Carbon Monoxide (CO) is the number one cause of unintentional poisoning deaths in the United States, causing over 500 deaths, and 20,000 injuries annually. As CO poisoning symptoms are similar to flu and other common illnesses, these figures are probably much higher. A Kidde Carbon Monoxide Alarm will detect the level of CO gas in your home, and sound an alarm if the CO levels become dangerous.
CO is an invisible gas, that is colorless, odorless, and tasteless, yet is highly toxic and can be fatal when inhaled in sufficient quantities. The most common symptoms of CO poisoning can resemble the flu, including headaches, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, lethargy and a feeling of weakness. Infants may be irritable and feed poorly.
Carbon monoxide is produced from the partial oxidation of carbon-containing compounds. CO forms when any fuel is incompletely burned because of insufficient oxygen – such as when operating a stove or an internal combustion engine in an enclosed space.
- Car left running in an attached garage
- A clogged chimney
- A fireplace (wood-burning or gas)
- A water heater vent pipe that is disconnected or is corroded
- Portable gas or kerosene heaters
- An improperly installed kitchen range or vent
- Using a barbecue grill inside the home or garage
- A cracked or loose furnace exchanger
- 0.5 to 5 ppm – average background level in homes
- 5 to 15 ppm – levels near properly adjusted gas stoves in homes
- 100-200 ppm – Mexico City central area
- 5,000 ppm – chimney of a home wood fire
- 7,000 ppm – undiluted warm car exhaust (without a catalytic converter)
- Ensure that all stove appliances in the home are installed as per the manufacturers recommendations.
- Get your chimney and vents inspected regularly to ensure they are not clogged, have no cracks, and are not beginning to rust.
- Inspect and service your heading system on a regular basis.
- Install a carbon monoxide alarm on each level of your home. A recommended CO alarm would be a Kidde carbon dioxide alarm.
A carbon monoxide alarm should use an electrochemical CO sensor, which is the most accurate technology available to detect CO. A CO alarm should have a test button to tell you whether the unit functioning, and a LED light or a digital display which lets you know that the unit has power.
Carbon monoxide alarms should be battery powered, or mains powered with a battery backup. A mains powered CO alarm is no good during a power failure. A CO alarm should also have some sort of indicator or alarm that tells you when the batteries need replacing.
- 70 ppm – sound alarm within 60-240 minutes
- 150 ppm – sound alarm within 10-50 minutes
- 400 ppm – sound alarm within 4-15 minutes
Kidde are industry leaders when it comes to making carbon monoxide alarms, and have been in business for over 90 years. A Kidde carbon monoxide alarm meets all the essential basic requirements outlined above for a carbon monoxide alarm.
Kidde sell a variety of CO alarms from a basic Kidde carbon monoxide alarm for someone on a tight budget, to a carbon monoxide alarm with additional premium features. These premium features may include a digital display showing the current CO levels in the air, and peak-level memory which records the highest CO level registered by the unit since it’s last reset.
Kidde make plug-in carbon monoxide alarms that are easy to install by just plugging into a wall power outlet. Kidd also make alarm units that combine CO alarm and smoke alarm sensors into a single unit. Their interconnectable CO alarm units will set off ALL similar carbon monoxide alarm units in a household if dangerous CO levels are detected by a SINGLE unit.
The Kidde KN-COPP-B Front Load Battery-Operated Carbon Monoxide Alarm with Digital Display
