Consumer Rights PDF
Loss Prevention
The Protector
Safety Tips
----- Carbon Monoxide Detectors
----- Fire Extinguishers
----- Home Heating
----- Home Oil Tanks
----- Recreational Boating PDF
----- Smoke Detectors

WHAT IS CARBON MONOXIDE?

CO is a colorless, odorless and tasteless gas that can be deadly. Carbon monoxide (CO) is a by-product of incomplete combustion and is produced when natural gas, propane, heating oil, kerosene, coal, charcoal, gasoline or wood burn with insufficient air.

POTENTIAL SOURCES OF CO IN YOUR HOME

Gas or Oil Furnace

• Leaky pipe or flue
• Cracked heat exchanger

Gas or Kerosene Space Heater

Wood Stove

Fireplace

• Blocked or clogged chimney

Attached Garage

• Running car
• Operating barbeque

Gas Water Heater

• Corroded / disconnected vent pipe

Gas Appliances

• Stove, clothes dryer, refrigerator

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It doesn't matter if your home is old or new; almost every home has a potential source of carbon monoxide. Older home are susceptible because of malfunctioning appliances and faulty ventilation. However, today's energy-wise, tightly sealed homes may be even more at risk.

WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU BREATHE IN CO?

When you breathe air containing carbon monoxide, the gas is absorbed into your bloodstream, where it displaces and replaces the oxygen molecules that your cells need to function. As the level of CO in your blood accumulates, vital organs, your heart and brain become deprived of oxygen. To compensate, your heart rate increases, breathing may become difficult and cardiac trauma, brain damage, coma and even death may result.

WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF CO POISONING?

Few poisons strike more secretly or are as lethal as carbon monoxide.

Early Warning Signs

• Headaches
• Dizziness
• Nausea
• Fatigue
• Flu-like symptoms

Many people confuse these symptoms with those of the flu or the start of a cold. Because victims of CO poisoning will slip deeper into unconsciousness as their CO condition gets worse, we recommend you install a carbon monoxide alarm in or near each sleeping area in your home.

PREVENTION IS YOUR BEST PROTECTION

1. Have your furnace and fuel-burning appliances inspected by a qualified technician annually
2. Have your chimney and flue cleaned professionally
3. Make sure burner flames on furnaces and stoves are blue - not yellow-orange.
4. Never run an automobile or gasoline engine in an enclosed space.
5. Install a carbon monoxide alarm in or near each sleeping area in your home.

WHERE TO INSTALL YOUR CO ALARM

The Consumer Product Safety Commission recommends that every home be equipped with at least one carbon monoxide alarm near the primary sleeping area of the home. For extra protection, place one CO alarm on each level of your home. Because CO mixes freely with air, it doesn't need to be mounted near the ceiling. Unlike smoke alarms, CO alarms can be placed at any height in your home from the floor to the ceiling.

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Excerpt from OMIA web site.
Last updated August 24, 2000.