What Type of Fire Alarm Should I Get For My HMO?

By Matthew Moody | Property Investing

Oct 17

Its a question I often get asked and to be honest, it depends on the type of HMO you have.

The main guidelines I would give you are:

Under 2-storey and less than 5 people – a normal smoke detector in hall and landings on both floors plus a heat detector in the kitchen together with fire blankets and fire extinquishers.

Over 2-storeys and more than 5 people – a Grade A LD2 system that meets BS5839 Park 6 standard with fire blankets and fire extinquishers.

What is a Grade A LD2 system – well I’ve leave it to my friends over at Wire-Free Protection to give you the jist in a non-technical easy-to-read format.

http://www.w-fp.co.uk/blog/hmos-houses-in-multiple-occupation/

Suffice to say; always shop around for fire quotes and get at least 5 – you’ll be surprised at the difference in price.  I generally pay less than £3,500 but have had quotes for up to £7,500.  A little birdie has put me in contact with a new supplier who claims to be able to install for less than £1,500 so I’m investigating and will let you know once I know more.

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About the Author

Matthew founded Your HMO Expert in 2006 and since then have provided the authoritative place on the web to come to find out how HMO Property Investment works and how you can get started.

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(2) comments

Helen March 22, 2011

Hello. We have just bought a 4 bed house and are going to let it as an HMO. The house is on 3 levels and we will have 4 tenants. No cooking facilities in any bedrooms, shared lounge, dining room and kitchen. Professional tenants, no DSS or children. Have read the LACORS document and think alarm coverage Grade D LD2 would suffice, but council want Grade A LD2 which is of course much more expensive. As we are not over 5 tenants, who is right? Thanks.

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Matthew Moody May 2, 2011

Helen, you’ll ideally need a mains interlinked detector but without a fire panel. Thus Grade D should suffice as you only have 4 tenants.

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