November 9th, 2009 | 
Author: If your home is at risk for carbon monoxide poisoning, you need to read this article. Inside this article, you will learn how serious that danger of Carbon Monoxide can be at home and at work. Around the world, more people of all ages succumb to Carbon Monoxide Poisoning, more than from any other form of poisoning.
What makes CO such a danger is that it is an unseen gas that has no odor, taste, or color. You can quickly become ill from exposure to it without any warning signs what so ever. According to government sources, on average, about 170 families in the United States die every year from CO produced by non-automotive consumer products.
The dangerous effect of inhaling CO results from the way it attacks the hemoglobin. Once inside the lungs, CO will attach itself to hemoglobin more quickly than oxygen can. Without an adequate supply of oxygen, the body’s organs will begin to fail and eventually result in death. Early warning signs of poisoning include headaches, fatigue and nausea, all of which can easily be mistaken for influenza.
More serious symptoms include feeling dizzy, weakness, vomiting, shortness of breath and chest pain. The symptoms for very young children include being agitated and loss of appetite. Other serious symptoms include convulsion,extreme respiratory distress and death.
Having a detailed family emergency plan is an important safeguard in family safety. For CO poisoning prevention, the plan should state who is responsible for assisting children and any frail and elderly family members from the home in an alarm goes off. If you use fuel-burning space heaters and furnaces to heat your home during the winter, you should have them serviced for proper operation before using them. Using a charcoal grill or generator inside the home is extremely dangerous and should never be allowed.
Many models operate on external electricity and are hard wired into the home’s electrical system. Therefore, it is important that the CO Detector you purchase have a back-up battery alarm. These devices save lives by making a warning signal when CO levels are dangerously high. When the warning sound is heard, someone inside the home can start the family emergency plan, open up any nearby windows and doors, and make sure that everyone inside is safely relocated outside. There are different models available, but all of them require AC, DC, or both for electricity. CO Detectors are equipped with sensors that monitor the level of CO in the air and trigger a warning sound if danger levels are reached. There are four forms of sensors available with different cost, accuracy and speed of response. Like smoke and fire alarms, you should check these safety devices for UL certification when buying.
The combination of smoke, fire and CO detectors provide the best all-around protection. Multiple smoke and fire alarms, plus CO detectors will always provide better protection than just one device. Installing a CO detector with a memory feature is a good investment, even though it will cost more than basic models. Installing a CO detector is easy to accomplish, just remember to keep the manufacturer’s instruction sheet on file for future reference. You should also remember to replace the batteries at least once a year, or as the manufacturer recommends. After installation, and every six-months thereafter, test the detector according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Always seeking to incorporate new technology as it becomes available, some new detector models include a wireless monitoring feature that links the detector to a vibrating pillow pad. Other features include strobe lights and even a remote warning handset.
So there you have it, there a plenty of reasons to install a Carbon Monoxide Detector in your home before the arrival of this year’s heating season. I hope you found this article informative. If you enjoyed reading this article, you can find more great Home Improvement articles at PracticalRepairs.com
Hunter May is a freelance writer with years of home ownership, property management and home repair article writing experience. His articles are featured at PracticalRepairs.com and are focused on how anyone can make their own Practical Home Repairs. Looking for Home Repair Tips? Whatever your home repair problem is your can discover the best home repair tips at http://www.practicalrepairs.com
Article Source: Home Safety with Carbon Monoxide Detectors
