My boyfriend just called me from his hunting cabin; their carbon monoxide detector just went off and he wanted me to search the internet for him to see what they should do. I guess they run everything off propane and have the detector 'just in case.' They took the battery out and put it back in and it's not going off anymore. He said he 'thinks' they just changed the battery. I looked up some symptoms for him and he said no one has been feeling sick. Has anyone had this problem? Should I tell him to evacuate?
2007-11-17 14:42:57 · 8 answers · asked by rhiannonb52 2 in Home & Garden ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
It's possible that a low/bad battery connection caused the detector to go off. It's also possible that there's a leak somewhere causing fumes to get into the cabin. To be on the safe side, they should open as many windows as they can to get good ventilation. If there's a fire dept nearby, they should call 911 and get the fire dept there. That's what I did. They do consider this an emergency.
2007-11-17 14:47:09 · answer #1 · answered by Liza 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
That's the problem with carbon monoxide detectors. If they go off and everything seems fine, you don't know what to do. With a smoke alarm you can tell if it's a false alarm. I say call the FD and they'll come over and check things out to be safe. You never know. You may have a problem and feel fine for now. Better safe than sorry. If they Say everything's ok, go buy a new one and not the same brand.
2016-05-24 01:09:10 · answer #2 · answered by marti 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Carbon Monoxide detectors should be replaced after they alarm, there is no safe way to know if the problem has passed without a tester. A low battery does not cause an alarm, only a warning beep. If he goes to sleep in that cabin without checking out the problem, do not have children with him.
2007-11-17 15:42:39 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
If it was an occasional single/double beep every minute, it was a low battery indicator.
If it was beeping steadily, it was the alarm triggered, and they should open the door and get out immediately. Ventilate the area carefully.
Carbon monoxide is odorless, tasteless, and invisible. First signs of overexposure are a mild headache, and/or feeling drowsy/sleepy. Carbon monoxide will kill.
Never operate 'open flame' appliances without adequate ventilation!
Good Luck
2007-11-17 17:31:27 · answer #4 · answered by thewrangler_sw 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Keep the windows open, at the very least.
The only time my carbon monoxide detector went off, it turned out to be a false alarm (but the fire department came anyway, and they didn't complain). Better safe than sorry.
2007-11-17 14:45:47 · answer #5 · answered by The Oracle 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I would have them open up a window, then check the readings again. To be safe, I would probably contact the fire department if there is one nearby. But more than likely it was a battery going down.
2007-11-17 14:48:51 · answer #6 · answered by juliablue 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think the others covered it well, but I want to emphasize this point. You will not feel sick when you are being poisoned with carbon monoxide. It just makes you feel sleepy, and then you die.
2007-11-17 14:53:53 · answer #7 · answered by Tom H 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
its dangerous when i was a kid it went off, and we didnt know what to do so..i started to fall asleep while eating...it was scary for my family because we all just go so tired so my mom called the firedep and they rushed us out so fast to us to the hospital...exspecially scary since they said a week b4 a family had died in florida from it; just get it checked out.
2007-11-17 14:46:59 · answer #8 · answered by lauralee♥ 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋