Sunday, June 19, 2016

Carbon Monoxide News June 19, 2016 – posts updated frequently

Every day is a carbon monoxide safety education day.
Scroll back in time through our archives for previous CO News links.
We can learn from others mistakes and efforts to prevent poisoning.
Carbon monoxide safety, we are all in this together.


“There is only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that's your own self.” Aldous Huxley (1894-1963, bio link)

"World in Changes" Dave Mason - music link

How much carbon monoxide are you in when in any motor vehicle?

Did you know that many people do not measure the air they live in?
After prevention there is no greater awareness than measurement.

Awareness leads to quick thinking. Measurement leads to quick action.

Are you in the know?
Do I know enough about carbon monoxide and carbon monoxide poisoning to justify never knowing how much is in the air I breathe every day, everywhere I go?”

There are some people who want to be notified of the presence of carbon monoxide at levels or concentrations as soon as the gas is present, at concentrations well below those that can instigate poor health symptoms but not be high enough levels to sound the CO alarm they own. 

There are some people who do not want to push a button on their CO alarm to see what low, aggravating levels of the poison might be in their home, or anywhere. 

Consider low level protection for carbon monoxide and smoldering fire detection problems; don't leave anyone behind. CO Experts

Featured News Links – More news links below 
COSA Note: It is always a good day when there is not one significant carbon monoxide poisoning to report on this post. Unfortunately, experience and the reported air quality impact on the health of earth citizens continues to plague us. The following educational piece is a reprint from a former posting. Please be safe and diligent; because if you are not aware of the hazards of combustion you may be a victim of its power.

Combustion air, breathable air 
A very important part of combustion appliance activity is to note where combustion air is coming from. In many cases, air for combustion is coming from inside the building. Often times, like in a story from June 15th 2012 Carbon Monoxide News that notes 9 people being hospitalized from the gases generated by an unvented gas cooking system, the system draws air for the fire but exhausts the combustion gases directly into the breathable air and, also combustion air. 

The building may have been tightened up to save energy or to keep the cold drafts out. Nine people in the space require a lot of air and, they are also exhausting extra carbon dioxide into the space. The cooking exhaust can begin fouling the air rather quickly, even with fewer people in the area.

Think of a small lit candle. Place a glass jar over the candle. Soon, the fire consumes all available oxygen. The flame weakens and generates hundreds of PPM of CO before extinguishing and then “smoking”. This fire, and all fires need air. This includes the human fire that also requires sufficient air for a healthy and complete combustion.

There is a prescriptive code for how much air a gas appliance needs (and how much several need if they are all taking air for combustion from inside.) It is imperative to verify the tightness of the building with the use of readily available testing devices as well as to verify the combustion air prescription. It has been found that even though there is enough space by mathematical volume, the tightness of the building restricted the amount of air that was actually available when the appliances operate for lengths of time. Please review the information on this link to The Energy Conservatory, diagnostic tools to measure building performance for more information about the science of testing buildings for air leaks and how tight they might be. 

This building tightness may also trap pollutants inside. It is not uncommon to find sickening concentrations of CO and CO2 left over in buildings hours after the sources have been shut off and removed. These include propane or gasoline fueled pressure washers, floor buffers, concrete saws, construction space heaters and other combustion energized systems.

When a building has been tightened to save energy, special concerns must also be made for the times of higher CO2 levels and moisture so they do not denigrate the quality of the air or vitalize mold growth within the building surface or sub-structures. 

There is a person who wrote a letter  about how his carbon monoxide alarm saved his life. He explains how a mechanical fan caused the reversal of appliance exhaust and thus, the poisoning. This pressure problem is something a knowledgeable heating technician could discover in a normal safety check of appliance operation. Make sure your technician is trained, properly tooled and prepared. Bob Dwyer, CSME Carbon Monoxide Safety

Please, stop diagnostic errors; start testing for carboxyhemoglobin
Carbon Monoxide Intoxication
Journal of Neurology and Neuroscience
Carbon monoxide (CO) intoxication is one of the main causes of poisoning in industrialized countries and it often leads to diagnostic errors… 

Carbon monoxide intoxication.
nih.gov
However individuals with ischemic heart disease may experience chest pain and decreased exercise duration at COHb levels between 1% and 9%. COHb levels between 30% and 70% lead to loss of consciousness and eventually death… 

NOTE: Listed U.L. 2034 & CSA 6.19 Carbon Monoxide Alarms 
VISUAL DISPLAY:
Must not display under 30PPM in normal operation
AT 70, 150 & 400 PPM display must be accurate within plus or minus 30 Percent 

SENSITIVITY TESTING: Resist alarming first times shown, must by second shown time
70PPM [PLUS OR MINUS 5PPM ... [BETWEEN 60 _ 240 MINUTES]
150PPM [PLUS OR MINUS 5PPM] ... [10 - 50 MINUTES]
400PPM [PLUS OR MINUS 10PPM ... [4 _ 15 MINUTES]

“CITIZENS WILL CONTINUE TO DIE & BECOME SERIOUSLY ILL DAILY!” George Kerr - CO Experts 
More news links below –

We have all been CO poisoned, some more than others
The following link takes you to a site with views from those who have been poisoned. The seriousness of carbon monoxide poisoning, the grief, suffering and disorientations experienced are clearly portrayed with the intent to help others and prevent future poisonings. With respect, please visit: 

What is in the air you are breathing right now?
What will you be doing today; walking into poison?
Who will be responsible for the air you breathe?
You may be the only person who can prevent your own poisoning. 

We are all vulnerable to carbon monoxide exposure and poisoning.
Everyone has been poisoned by CO and will be poisoned again. The degree of the poisoning depends upon allowing yourself to be in a situation where someone else controls the air you breathe and the mechanisms for alarming notification.

Please read the alarm information on the package and in the instructions that come with the carbon monoxide alarm. Know that if it is a U.L. 2034 Listed product (or CSA 6.19 Listed), it is a high level alarm that has been tested to alarm no sooner than 70 PPM at the lowest (the alarm must resist for one hour when above this level) and when over 400 PPM before 15 minutes at the highest concentration, after resisting alarming for 4 minutes when over this level.

Know when your fire department and emergency responders begin wearing their breathing apparatus and what their civilian evacuation levels are for carbon monoxide; it may be as soon as the gas is present in your presence. Pregnant women, infants & children, people with heart & respiratory struggles, those suffering depression or chronic headaches and all people of vulnerable health should be alerted as soon as the gas begins to concentrate, around 10 PPM (parts per million) or lower.

You most likely need a low level carbon monoxide detector to sound off when carbon monoxide hazards are just beginning, not after you’ve been exposed to levels that make you have headaches, flu-like symptoms, increased tiredness, heart stresses or worse.

Do not take risks with carbon monoxide. Take responsibility for the air you breathe and the combustion systems you are responsible for. If you don’t do it for yourself, do it for others, unless you think $45.00, high level protection is good enough.

Help prevent injuries and deaths; don’t guess about carbon monoxide. Measure carbon monoxide for safety and knowledge. The more you test the more you learn. 
GET BUSY
Measurement is continuing education at its best. Bob Dwyer, CSME Carbon Monoxide Safety

CO and Air Quality News Links 

It's official: May is now Earth's hottest on record
ScienceAlert
Our climate is changing, and quickly: NASA says May 2016 was the hottest month on the planet since we started keeping records, with the Arctic in particular seeing temperatures way above what might normally be expected… Alaska had its warmest spring on record by a "wide margin"… temperatures in Finland during May were 3-5°C higher than they usually are at this time of year… Australia has just had its warmest autumn on record (1.86°C above average), and a new low was logged in terms of snow and ice cover in the Arctic…

USC chemists turn greenhouse gas into hydrogen fuel
USC News
A future with hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles and hydrogen-powered smart phones is much closer to reality… USC researchers have found a clean method of turning greenhouse gas into hydrogen fuel, according to a study published recently in the journal Nature Communications. They believe they are the first to have developed this method…

Winnipeg fails to meet climate-change goal
CBC.ca
The City of Winnipeg is belching out more greenhouse gases instead of reducing its corporate emissions of carbon dioxide, contrary to a council directive to take efforts to combat climate change…

Denmark Embraces Green Energy – and Braces for a Warmer Future
U.S. News & World Report
Even as U.S. conservative lawmakers continue to deny climate change exists – including the chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee – Denmark's plunging ahead in investing in green energy: Wind generates 42 percent of the country's electricity, the nation plans to slash its heat-trapping carbon dioxide emissions by more than a third in the next decade, and Denmark ranks as one of the globe's top exporters of renewable energy technology…

It's the first new US nuclear reactor in decades. And climate change has made that a very big deal
Washington Post
Although the opening of a new nuclear facility used to draw protesters and angry rhetoric, the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Watts Bar reactor has been mostly welcomed by local residents — and even some advocates concerned about climate change… “It’s a big step forward for clean energy, and we really have to be pushing that as hard as we can for the sake of the climate – all sources of clean energy, which includes nuclear,” said MIT atmospheric scientist Kerry Emanuel…

US Energy Information Administration
Energy Information Administration - EIA - Official Energy Statistics from the U.S. Government... 

Sit and rest a while; miss the children, prevent repeating this tragedy. 
Corfu carbon monoxide deaths: Memorial unveiled in Horbury 
BBC News 
A memorial bench to two young children who died from carbon monoxide poisoning while on holiday in Corfu has been unveiled in West Yorkshire…

To all parents everywhere; grief's pain alerts others
Out of tragedy comes the light of love 
Chester County Press 
Inside, Carly and Daulton had passed away from carbon monoxide poisoning. The gas tank was empty and the ignition was still on. Fumes from the exhaust had been drawn into the car through the air vents… “One of the best things for me is to talk to parents who have also lost a child,” Donna said.

How to use a Fire Extinguisher
VideoNex
In this informative and succinct video, learn how to identify and appropriately execute the use of a CO2 Fire Extinguisher…

Cdc Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
New Movie Release 2015
Carbon Monoxide Poisoning. Public domain video from CDC. Carbon monoxide (sometimes referred to as CO) is a colorless, odorless gas produced ... 

CO EXperts
Johnson County Kansas - Continuing Education – – Video Link


A well put together video is found with the next link, but remember U.L. 2034 Listed CO Alarms are high level alarms. Use them for protection against accute levels, but be aware you can still experience symptoms of the poisoning even though the devices are in place.
About Carbon Monoxide and Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
DailyMotion
About Carbon Monoxide and Carbon Monoxide Poisoning 

JEMS.com - ...site has been designed with this in mind – to create a visual, interactive, educational resource which can hopefully end incidents of carbon monoxide poisoning and save lives… For more information, please visit - www.thesilentkiller.co.uk 

Who is responsible for the air you breathe? 
Take control inside your homes. 
-Link to:  CO alarm standards  

The lowest U.L. 2034 & CSA 6.19 carbon monoxide alarm test point is: 
- 70 PPM to 149 PPM –resist one hour, must alarm before 4 hours 
Please read the alarm information on the package and in the instructions. Know when your fire department and emergency responders begin wearing their breathing apparatus and what their civilian evacuation levels are for carbon monoxide; it may be before 70 PPM. It is for pregnant women, infants & children, the elderly and all people of vulnerable health. Bob Dwyer, CSME Carbon Monoxide Safety 


Consider low level protection for carbon monoxide and smoldering fire detection problems; don't leave anyone behind. CO Experts


These following links may be of some use to you: 
U.S. Drought Monitor
- Astronomy Picture of the Day Archive
- Current Data for Atmospheric CO2
- Federal Aviation Administration CO warning
- Carbon monoxide toxicity-Emergency Medicine Ireland
- Carbon Monoxide Survivor- Views from those who have been poisoned.
- Carbon Monoxide detection- National Fire Protection Association

· Please take CARBON MONOXIDE SAFETY CARE during all holiday and everyday activities.

National Conference of State Legislatures 
Carbon Monoxide Detectors State Statutes 

Twenty-Nine U.S. states have statutes that require carbon monoxide detectors in certain residential buildings. Updated Nov. 2014
Alaska | California | Colorado | Connecticut | Delaware | Florida |
Georgia | Illinois | Maine | Maryland | MassachusettsMichigan |
Minnesota | Montana | New Jersey | New Hampshire | New York | 
  
Red Cross - Disaster Relief to safely assist law enforcement, fire department, utility company, city, county and state authorities as repair and rebuilding moves forward. Bob Dwyer, CSME Carbon Monoxide Safety

Nationally, the Red Cross provides food and shelter to people affected by as many as 70,000 fires annually, or about one fire every eight minutes.

The following companies are acknowledged for their continued support of carbon monoxide safety education and this daily news blog. They may just have what you are looking for. 
Fieldpiece Instruments 
The Energy Conservatory 
IntelliTec Colleges 

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