Are You Safe In Your Home? #1

I've been absent from the Rain much too long. Almost forgot how, well not really. Just suffice to say that I am back to my not so normal self and back in the Rain.

Subject of the day is CO detectors and their placement. According Wikipedia carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless and tasteless, yet highly toxic gas (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_monoxide). It is formed when combustion (carbon fuel and oxygen) is lacking enough oxygen to produce the, much more preferable, carbon dioxide. Of course, neither is healthy, but the human body is much more tolerant to CO2 (carbon dioxide) than CO (carbon monoxide). That is not the focus of this post.

This is the focus of this post. We all know that CO is dangerous and that it is important to keep the levels as low as possible, but what many don't know is that even having a CO detector may not be enough to keep you safe. CO detectors need to be placed in the most critical areas of the house. A furnace that is creating excess levels of CO is not overly dangerous if it isn't leaking into the ducts that supply warm air to your home. This is true because the CO from combustion will be sent up the chimney, exhausting it into the atmosphere. How do you know your furnace isn't leaking combustion gases into your home? There in lies the problem.

Call an inspector that does indoor air quality testing. They can tell you what if any dangerous gases are in your home and in some cases what quantities and where they are coming from. With this information you can place your new CO detectors in the right spots. If you don’t know a good indoor air quality inspector in your area email me, I’ll give you some to pick from. And for safety’s sake have your furnace tested before the next heating season.