It's not a big deal to install wired smoke detectors, especially on the big remodeling job assuming everything will be open. As the price goes ask your electrician, each job is different and everybody charges different rates.

I doubt you will talk your building department from using them because this is the code.

R314.3 Location. Smoke alarms shall be

installed in the following locations:

1. In each sleeping room.

2. Outside each separate sleeping area in the immediate vicinity of the bedrooms.

3. On each additional story of the dwelling, including basements and habitable attics but not including crawl spaces and uninhabitable attics. In dwellings or dwelling units with split levels and without an intervening door between the adjacent levels, a smoke alarm installed on the upper level shall suffice for the adjacent lower level provided that the lower level is less than one full story below the upper level.

You also have to add in one- and two-family dwelling carbon monoxide alarm that should be installed in the immediate vicinity of each sleeping area when the building contains a fuel burning appliance or has an attached garage. Carbon monoxide alarms may be placed anywhere on the ceiling or the wall.

If it’s code to have wired smoke detectors, then its code and their requirement. There isnt a way to bypass it. The city doesnt care how cost prohibitive it is for you.

Eight years ago I had all new windows installed. When the permit was pulled for that I had to install battery smoke detectors in all the bedrooms and some additional ones elsewhere and a co2.. Had to replace that with a new one. I've heard since then they changed code to wired ones. It's code you have to do it.

The exact code language says this, under section R314.4, Exception 2:Hard wiring of smoke alarms in existing areas shall not be required where the alterations or repairs do not result in the removal of interior wall or ceiling finishes exposing the structure, unless there is an attic, crawl space or basement available which could provide access for hard wiring without the removal of interior finishes.

Do you have a home security system? You may be able to get them attached to that.

I have a Gemini wired security system. Some of my detectors are wired, two of them are wireless. The security system has a wireless transmitter, that monitors the two wireless detectors. The detectors have two batteries (one for backup). The security system communicates to all the detectors.

Other options - Check out this at Home Depot

"It's very standard in many localities to have such requirements. If you
have an existing home that doesn't meet the standard, you don't have to
do anything as long as you're not remodeling"

Might be true in CT, but not true here in Maryland. Depending on when your home was built, here you may be required to have specific types of detectors.

My home was built in 1973 without any type of smoke/fire detectors. I had installed battery powered ones to satisfy the law in the 1990s.

Effective January 1 of this year I had to replace those detectors with detectors with ten year batteries. No choice.

Any home built or adding an additional floor now must have an installed Sprinkler System. I do not know the rquirement if doing other major renovatins as far as sprinklers go.

SaltiDawg-

How do they enforce a law to have 10 year batteries in smoke detectors if you're not remodeling and they don't have that reason to inspect your property?

Just wire the darn things. It's a negligible part of your overall project cost.

Some codes are overkill and annoying; this one is actually not a bad idea. Even if you COULD get out of it, why would you want to?

"How do they enforce a law to have 10 year batteries in smoke detectors
if you're not remodeling and they don't have that reason to inspect your
property?"

Oh wow!

How do they enforce Code on any modification or requirement if they do not have a reason to inspect?

Same for old wired sensors - they also need to have the 10 year battery units retroactively.

I viewed it as "good law" and replaced my four battery detectors with 10 year battery detectors.

!@#$%^ I'll probably forget to set my clocks ahead this Spring when I used to change my batteries.

MD Smoke Detectors

Salti-

So, if I'm understanding you correctly, there is no mechanism to ensure that you do it...you just did it because you thought it was a good thing to do?

I'n not arguing for doing it or not. I was just trying to figure out if they had an army of inspectors going door-to-door, or if they had some kind of enforcement through your home insurance policy, or if it was really just a "requirement" without any teeth in it unless you were remodeling.

I did it because it is a requirement, not because it was a good thing to do.

And again I say, "How do they enforce Code ON ANY modification or requirement if they do not have a reason to inspect?"

This is no different then any code requirement, even if no inspection is called for.

Other ways that it would be found out is when you sell, when the Insurance Company doesn't pay. When family members don't come to the funeral nor look you in the eye after the fire.

In many jurisdictions here, the Fire Department will provide and install the new code compliant detectors at no cost. (They likely seen the results of faulty or non-existent detectors.)

To challenge a safety improvement/requirement seems something that a rational person would not do.

PS If you go to sell your home, you would have to disclose the fact that the Fire Detectors were not current code compliant. If you were not aware, the Realtor surely would be. If not, the Home Inspector would not leave him self open to future litigation should a non-compliant house he inspected were sold and subsequently a fire was shown to have been made worse by faulty ire Detectors.

Salti-

I'm not challenging it. In fact, I used to be responsible for certain types of code enforcement at an electric utility, so I'm aware of many of the approaches to getting people to do things that don't lend themselves to being easily checked. I was just curious whether you had some kind of enforceable requirement, and, if so, how it worked, or if it depended on voluntary compliance.

Maybe we're having a terminology misunderstanding here. In my experience, you can't enforce code if there is no mechanism in place to check on compliance. It would be like having speed limits, but knowing there were no cops around to give tickets to violators. Some people will obey the law, but many will ignore it if they believe there are no consequences. That's all...

The Maryland law change is a little more complicated than previously explained. If you have a wired smoke detector newer than 1978 or a battery powered detector less than 10 years old, you do not have to instal the new 10 year sealed battery detectors.

They have not added any new compliance inspections, so if you don't renovate or sell your house, or don't have an incident (e.g., a fire) there would be no event that forces you to change. It is definitely a good idea, but I'm sure many folks out there have not done the upgrade yet.

Bruce