 |
 | Home | Contact Us | FAQ | Search & Site Map | Link to Us |
 | Sign In | Join | Other 45 Sites in Network |
| HomeDiscussion GroupsGeneral TopicsCat AnecdotesHealth and BehaviorRescue CatKB.com Contact UsLink To UsSearch & Site Map |
Cat Forum / Cat Anecdotes / November 2006The importance of Carbon Monoxide alarms
This was posted on another board by a vet tech and I thought I would repost it here: Do you have a carbon monoxide alarm? If you don't, you really must get one ASAP. A few weeks ago a young mixed breed, medium size puppy was transferred to the emergency hosp. where I work and she was suffering from severe carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning. The young couple that had adopted her had a fireplace in their new apartment and started a fire using one of those starter logs. Turned out that the chiminey wasn't pulling the air up like it should and CO was released into the room. A while after they started the fire, the pup started having trouble breathing and then collapsed in front of them. As it turned out, the dog was unfortunate enough to also have a congenital heart defect and, despite prompt medical care and mechanical ventilation, could not recover. I can't tell you how devastated the guardians were, and how horribly guilty they felt (despite none of this being intentional). So please remember that your animal companions will be your "canary in the mineshaft" if there ever is a CO leak in your home. And CO comes from multiple sources, so it's not only a concern for people who have oil heat, or fireplaces, etc. If you have been putting off installing CO alarms, please don't do so any longer. The smallest members of the household may be the ones affected first . > This was posted on another board by a vet tech and I thought I would repost > it here: [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] > please don't do so any longer. The smallest members of the household may be > the ones affected first . Absolutely timely and good advice. A family of 5 died in their sleep here a few years ago because birds had built a nest in their vents. DH's work gave everyone a CO2 detector, we gave ours away because we are total electric. The people we gave it to went to put it up, and it started beeping as soon as they turned it on. They had no idea they had a problem. Sherry That worked out nicely, you had an extra detector, and gave it away. I've seen birds (three of them, all dead) in a vent one time, when I was doing a furnace clean and check. Incidentally, CO2 is carbon dioxide. Which is remarkably diferent than CO, or carbon monoxide.  SignatureChristopher A. Young You can't shout down a troll. You have to starve them. . Absolutely timely and good advice. A family of 5 died in their sleep here a few years ago because birds had built a nest in their vents. DH's work gave everyone a CO2 detector, we gave ours away because we are total electric. The people we gave it to went to put it up, and it started beeping as soon as they turned it on. They had no idea they had a problem. Sherry -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- From: "Karen" <kchuplis@nospamalltel.net> >Do you have a carbon monoxide alarm? If you don't, you really must get one >ASAP. Let me also suggest that you get one with a meter that reads actual CO concentrations. If it shows any CO concentration, deal with it NOW. A couple of years ago I looked at mine, in the basement, and it showed 2 ppm CO concentration. Shut off the oil fired boiler, called for an emergency inspection. 4 of the 5 flue passages were clogged with soot and number 5 was close. The burner had been poorly adjusted and the soot had been building up for months. The audio alarm does not sound until concentrations reach about 30 - 50 ppm. Spend the extra 10 bucks and get one that displays the actual CO concentration. > Do you have a carbon monoxide alarm? If you don't, you really must get one > ASAP. Great advice even for folks using a woodstove. I'm not sure if I need one because my heat comes from a ventless propane fireplace (combined blue-flame and radiant).... > > Do you have a carbon monoxide alarm? If you don't, you really must get one > > ASAP. > > Great advice even for folks using a woodstove. I'm not sure if I need one > because my heat comes from a ventless propane fireplace (combined blue-flame > and radiant).... I'd get one anyway. Is your water heater/cookstove gas? You just never know when something is going to malfunction, and better safe than sorry. IIRC those C02 detectors aren't expensive. Sherry > Pat wrote: >> [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > know when something is going to malfunction, and better safe than > sorry. IIRC those C02 detectors aren't expensive. I used to have one and I remember it wasn't expensive. Just wish I could remember where I put it! Maybe I gave it away.... BTW CO2 is carbon dioxide not monoxide. > I'd get one anyway. Is your water heater/cookstove gas? You just never > know when something is going to malfunction, and better safe than > sorry. IIRC those C02 detectors aren't expensive. Will a carbon monoxide detector catch a leak of natural gas? Aren't those different chemicals? (I don't know - I thought they were, but maybe I'm wrong.) You do mean monoxide, right, not carbon dioxide? (You probably don't want too much of that either, but at least that wouldn't poison you!) Joyce > > I'd get one anyway. Is your water heater/cookstove gas? You just never > > know when something is going to malfunction, and better safe than [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > > Joyce LOL! You're right. Chemistry Girl I am not. Sherry Dear Pat, With a "ventless", that means that all the exhaust gasses go into the house. If the heater is working properly, you get carbon dioxide, and water vapor. Which is reasonably harmless. But, a combustion problem, and you get monoxide, which is treacherous. I'd think that with a ventless heater, you'd have MORE need for a detector. SignatureChristopher A. Young You can't shout down a troll. You have to starve them. . Great advice even for folks using a woodstove. I'm not sure if I need one because my heat comes from a ventless propane fireplace (combined blue-flame and radiant).... >This was posted on another board by a vet tech and I thought I would repost >it here: [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] >please don't do so any longer. The smallest members of the household may be >the ones affected first . Also, one of the nasty bits about carbon monoxide poisoning is that it can be gradual. Oxygen is carried through your bloodstream by hemoglobin molecules in your red blood cells, and carbon dioxide is carried back to the lungs in the same manner, like two different keys that fit the same lock. Carbon monoxide binds more strongly to hemoglobin than do oxygen or carbon dioxide, as if a key were to break off in and jam a lock. So, if you are exposed to carbon monoxide at levels that aren't immediately fatal, you gradually lose the oxygen-carrying capacity of your blood, until such time as the body breaks down and replaces the blood cells in question. Children and pets have sometimes been poisoned by riding in the enclosed back of a pickup truck that has an exhaust leak into the bed, such as through rust holes on the underside. I know my old station wagon has some exhaust leakage into the interior, as I can smell it, but I try to keep it well enough ventilated not to be dangerous. SignatureJohn F. Eldredge -- john@jfeldredge.com PGP key available from http://pgp.mit.edu "Reserve your right to think, for even to think wrongly is better than not to think at all." -- Hypatia of Alexandria > This was posted on another board by a vet tech and I thought I would > repost it here: [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > using one of those starter logs. Turned out that the chiminey wasn't > pulling the air up like it should and CO was released into the room. It is also very, very important you have your chimney cleaned every year before using it. I'm fortunate in that my apartment complex sends chimney sweeps out at the end of every summer. If you rent from anyone who offers a wood fireplace as one of the amenities make sure they are also going to deal with the upkeep. It is the landlord's responsibility, not that of the tenant. Jill > This was posted on another board by a vet tech and I thought I would repost > it here: > > Do you have a carbon monoxide alarm? If you don't, you really must get one > ASAP. [casualties caused by CO] Another thing which is not expensive but can save lives is a smoke/heat detector. You should have at least one on every floor of your house. Since a fire can break out at any time for so many reasons this is a live-saving investment (AFAIK in the US they are mandatory - at least in some states. If they are not mandatory in your area I highly recommend to get some!). Squarely Yours Michael SignatureSquare Dance is friendship put to music Andrea and Michael with furballs Blacky and Merlin More detailed info: http://www.curschmann-sachsen.de >Another thing which is not expensive but can save lives is a >smoke/heat detector. You should have at least one on every floor of >your house. About 3 years ago our landlord installed a very expensive state of the art system that hasn't worked for 2+ years. The landlord refused to allow us keys to reset the system if it went off by accident and when our neighbour overcooked some chicken and set off the alarm we were stuck with something that sounded like a couple of thousands banshees wailing at once for 12 hours! (Needless to say, it was the weekend), passers by phoned the fire brigade who kept coming out so at one point we had an endless stream of firefighters coming in and me standing at the door to deliver explanations. Downstairs and upstairs nearly came to blows.after downstairs called upstairs names for setting the damn thing off in the first place....In the end the technician who came to fix it, could only break it to shut it up....We've reported it but it's never been fixed Lesley Slave of the Fabulous Furballs > About 3 years ago our landlord installed a very expensive state of the art > system that hasn't worked for 2+ years. The landlord refused to allow us keys [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > who came to fix it, could only break it to shut it up....We've reported it > but it's never been fixed I've never heard of a system that couldn't be re-set by the user! They're required by law in rental units here, and I would expect most homeowners have at least one - insurance companies often either require them or give a small reduction if you have one and/or other safety equipment. The rules depend on the size and layout of the house or apartment - I think they used to require one in or very near the kitchen, and, if the bedrooms were any distance from the kitchen, one right outside the bedroom door (inside, it might not react as fast to smoke...) Some years ago a group of people sharing an apartment disconnected their smoke detector because of the number of false alarms. One night, there was a fire and one of them was killed. There's no way of know if he'd have gotten out in time if the smoke detector had been working, but you have to wonder about it. AFAIK, CO detectors are recommended for places with gas or oil, since you need combustion to produce CO. I've never lived in a place that required a CO detector, but some of my relatives use gas for heating and invested in a CO detector. SignatureCheryl >> This was posted on another board by a vet tech and I thought I would >> repost it here: [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > Squarely Yours > Michael There was a recent case in Corfu where two British children were killed by carbon monoxide. :-( http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/6093714.stm > This was posted on another board by a vet tech and I thought I would repost > it here: [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] > please don't do so any longer. The smallest members of the household may be > the ones affected first . Thanks for the advice. Best wishes, Polonca and Soncek |
Reply to this Message |
 Sign In
 Join
 My Latest Posts My Monitored Threads My Blog My Photo Gallery My Profile My Homepage Start New Thread Enable EMail Alerts Rate this Thread
|
©2009 Advenet LLC Privacy Policy - Terms of Use
This website includes both content owned or controlled by Advenet as well as content owned or controlled by third parties.