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ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS - INSPECT, TEST, REMEDY

BLEVE EXPLOSIONS
CARBON MONOXIDE - CO
  ALARM CAUSES - CO
  EXPOSURE LIMITS for CO
  INSPECTION for CARBON MONOXIDE
  TESTS for CARBON MONOXIDE
  MEDICAL EFFECTS of CO
  POISONING SYMPTOMS - CO
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Photograph of a 120Vold carbon monoxide detector device Carbon Monoxide CO Poisoning Symptoms
InspectAPedia®  -    

  • Symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning or CO exposure and CO poisoning
  • What makes a CO alarm or carbon monoxide detector go off?
  • How to inspect buildings where carbon monoxide gas is suspected
  • Testing for Carbon Monoxide presence in buildings
  • Medical effects of carbon monoxide exposure - CO exposure - Toxicity of carbon monoxide gas
  • Carbon monoxide gas exposure limits
InspectAPedia offers impartial, unbiased advice without conflicts of interest. We will block advertisements which we discover or readers inform us are associated with bad business practices, false-advertising, or junk science. Our contact info is at InspectAPedia.com/Contact.htm.

This document discusses the the symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning. We give references and explanation regarding Toxicity of Carbon Monoxide, based on literature search and search on Compuserve's Safety Forum. This is background information, obtained from expert sources.

This text may assist readers in understanding these topics. However it should by no means be considered complete nor authoritative. Seek prompt advice from your doctor or health/safety experts if you have any reason to be concerned about exposure to toxic gases. Carbon monoxide poisoning can be fatal but exposure at lower limits can produce flu-like symptoms and headaches that are often mistaken for ordinary illness. Readers of this document should also see HEAT EXCHANGER LEAKS.

IF YOU SUSPECT CARBON MONOXIDE POISONING GO INTO FRESH AIR IMMEDIATELY and get others out of the building, then call your fire department or emergency services for help. Links on this page also direct the reader to carbon dioxide gas information in a separate document.

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CO POISONING SYMPTOMS - What are the Symptoms of Carbon Monoxide Poisoning

Carbon monoxide characteristics

Carbon monoxide (CO) is a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas that, physiologically, is a chemical asphyxiant. When inhaled, it combines with hemoglobin more readily than does oxygen, displacing oxygen from hemoglobin and thereby interfering with oxygen transport by the blood. In other words, breathing carbon monoxide can lead to asphyxiation - unconsciousness and even death.

A person suffering from carbon monoxide (CO) intoxication may have these symptoms:

  1. first experience euphoria (similar to the effect of a martini or two)
  2. then headache
  3. and possibly vomiting

as the concentration of carboxyhemoglobin in the blood increases.

Other symptoms of Carbon Monoxide poisoning include:

  • Weakness
  • dizziness
  • Lethargy
  • Confusion

In addition to neurological effects, heart damage has also often been reported in CO or carbon monoxide poisoning cases - see comments below.

IF YOU SUSPECT CARBON MONOXIDE POISONING GO INTO FRESH AIR IMMEDIATELY and get others out of the building, then call your fire department or emergency services for help Carbon monoxide poisoning can be fatal.

Safety Suggestions: Install Carbon Monoxide Detectors in addition to Smoke Detectors

Carbon monoxide detectors are inexpensive and readily available, both as a battery-operated unit and as a unit that plugs into an electrical outlet in the home. No home should be without this safety protection, and homes with gas-fired equipment (natural gas or LP propane), space heaters, or other sources of risk should be extra cautious. Smoke detectors do not protect against carbon monoxide poisoning, and the opposite is also true. Carbon monoxide detectors do not warn of smoke or fire.

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CARBON MONOXIDE - CO
  ALARM CAUSES - CO
  EXPOSURE LIMITS for CO
  INSPECTION for CARBON MONOXIDE
  TESTS for CARBON MONOXIDE
  MEDICAL EFFECTS of CO
  POISONING SYMPTOMS- CO
  • A Toxic Gas Testing Plan: A Gas Sampling Plan for Residential and Commercial buildings lists some of the toxic indoor gases for which we test, depending on the building complaint and building conditions
  • Gas Exposure Hazard Levels: for Toxic Gas Exposure to Ammonia, Arsine, Arsenic, Bromine, Carbon Dioxide, Carbon Monoxide, Hydride, Ozone - allowable exposure levels and hazard levels
  • Carbon Dioxide Gas Toxicity hazard level, poisoning symptoms, & testing
  • Carbon Monoxide Gas Toxicity hazard levels, poisoning symptoms, & testing
  • Formaldehyde: US EPA. UFFI (Urea Formaldehyde Foam Insulation) was previously considered a hazard (formaldehyde outgassing). Subsequent research virtually closed concern regarding this material; however formaldehyde appears to remain a health concern for sensitive individuals.
  • Ozone Warnings - New Use of Ozone as a "mold" remedy is ineffective and may be dangerous.
  • Sampling for gases in air such as VOC's, MVOC's, toxic chemicals, and combustion products.
    Unfortunately no single test or tool can detect all possible building contaminants. We use methods and equipment which can test for common contaminants. If the identity of a specific contaminant is known in advance we can also test for a very large number of specific contaminant gases in buildings.
    We use gas sampling equipment provided by the two most reliable companies in the world, Draeger-Safety's detector-tubes and Drager accuro� bellows pump, the Gastec� cylinder pump and detector-tube system produced by Gastec or Sensidyne, and we also use Sensidyne's Gilian air pump. For broad screening for combustibles and a number of other toxic gases and for leak tracing we also use Amprobe's Tif8850. All of these instruments, their applications, and sensitivities (minimum detectable limits) for specific gases are described in our Gas Sampling Plan online document.
  • Radon Gas U.S. EPA Radon level maps

Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair

  • Our recommended books about building & mechanical systems design, inspection, problem diagnosis, and repair, and about indoor environment and IAQ testing, diagnosis, and cleanup are at the InspectAPedia Bookstore. Also see our Book Reviews - InspectAPedia.
  • Home Reference Book - Carson Dunlop The Home Reference Book - the Encyclopedia of Homes, Carson Dunlop & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, 2010, $69.00 U.S., is available from Carson Dunlop. The Home Reference Book is a bound volume of more than 450 illustrated pages that assist home inspectors and home owners in the inspection and detection of problems on buildings. The text is intended as a reference guide to help building owners operate and maintain their home effectively. InspectAPedia.com ® editor Daniel Friedman is a contributing author. Field inspection worksheets are included at the back of the volume.
  • Best Practices Guide to Residential Construction, by Steven Bliss. John Wiley & Sons, 2006. ISBN-10: 0471648361, ISBN-13: 978-0471648369, Hardcover: 320 pages, available from Amazon.com and also Wiley.com. See our book review of this publication.
  • Decks and Porches, the JLC Guide to, Best Practices for Outdoor Spaces, Steve Bliss (Editor), The Journal of Light Construction, Williston VT, 2010 ISBN 10: 1-928580-42-4, ISBN 13: 978-1-928580-42-3, available from Amazon.com
  • The Journal of Light Construction has generously given reprint permission to InspectAPedia.com for certain articles found at this website. All rights and contents to those materials are ©Journal of Light Construction and may not be reproduced in any form.
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