Attention homeowners, renters, and landlords…

“Do YOU Know These Facts About Carbon Monoxide?”

“What You Don’t Know Can KILL You and Your Family!”

A family dies of CO poisoning and this information barely makes the news. If that same family died in a fire the news coverage is ten fold. Where are our priorities? Human life? Or material loss?

The purpose of this report is to educate and create awareness for people and what can be done to protect yourself and your family.

You Might Be Thinking ‘I Don’t Need This’

I can understand that, but as I said in the title ‘What you don’t know can KILL YOU’. I am sure the 1,500 or so people that die each year thought the same thing. (According to the Journal of American Medical Association JAMA) As well as the 10,000 people who need to seek medical attention each year because of poisoning. (The experts agree that this number is probably substantially higher since most of the milder stages of carbon monoxide poisoning resemble many other common ailments). So whether you think you need to read this report or not take the five minutes out of your life and read the report. If you do not learn anything then great if you learn something then the time was well spent.

What is Carbon Monoxide?

Carbon monoxide (CO) is a poisonous, colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas. Although it

has no detectable odor, CO can often be mixed with other gases that do have an odor. So, you can inhale carbon monoxide with gases that you can smell, or with what you may believe is fresh air, and not even know that CO is present.

What Causes CO?

CO results from the incomplete burning of natural gas and any other material containing carbon such as gasoline, kerosene, oil, propane, coal, or wood. This can occur in any appliance that burns fossil fuels, therefore an appliance that is producing carbon monoxide may not poison you if the appliance has been vented correctly. Never leave your vehicle or lawn mower or anything else gas powered running inside your home, tent, garage, or other indoor areas. The most common sources of exposure in the workplace is the internal combustion engine. This can be in a vehicle, forklift, man lift, or gas powered tools.

The Dangers of Carbon Monoxide

The reason Carbon Monoxide is so dangerous and is the deadliest of all poisons (in the fact that carbon monoxide kills more people than any other poison) is the way the gas sucks the oxygen out of you. Sorry to be so blunt. But what happens is when CO enters your bloodstream, through your lungs, it takes the place of the oxygen in your hemoglobin, the red blood pigment that normally carries oxygen to all parts of the body. Because CO binds several hundred times as strongly to hemoglobin than does oxygen, its effects build up and last a long time. Causing oxygen starvation throughout the body. Pure oxygen or exposure to fresh air over a long period of time is required to clear the CO-tainted hemoglobin.

Signs and Symptoms

1. Headache

2. Dizziness

3. Irritability

4. Confusion/Memory loss

5. Disorientation

6. Nausea and vomiting

7. Abnormal reflexes

8. Difficulty in coordinating

9. Difficulty in breathing

10. Chest Pain

11. Cerebral Edema

12. Convulsions/Seizures

13. Coma

14. Death

Many patients that have experiences lower amounts of poisoning describe their symptoms very ‘flu-like’. They will frequently complain of tiredness, headache, runny nose and eye problems. They will probably not associate the symptoms with being poisoned by Carbon Monoxide. A recent study done over a one month period showed that about 25% of all patients that went to the hospital with ‘flu-like’ symptoms were actually poisoned by Carbon Monoxide. They had a CO level of greater than 10%.

High risk groups include infants, the elderly, pregnant women, unborn children, and anyone with a previous history of cardiac insufficiency or chronic obstructive lung disease.

Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Can Kill Years Later

CHICAGO - People who survive a toxic encounter with carbon monoxide, one of the most common types of accidental poisoning in the United States, run a risk of death years later because of damaged heart muscle, according to a study published Tuesday.

The Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation said a look at 230 patients treated for moderate to

severe poisoning from the colorless, odorless gas found that 37 percent suffered heart muscle injury. Of that group nearly a quarter died within the next seven years.

“Most of us believed that since this was a one-time exposure to carbon monoxide, that if you were going to have problems you’d have them right away,” said Timothy Henry, a physician involved in the study

Here are some of the strictest levels in the industry for recommended safe levels.

The first signs

The first sign that you receive that you have dangerous levels of CO in your home better be the sounding off of a CO detector (especially after reading this report). The second sign may be any of the 14 that have been listed above. If you or your family become ill you will need immediate medical attention. If your alarm sounds you will need to call you gas company and or your fire department.

How to Protect Yourself

The best level of protection is to make sure all of your appliances are running properly. Here is a Press Release that signifies the importance of yearly maintenance.

CPSC PRESS RELEASE ON CARBON MONOXIDE 1996

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Rick Frost
September 20, 1996
(301) 504-0580 Ext. 1166
Release # 96-189

CPSC WARNS THAT THE DEADLY THREAT OF CARBON MONOXIDE CAN BE STOPPED BY A YEARLY PROFESSIONAL INSPECTION

Washington, D.C. -- Having your home inspected each year at the beginning of the heating season can help avoid deadly carbon monoxide gas from leaking into your home, according to Chairman Ann Brown of the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

"CO poisoning from the use of fuel burning appliances kills at least 200 people each year and sends more than 5,000 to hospital emergency rooms for treatment," Brown said. "Consumers can avoid this tragedy by having their fuel-burning appliances inspected by a qualified technician each year, and by purchasing and installing CO detectors that meet the requirements of the Oct. 1, 1995 Underwriters Laboratories standards."

CO is a colorless, odorless gas produced by burning any fuel. The initial symptoms of CO poisoning are similar to the flu, and include dizziness, fatigue, headache, nausea and irregular breathing. High level exposure to CO can cause death.

"Modern heating equipment is sophisticated and requires special training and tools for proper maintenance," Brown said. "CPSC recommends that consumers should not service their own appliances, but instead have a qualified professional perform an inspection."

A yearly inspection of your home by a professional should include a careful look at the following sources of carbon monoxide:

o Furnaces, hot water heaters and stoves. If they burn natural gas, heating oil, wood or other kinds of fuel, these appliances are potential sources of CO.

o Chimneys, flues and vents. Have flues and chimneys inspected before each heating season for leakage and for blockage by creosote or debris. Creosote buildup or leakage could cause black stains on the outside of the chimney or flue. These stains can mean that pollutants are leaking into the house. Have all vents to furnaces, water heaters or boilers checked to make sure they are not loose or disconnected.

o High Temperature Plastic Venting (HTPV) pipes. CPSC has received reports that high temperature plastic venting (HTPV) pipes -- which are used in mid-efficiency appliances -- may separate or crack. This could allow CO from the furnace to enter a home. The CPSC is currently investigating this problem.

Homeowners with a gas-fired mid-efficiency furnace or boiler installed between 1987 and 1993 should have them inspected for cracking or separating.

o Improper ventilation. Make sure that your appliances have adequate ventilation. A supply of fresh air is important to help carry pollutants up the chimney, stovepipe or flue, and is necessary for the complete combustion of any fuel.

Finally, consumers should be aware that charcoal grills can also be a potential source of CO. Never use charcoal grills in enclosed spaces such as a home, garage, vehicle or tent, and never bring grills with live coals indoors after use. Never use charcoal grills as an indoor heat source.

"Carbon monoxide is a deadly threat, but it can be avoided by having a yearly professional inspection of your home fuel burning appliances and by installing a CO detector that meets the most recent UL standards," Brown said.

As you can see a yearly inspection is an absolute must. Then combined with the inspection you need to have installed in your home CO detectors. This is no time to cheap out on product. Get the best you can possibly afford, and make sure that the ones you buy are within the UL Standards guidelines.