Carbon Monoxide Alarms

What they can and cannot do

  • CAN – sense unacceptable levels of CO in the air
  • CAN – provide early warning, before a healthy adult might show symptoms
  • CAN – act as round-the-clock monitor of CO
  • CAN – only sense CO that reaches it – Where you hang a detector is important
  • CAN – breakdown like any other electronic device
  • CANNOT – work without electrical power (batteries, AC)
  • CANNOT – sense smoke, natural gas, propane, etc. (It is not a smoke detector!)

Where to put (or not put) your detector

  • PUT – near a bedroom, or other room where people spend most of their time; where its alarm can be heard.
  • READ the instructions that come with your Detector.
  • DO NOT PUT – in garage, furnace room, near cooking stove, etc.
  • DO NOT PUT – in dead air space, corner of room, near floor, in peak of vaulted ceiling.
  • DO NOT PUT – near open windows or doors.
  • DO NOT PUT – in excessively hot or cold areas, or excessively damp or dry areas.
  • DO NOT PUT – a cloth or plastic cover over the detector.