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This paper presents experimental research findings for those involved in the early phase of fire in office buildings. Class A model fires with a reaction area from 5 cm2 to 300 cm2 were chosen for investigation. To mock up a fire, the following combustible materials typical of offices were used: wood pieces, heat-insulated linoleum, paper and cardboard. The main characteristics of a model fire were recorded: temperature in the combustion zone, heat release, time of complete burnout and concentration of flue gas components. Typical trends and histograms of changes of these characteristics over time were presented; stages of ignition, flame combustion and smoldering were illustrated. The key characteristics of fire detector activation at different stages of model fire combustion were analyzed. Dead bands and operation conditions of a group of detectors (smoke, heat, optical, flame), their response time and errors were identified. It has been established that the most effective detectors are flame and smoke detectors. Specific operational aspects of detectors were established when recording the ignition of different types of model fires. The viability of combining at least two detectors to record fire behavior was established. Recommendations were made on using the obtained findings when optimizing the systems for detecting and recording the start of a compartment fire.