Housing provider Gentoo has chosen smoke, heat and carbon monoxide alarms from Kidde Fyrnetics to be installed in its low-energy PassivHaus project.

Consisting of 28 single-storey homes arranged in terraced blocks, the scheme in Houghton-le-Spring, Tyne and Wear incorporates passive solar gain, triple glazed windows and a thermally efficient structure. A mechanical ventilation system provides air quality with heat recovery.

In spite of the absence of fuel-burning appliances in the homes, it was decided to use Kidde Fyrnetics hard-wired CO alarms, interconnected with the company’s Slick range of smoke and heat alarms.

“We consider safety to be an integral part of sustainability and went with guidance from the current Code of Practice, BS 5839 Part 6 for a Category LD2 system, “ said Dave Piggett, managing director of Gentoo Construction.

“This means heat alarms in kitchens and living rooms, as well as a smoke alarm in the hall. Then, we added another heat alarm in the services mezzanine above the hall, which houses electrical control systems for the renewable energy systems. Finally, a CO alarm is included, as no-one can anticipate all the possible sources of carbon monoxide and you simply cannot rely on air blowing through the building with modern, air-tight construction.

Kidde’s Smart Interconnect feature means that when a smoke or heat alarm is triggered, all the interconnected alarms - including CO alarms - activate to alert occupants.

Schematic of a 'PassivHaus'