Carbon Dioxide Detectors

For several decades now, smoke detectors have been recognized as an essential home safety device. So much so that most states require new homes to have hard-wired smoke detectors installed when the house is built.

Carbon dioxide detectors save lives. Be sure to have at least one installed in your home and check the batteries regularly.

The latest safety device gaining traction is the carbon monoxide detector. Currently, 24 states have statutes requiring carbon monoxide detectors in certain residential buildings. As of July 1, a new California state law mandates that homes with attached garages or fossil-fuel heating systems must have carbon monoxide detectors installed. In Virginia, tenants are allowed to install carbon monoxide detectors in rental properties to ensure their safety and Texas requires carbon monoxide detectors in certain day-care centers, group day-care homes, and family homes.

Just like fire, carbon monoxide (CO) can be a killer. Unlike fire, it works invisibly. An odorless gas, high levels of carbon monoxide can be fatal within a matter of minutes. CO is produced whenever any fuel such as gas, oil, kerosene, wood, or charcoal is burned. If appliances that burn these fuels are properly maintained and used correctly, the amount of CO produced is typically not dangerous. However, if appliances are malfunctioning or are misused, deadly levels of CO can result. Fetuses, infants, the elderly, and people with anemia or with a history of heart or respiratory disease are particularly vulnerable.

Every year hundreds of people die from accidental CO poisoning, typically caused by fuel-burning appliances. Exposure to carbon monoxide can cause breathing difficulties, impaired judgment, memory loss, nervous system impairment, cardiac trauma, brain damage, coma and death.

The symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning, which are often mistaken for the flu, include dizziness, fatigue, weakness, throbbing headache, nausea, vomiting, irregular breathing, sleepiness and confusion. Often, people are overcome before they realize what is happening, preventing them from leaving or calling for help.

If you ever suspect your symptoms could be caused by carbon monoxide, go outside immediately or open all the windows and doors to allow fresh air in. Turn off all combustion appliances and leave the house.

It’s also a good idea to have such appliances— oil and gas furnaces, gas water heaters, gas ranges and ovens, gas dryers, gas or kerosene space heaters, fireplaces, and wood stoves—regularly inspected to ensure they are working properly. Also, follow basic safety precautions, such as never using a gas oven to heat your home, even for a short time; never use a charcoal grill indoors, even in a fireplace; don’t use any gasoline-powered engines (mowers, weed trimmers, snow blowers, chain saws, small engines or generators) in enclosed spaces; and never sleep in any room with an unvented gas or kerosene space heater.

While a carbon monoxide detector can be a life saver, it should not be considered a replacement for the proper use and maintenance of your fuel-burning appliances.