The poison within

Carbon Monoxide poisoning is a real and ever-present danger in the home. Don’t wait till it’s too late to check it out, says Menashe Scharf



Each year more than 250 people in the UK are accidentally poisoned in their homes by carbon monoxide gas from a boiler or cooker. On average, around 50 of these poisonings will be fatal - although some sources suggest the number of fatalities to be higher. Of those who survive a significant number end up enduring long-term injuries and disability that stay with them for the rest of their lives. 

Nausea, headaches, dizziness and tiredness are the common symptoms to look out for. If you're feeling ill in your home but feel better outside, at work or on holiday, you could very well be suffering the effects of low-level carbon monoxide poisoning. Frighteningly, exposure to high levels of carbon monoxide wreaks havoc very quickly. Within a couple of minutes of exposure we could suffer serious illness. A few minutes later we could lose consciousness or worse. 

The statistics certainly make grim reading - and the chief reason why is that carbon monoxide, to all intents and purposes, is invisible to the human senses. You can't smell it. You can't see it. You can't taste it. Basically, if you don't know that it is there you may not realise that you've been poisoned until it's too late! 

Carbon monoxide is a by-product of burning fossil fuels such as gas, oil, coal and wood. When burning takes place in a confined space or in a room without adequate ventilation, the oxygen in the air is used up in the burning process. This results in the release of carbon dioxide (Co2). 

This, while not poisonous in itself in this situation, does hinder the supply of oxygen reaching the burning fuel. This in turn makes the burning process inefficient. Fuel that is not fully combusted then begins to throw carbon monoxide out into the air. The silent killer is unleashed. 

In the home gas burning and wood burning appliances have the most potential to bring about carbon monoxide poisoning. Gas stoves, gas boilers, wood burners, open coal fires and gas heaters all pose a risk, that is unless you take preventative action to tackle the threat. 

 

TOP SAFETY TIPS 

 

A regular safety check on your fuel burning appliances is the solution that will stop you from becoming another carbon monoxide poisoning statistic. 

 

Check the flame colour of your gas appliances. The flame should burn a brilliant blue. If it burns more orange than blue then you have a problem. Switch the appliance off and call out a gas engineer immediately. For gas boilers and gas fires do get a corgi-registered engineer to service the appliances every year. 

 

Gas flues should be checked to make sure that they are not blocked. It is not that uncommon for birds to choose the end of a flue pipe as a nesting site. This could restrict outflow of carbon monoxide fumes and lead to a build up of the deadly gas around the vented appliance. Likewise, if you have a chimney running off an open fireplace do keep a regular eye out for nesting birds. Employing the services of a chimney sweep can help you out here. 

 

Check too that your air bricks and vents are free from blockages. This is especially important in your kitchen area and any other room where you have gas appliances or a gas boiler. 
For the ultimate preventative measure install a carbon monoxide detector in every room of your home where there is a fuel burning appliance. Detectors cost between £10 and £20 each and are fitted to the ceiling in the same way as a smoke alarm. It's a small price to pay for equipment that could end up saving your life.