When All Hell Breaks Loose (26 page)

Authors: Cody Lundin

Dangerous and Deadly Carbon Monoxide

Carbon monoxide (CO) is a colorless, odorless, and tasteless toxic gas that is the result of incomplete burning of solid, liquid, and gaseous fuels. This silent monster is responsible for more unintentional fatal poisonings in the United States than any other medium, with most deaths occurring during the colder winter months. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than five hundred people in the United States die each year from carbon monoxide poisoning while 15,000 to 40,000 more visit hospital emergency rooms for treatment. Prolonged exposure to carbon monoxide can lead to neurological damage. The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) estimates that poorly used space heaters alone kill three hundred people each year and are responsible for more than 25,000 residential fires.

If the grid goes down, the odds of grandpa dragging the barbeque grill into the house for heat or putting the gasoline-powered generator too close to the house will increase. Even yours truly has had close calls with carbon monoxide, so don't get cocky at your family's expense and think it can't happen to you and yours.

How Is Carbon Monoxide Created?

Carbon monoxide is created from a number of sources: leaky furnaces and chimneys; back drafts from woodstoves, fireplaces, gas water heaters and stoves; generators and other gasoline-burning equipment; exhaust fumes from vehicles in attached garages; unvented kerosene and gas space heaters; and tobacco smoke.

Caution! Individuals commonly die from carbon monoxide poisoning in locations where they thought they had adequate ventilation, such as in tents, RVs, and drafty cabins.

People get sick or die each year from carbon monoxide poisoning at Utah/Arizona's Lake Powell when using houseboats for the family vacation. Either folks swim too close for too long next to the idling engines or run poorly vented generators while making margaritas in the close quarters of the boat. Think about the source of carbon monoxide.
If you are burning fuel, and you see an orange or yellow flame, this is a sign that carbon monoxide is being released
. So what about the yellow and orange flame of a candle? Unless you have several hundred burning at once in a poorly ventilated area, don't worry about it. Yellow and orange flames are caused by unburned carbon particles from the combustion process. Although you shouldn't totally drop your guard for a blue flame, it signifies a much more complete combustion process than the former. In conventional, fuel-burning household appliances, oxygen is mixed with the fuel to achieve a more complete burn, thus the blue flame on your kitchen stove. As oxygen supports combustion it raises the temperature of the burning fuel, and the higher heat value burns away the otherwise unburned carbon particles. Speaking of oxygen, carbon monoxide poisoning causes the formation of
carboxyhemoglobin
in the blood, which inhibits the absorption of oxygen in your body. When people breathe in carbon monoxide gas fumes, red blood cells in the bloodstream carry it instead of oxygen to all of the body's tissues.

The Mighty Carbon Monoxide Detector/Alarm

As carbon monoxide is odorless, tasteless, and generally invisible, having a battery-operated carbon monoxide detector is worth its weight in gold. (Although plug-in models are available, they will do you no good if the electrical grid crashes. Check to make sure plug-in models have a battery backup system. Test battery-operated detectors frequently, change the batteries every six months, and have a fresh stash of batteries nearby.) In September 1993, Chicago, Illinois, became one of the first cities in the nation to adopt ordinances requiring the installation of carbon monoxide detectors/alarms in all new single-family homes and in existing single-family homes that purchased new oil or gas furnaces. Carbon monoxide detectors are cheap, easy to install, and commonly available at local hardware and big box discount stores. Although new carbon monoxide detectors should be compliant, make sure your purchased detector/alarm meets the requirements of the current UL standard 2034 or the requirements of the IAS 6-96 standard. Install the detector(s) according to the manufacturer's instructions, and make sure it's not covered up with drapes or furniture. The CPSC recommends that you install a separate detector near every different sleeping area. Carbon monoxide detectors are also available for boats and recreational vehicles.
Test your carbon monoxide detector/alarms frequently per the manufacturer's instructions!
A carbon monoxide detector/alarm does provide added protection, but it's not a substitute for the proper use and upkeep of appliances that can produce carbon monoxide.

The Sinister Symptoms of Carbon Monoxide Poisoning

Early Symptoms (often mistaken for the flu but without the fever)