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Carbon Monoxide (CO)

 

You can't taste it, you can't see it, you can't smell it! It can kill you.

 

Carbon monoxide is produced when carbon containing compounds are not completely burned. It is extremely toxic due to the fact that it 200 times the bonding power of oxygen to the hemoglobin in your blood. Inhaling concentrations as small as 400 ppm in the air can be fatal. Early symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning can include drowsiness, headache which can be followed by unconsciousness, respiratory failure and death. Since carbon monoxide has such an affinity for hemoglobin the effects of carbon monoxide poisoning are cumulative and long lasting. First aid for victims of carbon monoxide poisoning our fresh air or pure oxygen, the administration of artificial respiration and medical attention as soon as possible.

 

The effects of carbon monoxide in parts per million are listed below:

 

35 ppm (0.0035%) Headache and dizziness within six to eight hours of constant exposure

 

100 ppm (0.01%) Slight headache in two to three hours

 

200 ppm (0.02%) Slight headache within two to three hours

 

400 ppm (0.04%) Frontal headache within one to two hours

 

800 ppm (0.08%) Dizziness, nausea, and convulsions within 45 minutes. Insensible within two hours.

 

1,600 ppm (0.16%) Headache, dizziness, and nausea within 20 minutes. Death in less than two hours.

 

3,200 ppm (0.32%) Headache, dizziness and nausea in five to ten minutes. Death within 30 minutes.

 

6,400 ppm (0.64%) Headache and dizziness in one to two minutes. Death in less than 20 minutes.

 

12,800 ppm (1.28%) Death in less than three minutes

 

Prevention of carbon monoxide poisoning requires education in the proper and safe operation of heaters, appliances, fireplaces and internal combustion engines. Other preventative measures include the installation of carbon monoxide detectors which can be installed around the home and the garage. Some states and municipal governments including Illinois, Massachusetts, Ontario Canada, in New York City now all require the installation of carbon monoxide detectors.