Notice: This site currently shows the 2012/2017 edition of the Ontario Building Code. The current legally effective code is the 2024 edition (O.Reg. 163/24), in effect since January 1, 2025. Confirm current requirements at ontario.ca.

The Ontario Building Code | Rooms and Spaces Requiring Heat Detectors or Smoke Detectors

9.10.18.4. Rooms and Spaces Requiring Heat detectors or Smoke detectors

(1) Where a fire alarm system is required, every public corridorin buildings of residential occupancy and every exit stair shaft shall be provided with smoke detectors.

(2) Except as provided in Sentence (3), if a fire alarm system is required in a building, fire detectors shall be installed in the following spaces:

(a) storage rooms not within dwelling units,

(b) service roomsnot within dwelling units,

(c) janitors’ rooms,

(d) rooms in which hazardous substances are to be used or stored,

(e) elevator hoistways, chutes and dumbwaiter shafts, and

(f) laundry rooms in buildings of residential occupancy, except those within dwelling units.

(3) Except as required in Sentence (4), heat detectors and smoke detectors described in Sentence (2), are not required in dwelling units or in sprinklered buildings in which the sprinkler system is electrically supervised and equipped with a water flow alarm.

(4) Where a fire alarm system is required in a hotel, heat detectors shall be installed in every room in a suite and in every room not located in a suite in a floor areacontaining a hotel, other than washrooms within a suite, saunas, refrigerated areas and swimming pools.

In Plain Language

Certain rooms and spaces require heat detectors or smoke detectors as set out in this article, targeting locations where fire is more likely to start or spread undetected.

This is a plain-language summary of the 2012/2017 Ontario Building Code text above, for general understanding only and not a substitute for the Code. Always confirm current requirements against the 2024 edition (O.Reg. 163/24) or a qualified professional before construction.