New Smoke Alarm Regulations in Effect 1/1/2023

Since 1988, smoke alarms have been required in all residential dwellings including, single-family homes, multifamily homes, hotels, rental properties, dormitories, etc. located in Illinois. In 2017, the Illinois Smoke Detector Act was revised to reflect advances in alarm technology. As part of that revision, effective January 1, 2023, any new smoke alarm being installed in a single or multi-family home must feature a 10-year sealed (non-removable) battery. A sealed battery alarm ensures that the power source cannot be removed from the unit and, if properly maintained, will last the life of the device.

Existing non-hardwired, battery-powered smoke alarms must be replaced with a 10-year, sealed battery smoke alarm when it meets any of the following criteria: the unit is 10 years older than the date of manufacture (or there is no manufacture date on the device); the unit is no longer operational or fails to respond to operability tests; or a new device is being installed.

As a reminder, make sure to install smoke alarms on every level of your home, including the basement. There should be an alarm within 15 feet of every sleeping area, and preferably inside all bedrooms. Choose installation locations away from the path of steam from bathrooms and cooking vapors from the kitchen, which can result in false or nuisance alarms.  Smoke alarms should be installed away from windows, doors, or ducts where drafts might interfere with their operation. 

Working smoke alarms double your chances of survival and provide inexpensive protection for you and your family. Since most fatal home fires happen at night when you are asleep and are least able to respond quickly, early warning of a fire is critical. Make sure everyone is your household knows the sound of the smoke alarm and knows what to do if they hear the sound.

We thank all of our residents for practicing fire safety and helping make Elk Grove Village a fire-safe community.

If you have questions about smoke alarm installation or placement, please call the Elk Grove Village Public Education Division at 847-734-8027.

Fire Sprinkler Requirements and Benefits

Elk Grove Village requires an automatic fire sprinkler system for most businesses and all new residential construction homes. Residential alterations that increase the square footage by 50% or more, or for which the construction value exceeds the current home value by 50% or more, also require installation of a fire sprinkler system. The reason? New homes burn eight times faster than older homes, leaving families less time to get out alive.

Fire sprinklers are widely recognized as the single most effective method for fighting the spread of fires early – before they can cause severe injury to people and damage to property, and ahead of the arrival of the fire department. Here is some information on the benefits of fire sprinklers:

• the civilian death rate is 81 percent lower in homes with fire sprinklers than in homes without (NFPA);
• when sprinklers were present, fires were kept to the room of origin 97 percent of the time (NFPA);
• installation of fire sprinklers can provide discounts on insurance premiums

Unlike what you may have seen on tv, when one fire sprinkler head goes off to fight a fire, the entire sprinkler system does NOT activate. Sprinklers react to temperatures in individual rooms. And, the chances of a fire sprinkler accidentally going off are extremely remote.

Concerned about the environment? Consider this: sprinklers reduce the amount of water used to fight a fire by up to 90 percent as well as the air pollution generated by a large fire.

Small Business Fire Sprinkler Tax Incentive

Now is the time to upgrade your building’s fire safety with a fire sprinkler system or a sprinkler retrofit. Federal COVID-19 legislation enacted in May 2020 strengthened Small Business Section 179 expensing to include both new fire sprinkler installation and building retrofits. The tax deduction schedule was significantly reduced, from a 39-year depreciation schedule to the schedule listed below. With the addition of fire protection upgrades in Section 179, congress also increased the annual deduction limit from $500,000 to $1 million.

Under the new Section 179 guidelines, the one year deduction period phases out after 2022. Any new sprinkler system or retrofit completed between September 27, 2017 and December 31, 2022 will be able to be fully expensed in one year. The allowed deduction percentage is as follows:

• 2022: 100%
• 2023: 80%
• 2024: 60%
• 2025: 40%
• 2026: 20%

2027 and after: The depreciation schedule becomes permanently set at 15 years. Contact your tax expert for more information.

The Village will be adopting the NFPA (National Fire Protection Association) recommended standard for fire hydrant marking.  This entails a color-coded system to visually identify the available fire flow capacity of each hydrant.  A firefighter must know how many gallons of water per minute can be produced from a hydrant. Each Village-owned hydrant is flow-tested once every four years.  The results of each test determine the flow rate of each hydrant. The color of the band indicates the test results or flow rate. 

In the coming months, Village staff will be installing reflective bands on each hydrant to correspond with the flow data results of the hydrant flow tests.   A hydrant that has a band will also indicate that the Village owns the hydrant. We do not flow test private hydrants. 

Winter can be beautiful, but it can also be a dangerous time of year. The winter holidays are a prime time for fires due to the presence of Christmas trees, candles, and holiday decorations. In addition, winter weather is unpredictable and can lead to treacherous travel conditions. Below is some important winter safety information.

Winter Fire Safety

Winter Emergency Preparedness