# Basement suite maintenance, from the alarms to the drains The unit below grade floods first, shares the furnace, and needs its alarms tested every time the tenant changes. We cover all three. A basement or secondary suite is a second home inside a house, sharing its foundation, its furnace and often its exits. That is why the Fire Code treats a two unit house as its own case, and why the unit below grade takes the first hit from water. ## When the Fire Code's two unit rules apply Section 9.8 of the Fire Code covers a detached, semi detached or row house with two residential units, three storeys or less and no more than 600 square metres in building area, where one unit is above the other or both share an interior exit. It sets requirements for fire separations and exits between the units. Chapter 629 adds that a basement is only used as a dwelling unit where the use is otherwise permitted by law (section 629-25). ## The alarms are the landlord's job, and we test them every turnover In a rental suite the Fire Code makes the landlord, including an agent acting for them, responsible for smoke and carbon monoxide alarms: - **Where smoke alarms go.** In the hallway serving the bedrooms, or between the sleeping area and the rest of the unit, and on each storey without a bedroom. - **When smoke alarms are tested.** Every year, after every change in tenancy, after a battery change, and after any change to the circuit. - **Where CO alarms go.** Next to each sleeping area and on each storey without one where the suite has a fuel burning appliance, flue or fireplace, plus the service room when a furnace there shares a wall or floor with the suite. - **When CO alarms are tested.** Every year and after every change in tenancy, with the manufacturer's maintenance instructions given to the tenant. We test both at each turnover and record the result, with a photo of each alarm, on the job. ## Water gets there first A suite below grade floods from three directions: the sewer, the foundation and the window wells. Toronto's Basement Flooding Protection Subsidy Program helps the registered owner of a single family home, duplex, triplex or fourplex pay for backwater valves, a sump pump and battery backup, and a home plumbing assessment. The downspouts have to be disconnected from the City sewer, the contractor needs a City business licence, and a backwater valve needs a building permit and inspection before it is covered over. We itemize the invoices the way the City asks, so the owner can apply. See [waterproofing](https://roundhousegroup.ca/services/waterproofing/). ## One furnace, two units A shared furnace makes a no heat call two tenancies at once. Where the owner supplies the heat, Toronto requires at least 21 degrees Celsius in all areas of each unit from October 1 to May 15. A furnace serving the suite from outside it also brings the carbon monoxide alarm rule into play, so every furnace service visit includes a check of those alarms. Plumbing, electrical, major appliance and heating or cooling failures, lockouts, and a door that will not lock. These are answered 24/7 by phone and text; this website is not an emergency line. ## Related pages - [What does an Ontario landlord have to do about smoke and carbon monoxide alarms?](https://roundhousegroup.ca/answers/carbon-monoxide-and-smoke-alarms-ontario-rentals/) - [What should a landlord do when a rental basement floods in Toronto?](https://roundhousegroup.ca/answers/basement-flooding-rental-toronto/) - [Waterproofing](https://roundhousegroup.ca/services/waterproofing/) ## Questions ### How often does a landlord have to test the smoke alarms in a basement apartment? Every year and after every change in tenancy, under Article 6.3.3.8 of the Fire Code. Battery operated alarms are also tested after the battery is replaced, and hard wired alarms after any change to the circuit. ### Does a basement apartment need a carbon monoxide alarm? If the suite has a fuel burning appliance, flue or fireplace, yes, next to each sleeping area and on each storey without one. If the furnace sits in a service room outside the suite but shares a wall or floor with it, the Fire Code also requires alarms in the service room and next to the suite's sleeping areas. ### Can a Toronto landlord get a City subsidy for a backwater valve? The registered owner of a single family home, duplex, triplex or fourplex can apply for a subsidy toward backwater valves, a sump pump, a battery backup and a home plumbing assessment, if the downspouts are disconnected and the contractor holds a City business licence. ### Does the Fire Code two unit section apply to every basement apartment? It applies to a detached, semi detached or row house with two residential units, three storeys or less, no more than 600 square metres in building area, where one unit sits above the other or the two share an interior exit. ### Do you certify a basement suite as legal? No. We do not certify suites. When a repair opens a wall or ceiling between the units, the trade restores the assembly the way it was built, and we note it on the record. ## Sources - [O. Reg. 213/07, Fire Code, Articles 2.13.2.1, 2.16.2.1, 6.3.3.8, 6.3.4.4, 6.3.4.5, 6.3.4.8 and Section 9.8](https://www.ontario.ca/laws/regulation/070213) - [City of Toronto, Basement Flooding Protection Subsidy Program](https://www.toronto.ca/services-payments/water-environment/managing-rain-melted-snow/basement-flooding/basement-flooding-protection-subsidy-program/) - [Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 629, Property Standards, section 629-25](https://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/municode/1184_629.pdf) - [City of Toronto, indoor temperatures in apartment units](https://www.toronto.ca/community-people/housing-shelter/rental-housing-rights-information/housing-property-standards/indoor-temperatures-in-apartment-units/) We only use ECRA/ESA-Licensed Electrical Contractors.