Simply put if you don’t test, you won’t know and not knowing can put you and your family at risk for Carbon Monoxide poisoning. Carbon Monoxide is a deadly, colorless, odorless and poisonous gas. It is produced when various fuels, like coal and natural gas, are not completely burned. There are ways to prevent Carbon Monoxide from poisoning your home. The first and most important is to be certain your Carbon Monoxide detectors are working properly and the second is to make sure that all appliances are installed and operating according to the manufacturer’s instructions and third is to have all of your gas appliances serviced and checked each year. An important note is that in North America with many of the CO alarms on the market, when you push the “test button” you are only testing the batteries and for a working noise maker. It is important to be certain that the alarm sensor is not dead and is properly calibrated.

When you have your furnace serviced in the fall be sure to ask your H.V.A.C. company to check the furnace and other gas appliances to make sure they are not producing any dangerous levels of CO.  Many companies also sell and install CO detectors.  There are many detectors on the market but we use and recommend CO-Experts Low Level CO “Health” Monitor. This monitor detects the CO at much lower levels than the standard monitor. Below are two quotes taken from the packaging on a standard ul/csa listed Co alarm.

•  "Pregnant women, infants, children, senior citizens, persons with heart or respiratory problems and smokers may experience symptoms at lower levels of exposure than noted.  Individuals with medical problems may consider using warning devices which provide audible and visual signals for carbon monoxide concentrations under 30 ppm."

• "WARNING:  This product is intended for us in ordinary indoor locations for family living units.  It is not designed to measure compliance with Occupational safety and Health Administration (OSHA) commercial or industrial standards."

 What this is saying is that many alarms do not read levels under 30ppm nor are they intended to detect low level, long term carbon monoxide exposure which can be a risk to anyone but especially to anyone with any underlying health problems, children, pregnant women and the elderly. The CO- Experts Low Level CO “Health” Monitor detects the Carbon Monoxide at levels as low as 10ppm. It comes down to the basic question of “What kind of detection do you want in your home and for your family?” The CO Experts Low Level CO Health Monitor is one of the best ways to ensure that you are in control and not low level exposure!

For more information on CO Experts please visit their website at www.coexperts.com