Where to Put Smoke Alarms: UK Placement Guide

Which rooms need which alarm

• Hallways and landings (every storey): smoke alarm — your escape route is the non-negotiable position
• Living room: smoke alarm — the most common room of fire origin in dwellings
• Kitchen: heat alarm, never a smoke alarm — triggers on fire, not toast
• Bedrooms: recommended where occupants sleep with doors closed, where fires could start (chargers, heaters), and for anyone who might not hear a landing alarm
• Garage: heat alarm
• Loft conversions: smoke alarm on the new storey's landing
• Bathrooms: nothing — steam plus smoke alarms equals false alarms

Exact positioning rules

• Ceiling mounting, as close to the centre of the room/hall as practical — smoke rises and pools at the highest point
• At least 30cm from walls, corners, light fittings and decorative beams (dead-air zones slow response)
• Smoke alarms at least 3m from kitchen and bathroom doors to dodge cooking fumes and steam
• On sloped ceilings: within 60cm of the apex measured vertically, not in the apex's dead-air tip
• Away from air vents, fans, and directly above radiators — moving air delays smoke reaching the sensor
• Interlinked: when one sounds, all sound — radio-linked sealed units make this retrofit-easy with no wiring

What do the regulations actually require?

England (rented homes): the Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm Regulations require a smoke alarm on every storey with living accommodation and a CO alarm in rooms with fixed combustion appliances. New-build dwellings: Building Regulations require mains-powered interlinked alarms (BS 5839-6 Grade D1), typically LD3 as minimum with LD2 widely specified — hall/landing plus living room and kitchen heat. Scotland goes further for all homes: interlinked alarms in living room, hallways and landings plus kitchen heat alarm. Owner-occupiers in England aren't compelled by law — but the LD2 layout above is what we'd fit in our own homes.