Generators: is deadly carbon monoxide poisoning as easy to avoid as you think?

Sophisticated, professionally installed home generators like these aren’t the problem.

As Hurricane’s come and go they leave in their wake destruction, death and…power outages. For any of us who have weathered a hurricane we’ve discovered that much of the inconvenience in the ensuing hours and days after the hurricane is due to our loss of power.

Generators like this one pump out significant amounts of deadly carbon monoxide.

It gets us thinking back to days when people survived year around without central electricity and makes us profoundly happy that we can normally conjure up a light bulb, A/C unit or the fridge without a thought.Generators have become increasingly popular with the greater incidence of hurricanes and super duty versions that run

on natural gas are now lusted after by hurricane country residents. For those of us on a budget, the simple Honda home generator from Home Depot is a little more within reach.

You’ve likely heard that generators create deadly carbon monoxide that kill people and yet there are reports every year about people dying from CO poisoning. Sure, some die because they’ve failed to follow common sense BUT did you know that people have died from CO poisoning from generators placed OUTSIDE their home? Generators can generate as much as 6-times the CO of an idling car and when these hogs are spewing their deadly carbon monoxide in close proximity to your home’s windows or a/c unit those fumes can find their way into your home. According to Popular Mechanics and a study conducted by the CDC:

“During hurricanes, however, many people move their generators into areas protected from wind and rain that they assume are well ventilated. A CDC report traced several poisonings to generators placed outside, but near windows or air conditioners.”

Read the full article from Popular Mechanics called Taking CO Seriously. And while you’re at it read more about how to protect yourself in this related story titled In the wake of the storm.
What else can you do? How about making the small additional investment of a CO alarm. You can pick one up for around $30. CO Alarms are available from many hardware stores and big box retailers like Home Depot, Target and many more. Since CO poisoning can come from many sources the warning they provide makes them a great safety device and value.

CO Alarms like this one can be had for as little as $30.