Carbon Monoxide Detectors: Are They Ready For The Heating Season?

Heating season is just around the corner for residents of Pasadena. That means you’ll be using more home appliances that create carbon monoxide (CO), such as your heating system. With that in mind, you’ll want to make sure you have more than one carbon monoxide detector installed in your home.

Why Use a Carbon Monoxide Detector?

Most appliances that produce CO, such as gas water heaters, fireplaces and gas stoves, produce it in a small amount that is not harmful. However, if one of these appliances is not working properly, a higher level of CO may be produced, which can be deadly. Because CO is an odorless, colorless and tasteless gas, it isn’t detectable by the human senses. A carbon monoxide detector will warn everyone in the home that the CO levels have reached a harmful level and the home must be evacuated.

Tips for Installing CO Detectors

What type of CO detector is best? What is the proper CO alarm placement in your home? Consider these facts from our experts.

• Choose detectors with battery backup so that you will be safe even when the power is out.
• At least one CO detector should be installed on each level of your home to ensure that you are alerted to dangerous levels no matter where they originate.
• Place a CO detector near all sleeping areas so that sleeping family members will be sure to hear the alarm.
• Make sure that you don’t install CO detectors next to CO-producing appliances. The small, harmless amount that a normally functioning appliance produces can trigger a detector if it is too close, resulting in a false alarm.

Testing and Maintaining the CO Detectors

Carbon monoxide detector maintenance is extremely important for your family’s safety. Many battery-operated carbon monoxide detectors will emit an audible signal when they need new batteries. Most detectors have a test button that you can push to make sure it is drawing enough power. In order to check its ability to read CO, light an incense stick nearby. Detectors with a digital display will show a small reading of the CO.

Make sure you have properly working carbon monoxide detectors in your home before winter arrives. For more information about CO detectors, contact Air-Tro, Inc. We provide superior HVAC service in the Pasadena area.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in the greater Los Angeles, California area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For more information about co detectors and other HVAC topics, visit our website.

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