Hey, if nothing else, read this thread

[cleonard]

Let me share a little story about what's happen in my life.

Well, it's starting to get cold in Ohio these days so I turned on the furnace for the first time on Thursday. Boy it felt good. I'm one of those who always holds out until I can't take the cold house any longer.

My three boys were already in bed and it was about 9:30 Thursday night. My wife and I are downstairs (watching CSI - I'm sorta watching while playing Madden on my laptop) and suddenly we hear this weird sounding beeping. It's loud and coming from upstairs. Smoke detector? It didn't quite sound right. Well the kids come running down the stairs as I start heading up.

Come to discover its the Carbon Monoxide detector at the top of the stairs. Hmm, this thing has never gone off. Well it reads 130 and I've never seen it show anything but 000. So I unplug it and bring it downstairs. I plug it into the kitchen outlet and after a minute it's reading 117. Well, I'm thinking it's defective. But being a father, what the heck, let's call the fire department and see what they say.

So I call the administrative line to the local fire department (no way I'd use 911 and get them all excited about this detector) and a pleasant man answers the phone. I asked him if 130 was normal or if it was a bad detector or what. He explains that we are to leave the house immediately and a truck will be right over. So we grab the pets, our shoes and out the house we go.

At this time, I'm still thinking this is kinda silly, but being the father figure, I show protection and leadership. Well about 5 minutes later a police car comes and the officer and my wife and I wait outside for the fire department. We put the kids inside the car parked out on the driveway. Soon enough here comes the fire truck. Four officers jump out and ask about the situation and one of them is holding a CO detector himself. I escort him in the house and suddenly this detector he's holding turns red in the display and and chirps and he yells everyone out! We only made it in the house about 5 ft.

Out we go. They go and get on portable oxygen tanks and masks and head back in. One of them indicated the levels were too high for them to enter without that equipment. They call for more fire fighters because they have to have so many present in case they have to pull the two with oxygen tanks out of the house.

So they search the house and find the gas furnace is the source of the CO. The CO level had increased from 130ppm upstairs when I called to a high reading of 288ppm about 15 minutes later.

Long story I know, but it's important. Had I not had the detector and my wife and I had gone to bed after CSI, which we usually do. Then the entire family would probably been dead in bed in the morning. CO is orderless, tasteless and lighter then air. The master bedroom had the highest reading they found just under 300 ppm.

If you don't have a CO detector in your house. Please don't wait for tomorrow to get one. Get one today. Turn off the computer and go get one. I'm thankful we had one . . . Thursday night, it saved me and my family's life.

[Zoren]

Glad you & yours are ok Cleonard. We have them in the kids rooms. I suppose we should have one in ours as the little ones wouldn't get out without us. Thanks for sharing & take care.

Zoren

[dtay73]

The dectors are no joke. The people across the street had a similiar incident. "Luckily" theirs turned out to be a false alarm, the unit was bad. It did make all the neighbors stop and think that we should have more than one around. I for one have one in each area of the house now. The guys from the fire department didn't get upset about coming out for a false alarm (better safe than sorry they said), but did give them an ear full for only having one detector in the house.

** BTW, very glad everyone is ok! **

[soky]

Originally Posted by cleonard

If you don't have a CO detector in your house. Please don't wait for tomorrow to get one. Get one today. Turn off the computer and go get one. I'm thankful we had one . . . Thursday night, it saved me and my family's life.

WOW Cleonard!!! Incredible. I purchased one a few years back and I change the batteries in it twice a year. (Today as a matter of fact because of the time change.) Mine has never gone off thankfully but I glad to know they work and worked well for you.

Thank your lucky stars if you want but the fact is you're a smart man for buying the CO detector and your a kind man for sharing your life saving story with us. Thank you.

[generic]

I have seen it save about 3 households in the past few years myself, I have 2 in my house, one upstairs and one in the basement near the furnace.

Spend the money for the good ones. its worth it.

[TonyK]

I had the same thing once, the Carbon Monoxide detector reading was over 200 I knew it was the furnace because it smelled, so I called the gas company they called the fire department, and I didn’t know!
The fire engine stopped outside the hose and I’m thinking I wonder where the fire is?
Knock-knock I open the door the firefighters walked in and they say okay everyone out, they told me we have to turn off the furnace and call the service man, it was a cold night but safe.We had to clean the chimney, now every year I service the furnace before the season.

[Silverbug]

What do your furnace's run on? I hadn't heard of carbon dioxide detectors before this post.

[cleonard]

My furnace runs on natural gas. Actually it's Carbon Monoxide. This occurs any time there is combustion. In your home depending on the what you have it can be generated by clothes dryers, furnace, hot water heater, car in the garage running, etc.

http://www.carbonmonoxidekills.com/

[bootNumlock]

I am so glad that you and your family are okay -- this scares the crap out of me... i know i just replaced all my smoke detector batteries, but i have no idea about monoxide detectors... i have an old house with a boiler (not furnace) so i think i am at least a little more sheltered, but i should still look into some detectors.

thanks for posting, i hate to even think about something like that happening.

[Vidvandre]

Wow! Scary story! Glad to hear that you and your family are alright cleonard! Sort of makes me glad we don't use gas as an energy source here in Norway (at least not for heating homes). Propane/other gas ovens etc have always made me sort of uncomfortable, but I guess this is mostly due to little usage over here. Really only used at cabins etc where there are no electricity...

I've just replaced the battery in my fire/smoke detector as well. As soky, I have a routine of doing it at the day of the fall DST change (one a year is enough, a battery (in our fire/smoke detectors) lasts for way more than a year).

[TonyK]

boot numlock, boiler is furnace, is just an older type of furnace with radiators and water, the new furnaces use air, regardless of the fuel they use, gas, oil or wood, they still produce carbon monoxide. So do your self a favor and get carbon monoxide detector the thing about old house is they have so many holes you get air circulation (but you lose heat) and you are a little safer then the new well insulated houses

[DigitalSkyline]

I too never really seriously thought about CO -- I wonder if this is mostly newer furnaces that have problems... newer technology... they are more efficient but more things to go wrong. Boilers have less chance of leaking by design... no forced air to circulate the gas etc. Makes sense to me anyways

[craigdunlop]

Likewise - I've never heard of carbon monoxide detectors either...

[DigitalSkyline]

I heard of them... just never really cared much I guess

Good thing for Chris he is more proactive

I woke up to a room on fire one Thanksgving about 12 years ago from an electric space heater that caught the carpet / tv stand on fire... man that was a close one... the heat from the flames is what woke me up, the smoke was so black I couldn't see out the window right next to my bed. I jumped up and gabbed all my covers to smother the flames ... ran downstairs and got a bucket of water... (maybe a stupid thing to do, but I saved the house from burning to the ground.) I was covered in black soot --- needless to say I don't sleep with space heaters on... ever again at least now.

Winters can be dangerous if your not careful Live and learn...