Replies

1. 
   NickNukeEm | Jun 09, 2003 01:26am | #1

   CO is heavier than air.  Placing the detector near the furnace will set it off before it becomes a lethal problem (provided the floor where the furnace is located is not occupied.) 

   But, you might not hear it if it goes off.  (My furnace is in the basement, and no way would we hear the detector down there if asleep upstairs on the second floor.)  The things are cheap insurance.  Install one at the furnace, buy another and install it as close as possible to the stairs leading to the bedrooms.  Placing one on the ceiling of your bedroom or in the hallway may mean you would never hear it, as the CO would have to rise to that level, below which you are probably sleeping.

   I have one in the basement, another at the foot of the stairs leading to the second floor.  Two chances to hear the alarms before the CO can creep up to where we are sleeping.

   BTW, they usually come with detail instructions on where (and where not) to place them.    And I assume this is just a battery operated detector you bought to stick on your ceiling (no finishes removed for installation.)  There are various code requirements for smoke detectors (mainly for new construction and permitted remodeling,) though I'm not sure if they apply to CO detectors.  Maybe someone more knowledgable will chime in.

   Good luck.

   Edit, reread the post, and found out it's a wall-socket detector.  Stick it in a receptical in the hallway.  That should be close enough for everyone to hear, but below the level that you are sleeping.  RTFQ.

   I never met a tool I didn't like!

   
   

   ---

   Edited 6/8/2003 6:30:20 PM ET by NickNuke'em

1. 
   Wet_Head | Jun 09, 2003 01:41am | #2

   I was taught in my CO classes that it is not heavier than air.  What is right?

1. 
   NickNukeEm | Jun 09, 2003 02:02am | #4

   Shoot, you know, when I replied, I was thinking about CO2.  CO2 is heavier than air.

   Mea culpa.  Sorry.  I'd still put the detectors in the hall.

   BTW WH, how's that tooth?

   I never met a tool I didn't like!

1. 
   Wet_Head | Jun 09, 2003 02:11am | #5

   I agree with your placement.

   tooth is better thanks to meds.  gotta get it cut out tommorrow.  thanks for asking.

2. 
   Wet_Head | Jun 09, 2003 01:41am | #3

   btw, the rest of your post was good!

2. 
   rjw | Jun 09, 2003 05:29am | #6

   My (studied) opinion: it depends.

   If it doesn't have an LED readout, the best place to put it is in your trash can.

   The non-LED types at best only read down to 70 ppm (one of the kiddes only goes to 100ppm) and they wait 4 hours to let you know.

   Everyone knows high levels of CO can kill you; most people don't know that regular exposure to lower levels can cause significant long term health problems, and the base level models won't protect you against the low levels.

   Next step up has an LED readout - that type reads down to 30 ppm and doesn't wait 4 hours.  Much better protection, unless there is (i) an infant, (ii) pregnant woman, (iii) elderly, (iv) immune system suppressed, (v) chemically sensitive, or (vi) heart diseased type living ion the structure.

   If there any of those types are living in the house, get this low level monitor: http://www.aeromedix.com/index.php?_siteid=aeromedix&action=sku&sku=coex&_sessid=a6e5ea26982754041020a0247b55bd9d

   Put a CO detector on each living level of the house.

   Put the low level monitor from aeromedix in the sensitive person's bedroom, that is where that person is most vulnerable.

   Mount them about 18" from the ceiling.  CO is slightly lighter than oxygen, but it's the fact it will always be hot when first getting into an area that will result in the highest levels of CO being near the ceiling. 

   Based on my experience testing several hundred houses for CO problems, the most likely way(s) for CO to get into your house (in decreasing order - in my experience): backdrafting water heater; backdrafting furnace or boiler; gas stove; self-cleaning cycle on an electric stove; cracked forced air heat exchanger; gas dryer.  Also, don't forget the good old automobile in an attached garage.

   If your CO detector goes off, don't call the fire department or your gas company.  They are likely to give you bad advice.  (For example - firefighter types will often tell you to open the windows and go to a neighbor's house.  Two problems - one, by the time they get there the CO levels will have dropped and since they don't know how to really test they'll tell you there's no CO and you've got a bad monitor.  Second, and far more serious: one potential cause of high CO is a smoldering fire.  You don't want to open windows near a smoldering fire.)

   Call a good heating contractor - preferably one that has certification as a Carbon Monoxide Analyst. 

1. 
   DaveRicheson | Jun 10, 2003 10:35am | #7

   Good post Bob. How is the recovery going?

   Dave

1. 
   rjw | Jun 10, 2003 02:18pm | #8

   Going pretty good, maybe at 80%._______________________

   10 .... I have laid the foundation like an expert builder. Now others are building on it. But whoever is building on this foundation must be very careful.

   11 For no one can lay any other foundation than the one we already have--Jesus Christ.

   1 Corinthians 3:10-11

1. 
   SamT | Jun 10, 2003 05:40pm | #9

   %80! right on Bob.

   SamT