How much carbon monoxide is normal

[old and tired]

I would not be trusting a meter from a company that is trying to sell you a furnace... buy a meter.

I could start this same thread but with Radon. If the house sits sealed up, radon builds up but going in and out of the door a few times and it goes down to lower levels (either that or my lungs are filtering it out of the air, ) I bought a $400 radon meter and keep tabs on levels now.

We had a natural gas leak (guessing for 25 years it was leaking), we would open the front door after we were gone for a week and the gas smell would be there but only for a second or two... I would ask my wife, you smell gas? It was gone by the time she got there... finally called the gas company - pressure test showed a leak and they found it with a "sniffer". Wished we would have taken care of this a whole lot sooner...

 

[ultrarunner]

I have seen people take the vent off and operate the furnace for years claiming heat is escaping out of that vent, so I took it off to heat my crawl space.
They things that make you go hummmm LOL

Yes... Water Heater Vent, Furnace Vent and even removed the mica or eisenglass from floor furnaces flame window.

Can't cure stupid...

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

My mistake:confused3:

Yes, CO"2" as in two parts of oxygen. For whatever reason reason, always have a brain fart writing it out because I know mono is 1 and di is two. Kind of embarrassing actually:laughing:

Don't feel bad. It is a very common mistake most people make when talking about it. I hear that from customers all the time when I'm doing walk throughs and inspections. They want to know why the Fire Marshall said they need a "CO2 detector" installed. Lol.

Most fire departments have CO meters that they will bring in and check your house with if you call them. As far as I know any gas company is also required to have them, and come check you if you call them. There are 2 basic types of meters, spot type which measures "instant" or a snap shot of current CO levels, and duration over time meters. I think the FD here uses a spot meter. Most install in place meters use an exposure over time detection type. Most of our installs are of the commercial detector type, that is connected to a fully functional and monitored commercial fire alarm panel. This will automatically dial out to a monitoring service, which will then either call property owner or fire department depending on how it's configured (and if it's a fire or not).

But there are some good quality residential stand alone detectors out as well. I would encourage ANYONE with a gas appliance in their home to have CO detectors installed (or do it yourself, it's not hard).

I tell people all the time that CO is not something to take lightly or screw around with in any way. As Egon says (I agree) it kills every year, and it's extremely preventable.

 

[goeduck]

These COVID days a portable CO2 sensor would be very valuable to tell if a building you go into is inadequately ventilated. Since people exhale CO2 and the COVID virus aerosols I would get the heck out if the levels were high. Most buildings are trying to run on as much outside air as they can but some may not be.

 

[ultrarunner]

Don't feel bad. It is a very common mistake most people make when talking about it. I hear that from customers all the time when I'm doing walk throughs and inspections. They want to know why the Fire Marshall said they need a "CO2 detector" installed. Lol.

Most fire departments have CO meters that they will bring in and check your house with if you call them. As far as I know any gas company is also required to have them, and come check you if you call them. There are 2 basic types of meters, spot type which measures "instant" or a snap shot of current CO levels, and duration over time meters. I think the FD here uses a spot meter. Most install in place meters use an exposure over time detection type. Most of our installs are of the commercial detector type, that is connected to a fully functional and monitored commercial fire alarm panel. This will automatically dial out to a monitoring service, which will then either call property owner or fire department depending on how it's configured (and if it's a fire or not).

But there are some good quality residential stand alone detectors out as well. I would encourage ANYONE with a gas appliance in their home to have CO detectors installed (or do it yourself, it's not hard).

I tell people all the time that CO is not something to take lightly or screw around with in any way. As Egon says (I agree) it kills every year, and it's extremely preventable.

Isn't it the law to have one in a home with combustion? California passed the law in 2010 and at that time there were 25 other states.

California joins twenty-five other states that have adopted some form of requirement for carbon monoxide (CO) alarms in residential construction. Beginning July 1, 2011, at least one CO alarm is required in all existing single-family dwellings with either a fuel-burning heater, fuel-burning appliance, fireplaces or an attached garage. All other single-family dwellings will be required to have at least one CO alarm installed by July 1, 2013. The new law is referred to as the California Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Prevention Act of 2010.

 

[kenmac]

Isn't it the law to have one in a home with combustion? California passed the law in 2010 and at that time there were 25 other states.
.

Not here it isn't. I was in the business for many years. Have gas equipment in my home. I have never owned a CO detector, and wouldn't own one.

In most cases. A gas appliance that's producing CO didn't happen over night. It's usually due to several years neglect (not having your equipment inspected regularly) .

Properly installed flue vents don't usually ''just stop up'' Which would cause the flames to begin to roll around, burn yellow and produce Aldehyde.
You can smell aldehyde, and CO is always present in aldehyde.

I could be wrong, But I would say there have been more people killed by CO, running a generator in their home, than have died from a malfunctioning gas appliance producing CO

In short, everyone with a gas appliance should have it inspected each year. If the appliance is new, no more than every five yrs

 

[grsthegreat]

i have CO detectors in my house, both upstairs and down. cheap insurance.

Newer smoke alarms can be combination units to check for fire, heat rise and CO levels.

i lost a friend from CO poisoning. dont want it to happen again.

 

[kenmac]

My mistake:confused3:

No problem...At 62. I have made my share of mistakes

 

[Dftodd]

All of the CO alarms that I had service calls on were related to fresh air vents being blocked during cold snaps.

The furnace rooms in the condos had a fresh air vents. Drove 4 hours round trip during a snow storm in the middle of the night to remove a diaper from a fresh air vent on one occasion.

The condo complex passed that bill on to the renters.

What most people don't realize is a CO detector needs to be mounted just under the height of your mattress. Carbon monoxide is denser then air and accumulates down low.

I cringe when I'm in the big box stores this time of year and they are selling combo smoke detector/ carbon monoxide detectors.

The carbon monoxide detectors in those units are worthless. You would be dead by the time it goes off.

 

[grsthegreat]

actually, even the fire department says the units high up on ceiling test just fine for CO use.

i have both ceiling mount units and 2 that plug into outlet at lower level.

heres what the EPA says.

Because carbon monoxide is slightly lighter than air and also because it may be found with warm, rising air, detectors should be placed on a wall about 5 feet above the floor. The detector may be placed on the ceiling. Do not place the detector right next to or over a fireplace or flame-producing appliance. Keep the detector out of the way of pets and children. Each floor needs a separate detector. If you are getting a single carbon monoxide detector, place it near the sleeping area and make certain the alarm is loud enough to wake you up.



Should the placement of carbon monoxide (CO) detectors be influenced by CO's weight relative to air? - PubMed