Regarding the installation location of housing fire alarms, in principle, the bedroom and stairs are mandatory under the Fire Service Act, but other installation locations are specified by the municipal regulations.
For example, in Tokyo, housing fire alarms are required to be installed in all rooms, kitchens, and stairs that are used all the time. Be sure to check with the fire department that has jurisdiction over your area when installing.

About fire alarm types
There are several types of fire alarms, and each has different detection timing and alarm method. After understanding the types of fire alarms, let's install a fire alarm suitable for the location.

Smoke type
Smoke-type fire alarms respond to "smoke" and give an alarm when smoke enters the fire alarm. The alarm sound varies depending on the manufacturer of the fire alarm, but in general, it often sounds an alarm such as "It's a fire! It's a fire!". Please install smoke fire alarms in your room, stairs, or corridor.

Thermal type
Thermal fire alarms respond to "heat" and give an alarm when the sensor reaches a certain temperature. The alarm sound is the same as the smoke fire alarm. Thermal fire alarms are suitable for installation in places where smoke type is not suitable, such as kitchen where steam and smoke are generated on a daily basis. However, the type of fire alarm installed in the kitchen may be stipulated by the municipal regulations. Check with your local fire department in advance as well. If not specified, you can install either the smoke type or the thermal type, but the Fire Department recommended installing the smoke type in the kitchen as well since the smoke type can detect a fire earlier.

Flame sensitive
An alarm is issued by detecting the infrared rays and ultraviolet rays contained in the flame. If it is a smoke type or a thermal type, an alarm sound will not be emitted unless it reaches a certain amount of smoke or heat amount, but if it is a flame detection type, it has a wide monitoring range and will detect and notify even a slight flame.

Fire/gas leak reaction type
Some fire alarms are available on the market that detect and inform you of gas leaks. Consider installing a fire/gas leak reactive fire alarm in locations where gas may leak, such as in the kitchen.

Auxiliary alarm device
Since the auxiliary alarm device emits light as well as sound to notify you of a fire, you may consider installing it in people with impaired eyes or ears, or in homes with the elderly.

Let's perform regular maintenance and try to detect fires early
Housing fire alarms are not always safe and secure once installed, and any fire alarm requires maintenance.
The fire alarm has a switch and cord for inspection, so check the operating status as appropriate. If the battery is dead, you will hear a different sound than the alarm sound. If you think the battery is dead, please contact the fire alarm retailer or the manufacturer, or replace it with a new one.
Also, if dust or a spider web is attached to the part that senses smoke, it may not operate properly, such as delaying detection. Be careful to perform maintenance once every six months by wiping the dust off the sensing area with a cloth.