| Winter Heating Safety Alert: Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Prevention
Carbon monoxide (known by the chemical symbol CO) is a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas that is poisonous to people and animals, because it displaces oxygen in the blood.
Every year hundreds of Americans die from CO produced by fuel-burning appliances—furnaces, fireplaces, gas cooking stoves, water heaters, space heaters, clothes dryers. Others die from CO produced while burning charcoal inside a home, garage, vehicle or tent, or from CO produced by cars left running in attached garages. Thousands of people are treated at ERs for CO poisoning each year.
Symptoms of CO poisoning
The initial symptoms of CO poisoning are similar to the flu (without fever). The most common symptom is headache. Others include fatigue, shortness of breath, nausea and dizziness. At higher concentrations, people can experience impaired vision and coordination, as well as irritability. Eventually, people can become lethargic, lapse into unconsciousness and die.
Everyone is at risk, but people with low red blood counts, heart or respiratory ailments as well as infants are at greater risk.
The American Red Cross recommends that everyone install CO detectors/alarms in homes and recreational vehicles.
•Make sure the CO alarm you buy is listed with Underwriter's Laboratories (UL), standard 2034, or that the package/manual indicates that it meets the IAS 6-96 standard.
•NYC law requires that a CO detector/alarm be installed in the hallway near every separate sleeping area of your home. Make sure the detector/alarm is not and cannot be covered up by furniture/draperies. Avoid corners which prevent air from circulating.
•Install CO detectors/alarms in boats, motor homes and towable recreational vehicles that have a generator or are prepped for a generator.
What can you do to prevent CO poisoning?
•Have appliances installed by professionals according to manufacturer's instructions and local building codes. Note: A CO detector/alarm is no substitute for proper use and upkeep of appliances that can produce CO.
•Refer to the owner's manual when performing minor adjustments or servicing fuel-burning appliances.
•Have your heating system (including chimneys and vents) inspected and serviced annually. Check chimneys and flues for blockages, corrosion, partial and complete disconnections, and loose connections.
•Burn charcoal only outdoors, never inside a home, garage, vehicle or tent.
•Never use portable fuel-burning camping equipment inside a home, garage, vehicle or tent.
•Never try to heat your home with gas appliances such as ranges, ovens or clothes dryers.
•If you use a fuel-burning appliance approved for indoor uses (such as a heater), make sure it is vented to the outdoors.
•Always turn off any gas-powered engine—car, truck, motorcycle, ATV, lawn mower, chain saw or generator—inside an attached garage or basement. Even if the garage door is open, you can still be affected or killed by CO.
What should you do if you experience symptoms of CO poisoning?
•Don't ignore early signs—if you do nothing, you could lose consciousness and die. If you think you are experiencing symptoms of CO poisoning, get fresh air immediately—open windows and doors for ventilation, turn off combustion appliances and leave your home.
•Call 911 from a neighbor's home and report your symptoms. Then contact a doctor immediately for a proper diagnosis. Prompt medical attention is urgent.
•DO NOT reenter your home until emergency-services responders give you permission. Before turning fuel-burning appliances back on, have a qualified serviceperson check them for malfunction.
•When the CO detector/alarm sounds, always treat it as a real emergency. If you are not experiencing symptoms described above, press the reset button. If the alarm continues to sound, leave your home immediately, then follow the steps above.
Test CO detector/alarms regularly
Make sure batteries are working. Replace spent batteries. |
