4 Things You Need to Know About Carbon Monoxide Detectors

October 22, 2021 by Anas Mustafa

Few things in life are strictly necessary. Often, you can scrape by with less than you might expect, doing a bit less than you need to, and you’ll still find that you’ll end up in a good spot, provided you get the most important things done.

One of those absolutely critical things to do when it comes to taking care of your home is the presence of a good and reliable carbon monoxide detector. This device, while simple in function and form, is fundamentally vital to catching the presence of potentially lethal carbon monoxide before it becomes a problem.

However, while this action seems pretty straightforward, there’s actually a hidden world of depth that you might want to discover about carbon monoxide detectors. With that in mind, let’s dive in.

1. What does it do?

This is the first and probably most important question you need to answer: what a carbon monoxide detector does exactly, and why you should bother having one.

The reason is in the name. Simply put, these devices will detect poisonous gas and provide an early warning. They’re absolutely vital because carbon monoxide is an odourless gas that can quickly permeate your entire house before you realize it. Indeed, its effects will make you delirious, light-headed, and unable to understand that something is going on.

In the event of a leak, it is absolutely critical that you get to fresh air as soon as possible, with every second playing a role in whether you live or die. That’s why you need a state-of-the-art reliable carbon monoxide detector, so you know right away that something is wrong and can get out before any lasting harm is done.

2. Where does carbon monoxide come from?

Next, you want to know where exactly this dangerous gas is leaking out into your house from. Unfortunately, a lot of things can release carbon monoxide if not used properly.

Basically, any device that burns fuel, like your home’s furnace, a dryer vent in a drying machine, or even a fireplace or chimney can release carbon monoxide. Thus, it is critical that you have these potential gas sources regularly serviced, so that gas leaks that could lead to carbon monoxide poisoning are prevented before they even need to be caught.

3. Where do I install them?

Now that we’ve covered the why of carbon monoxide detectors and why you need them, you’re probably wondering how you should properly set them up in any given room.

Thankfully, this is relatively straightforward. It’s important that you have carbon monoxide alarms on every level of your house. While an alarm on one floor will certainly catch the pervading gas, the bigger problem is that the alarm might sound in a place where no one can hear it.

That’s why if you have the alarm on every floor, you will know no matter where you are in the house when the environment has turned dangerous and when you need to leave immediately.

Also, keep detectors in your bedroom, sleeping area, and common room, so the large commotion of the alarm will wake everyone up, and quickly get you up and out of the house.

As for the actual physical placement in a room, like whether or not it needs to be high or low in a particular area, that’s not as important. Carbon monoxide will be detected regardless of where the alarm is placed, so even if the detector is on the walls or the ceilings, it will still be effective.

4. What do the beeps mean?

Next, you need to know how to read an alarm properly and understand what it’s telling you when it starts beeping and chirping away.

It has different beeping patterns so you can tell when there’s an urgent emergency or if you just have to replace a battery, which are two important distinctions that you should try your utmost to avoid messing up.

So, the first pattern that is the most important for you to catch is 4 beeps and a pause. This means there’s carbon monoxide in the air and you should seek fresh air immediately while calling 9-1-1.

If it’s just a beep every minute, then you can relax, as this simply means that the alarm has a low battery. Of course, you should definitely replace the batteries, but it won’t kill you if it takes a bit for you to get at all the appropriate batteries.

Lastly, you might hear 5 beeps every minute. This indicates that your alarm has reached the end of its life and now needs to be replaced with a new carbon monoxide alarm.

The Final Word

If you now understand how carbon monoxide alarms work, how you should set them up, and why you need them, you’re basically ready to dive into the world of detectors and ensure your home is properly secured.

The carbon monoxide detector is in a sense, a home security system, much like the sorts of home security systems in Toronto that you’ll see in the newest and most up-to-date homes. While it doesn’t catch or prevent bad guys from coming in, it does in fact catch dangerous molecules before they can hurt you and your family. Installing monitored carbon monoxide detectors is a great way to better protect your family as it also allows a security company to dispatch emergency responders to your home as well as notify you of the emergency even if you are not home.

After all, the most important things in your life are the people closest to you, and you want to make sure you understand how to protect them with the systems you have available. So, if you’re interested in learning more, then reach out to us at Canadian Security Professionals at 1-877-494-9911 or via our contact page here.

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