Minnesota Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm Requirements

Smoke alarms and carbon monoxide (CO) alarms are both required in Minnesota homes, but the rules come from different laws and cover different locations. Owners of rental housing carry specific duties for installation and maintenance. This guide summarizes the main requirements for homeowners, landlords and property managers.

This is a plain-language summary, not legal advice. Local fire marshals and the Minnesota State Fire Code may add requirements, so confirm details with your city or the Minnesota State Fire Marshal before a project.

Where does Minnesota require CO alarms?

Minnesota Statutes section 299F.51 requires a carbon monoxide alarm in each dwelling, installed within ten feet of each room lawfully used for sleeping. In practice, one alarm in a hallway outside a group of bedrooms can satisfy the requirement if it is within that distance of each bedroom door. Hotels and lodging houses are held to a different standard that places an alarm in each sleeping room.

CO is a colorless, odorless gas produced by fuel-burning equipment such as furnaces, water heaters, fireplaces and attached-garage vehicles. Cold Minnesota winters mean furnaces and boilers run for months with doors and windows closed, which is why CO alarms matter in this climate.

What do landlords have to do for CO alarms?

For multifamily dwellings, section 299F.51 requires the owner to provide and install one approved and operational CO alarm for each sleeping room, and to replace a required alarm that was stolen, removed or disabled during a prior occupancy and not replaced. The statute also states that no person may remove batteries from, or otherwise disable, a required CO alarm.

The statute includes exceptions for certain multifamily buildings. One allows detectors installed between 15 and 25 feet of CO-producing central equipment when a centralized alarm system can be heard by responsible parties at all times. Another allows an owner of a building with minimal or no CO sources to be exempted by certifying to the commissioner of public safety. Because these exceptions have conditions, owners should read the statute and consult the fire marshal before relying on them.

What does Minnesota require for smoke alarms?

Minnesota Statutes section 299F.362 requires each dwelling unit to have a smoke alarm that meets the State Fire Code and is mounted according to rules set by the commissioner of public safety. The alarm must sound inside the unit where it is installed. Apartments, lodging houses and hotels have similar provisions.

The Minnesota State Fire Marshal summarizes the 2007 State Fire Code as calling for alarms in every sleeping room, outside each sleeping area, and on each level of a home. The same summary notes that alarms installed before July 9, 2007 may stay if they meet code and are properly maintained, and that homes built before August 1, 1989 may use battery-only alarms. Alarm placement and type can vary by building age, so check the current rule for your building.

Landlord and tenant duties

• Where the occupant is not the owner, section 299F.362 states the owner is responsible for maintenance of the smoke alarms.
• An occupant must tell the owner within 24 hours of discovering that a smoke alarm does not work.
• An owner may file inspection and maintenance reports with the local fire marshal as evidence of maintenance.
• An occupant who willfully disables an alarm, resulting in damage or injury, can be charged with a misdemeanor.

A written alarm test log for each unit supports these duties. Owners who schedule unit turnover electrical work can include alarm testing and replacement in each turnover visit, as the electrical turnover checklist does.

Do alarms have to be hardwired and interconnected?

For new dwelling construction, section 299F.362 states that each smoke alarm must be attached to a centralized power source, which means the alarms are hardwired to the building electrical system, typically with battery backup. Interconnected alarms are wired together so that all of them sound when any one detects smoke. This gives people in a bedroom earlier warning of a fire on another floor.

The statute does not address hardwiring for existing homes, so older buildings may legally have battery-only or earlier-generation alarms. When a remodel opens walls and ceilings, adding hardwired, interconnected alarms is straightforward, and the work is often required by the code in force for that project. Contractors performing residential remodels and renovations commonly bring alarm layouts up to current requirements as part of the permit process. Confirm requirements with your local building department.

How old can smoke and CO alarms be?

The Minnesota State Fire Marshal cites NFPA 72, the national fire alarm standard, which states that smoke alarms in dwellings shall not remain in service longer than 10 years after installation. The State Fire Marshal notes that most manufacturers also list 10 years as the maximum service life. Replace any alarm sooner if it fails a test.

CO alarms have a service life set by the manufacturer, and many units sound an end-of-life signal or display a replace-by date. Follow the date and instructions printed on the device rather than a fixed rule. Alarms with sealed, non-replaceable batteries should be replaced as a complete unit at the end of life.

How should owners document alarm compliance?

Keep a record for each unit that lists the alarm locations, the type of each alarm, the manufacture or installation date, and the date and result of each test. Record the battery change date for battery-powered units. Section 299F.362 allows an owner to file inspection and maintenance reports with the local fire marshal as evidence of maintenance.

Tenant notices also belong in the file. When a tenant reports a nonfunctioning alarm, write down the date and time of the report and the date it was repaired. A clear record shows that the owner met the maintenance duty and responded to the report.

Where should alarms be placed?

• Place smoke alarms inside each bedroom, in the hallway outside sleeping areas, and on every level, including the basement.
• Mount smoke alarms on the ceiling or high on a wall, following the manufacturer's instructions.
• Place CO alarms within ten feet of each sleeping room door, as the statute requires, and follow the manufacturer's height guidance.
• Keep alarms away from kitchen cooking appliances and bathroom steam, which cause false alarms, within the limits the manufacturer states.
• Do not paint over alarms, cover them, or remove them after nuisance alarms.

Next steps

A licensed electrician can survey a home or building, install hardwired and interconnected units, and document the layout. Our team installs smoke and CO detectors in homes and rental properties, and can combine alarm work with unit turnover electrical work. For multi-unit buildings, see how multi-family electrical services can include alarm programs. To plan a project, request a quote.