NEWS for North Dakotans
Agriculture Communication, North Dakota State University
7 Morrill Hall, Fargo, ND 58105-5665

October 15, 1998

With Windows Closing and Heaters Starting, Beware of Carbon Monoxide

Carbon monoxide is a known killera silent killer. A North Dakota State University safety specialists says fall is the ideal time to take steps to keep this killer at bay.

"Carbon monoxide is a by-product of the combustion of flamable fuels," notes George Maher of the NDSU Extension Service. "Common producers of carbon monoxide are gas or oil furnaces, gas or oil water heaters, fuel-burning space heaters, wood stoves, gas ranges, charcoal grills and gas grills. If you have any of those indoor appliances then you really can't afford not to have a carbon monoxide detectorit is essential to monitor the safety of your home."

Carbon monoxide poisoning produces symptoms that are easily blamed on something else, Maher notes. Headaches, caused by carbon monoxide in the air, result from a lack of oxygen in the blood going to the brain. Bluish fingernails are a result of oxygen-deprived blood. Carbon monoxide reduces the ability of the blood to carry oxygen. This blood does not have the bright red color of healthy blood rather, it has a bluish tint, resulting in the blue fingernails.

Maher says carbon monoxide can affect you at very low levels, as little as 0.1 percent. At that level carbon monoxide reduces the oxygen-carrying capacity of hemoglobin in the blood and causes chronic headaches, fatigue, nausea, dizzy spells and confusion. Carbon monoxide accumulates in the blood, and the level of carbon monoxide can be determined by a doctor with a carboxyhemoglobin test.

If combustion gases are present in the air, carbon monoxide will be there too. But, carbon monoxide can be present without the presence of other gases, Maher notes. A furnace with a cracked or burned-through heat exchanger can produce all of the aforementioned symptoms. The end result can be fatal. If a heat exchanger is defective it will allow combustion gases, including carbon monoxide, to enter your home. The gases then will be distributed throughout the house by your hot air vents. An annual furnace check-up by a furnace technician can help detect cracked heat exchangers and other furnace malfunctions.

A carbon monoxide detector will alert you to low levels of carbon monoxide in the air. If it goes off, producing the warning signal, get out of the house immediately, Maher says. Call the fire department from a neighbor's house. Do not enter the house until the firemen determine it is safe to do so.

"Regardless of which detector is selected for use in your home, maintain it with care. Replace the battery when it is needed, and test on a regular, weekly basis," Maher says. "Know that it is operating the way it is supposed to, then live and sleep a little more securely."

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Source: George Maher (701) 231-8288

Editor: Tom Jirik (701) 231-9629