Myth #4 - A carbon monoxide detector will always protect my family from CO issues. (Wrong!)

The two key words that are problems with this myth are "always" and "protect".

If the concentration of carbon monoxide is rising quickly and confined to the basement, the CO detector located near the first floor bedrooms (the recommended location) will never sense it. Sending your kids to the basement to play could turn out to be a bad idea. The point is ... have detectors in multiple locations.

The ONLY thing a CO detector does is sense chemicals in the air surrounding it. The top of the line detectors sense only carbon monoxide and do not alarm when other gasses are present. Less expensive detectors may alarm due to fumes from nail polish, hair spray, aerosol cleaners, spray paint and even cooking sprays.

The word "protect" is another issue. 

Because of the frustrations experienced by many CO detector owners and fire-departments caused by nuisance alarms, UL (Underwriters Laboratories) decided to change the standards set forth in UL-2034 (the standard for CO detector performance.) The new UL-2034 benchmarks require a CO detector to sense low levels of CO (40ppm) and not alarm for a minimum of 8 hours!

If you have a family member with breathing problems, or have infants or elderly in the home, you need to do more investigation into acceptable carbon monoxide levels. People with these types of issue have been known to be affected by low-level CO exposure.

Also note that CO exposure may cause different reactions from different people. Some folks appear unaffected at levels that make other people nauseous. (A lot of this information is covered in Carbon Monoxide Myths.)

Another problem that is NEVER discussed ... is CO detector fouling.

Some makes of detectors that have been exposed to high levels of refrigerant (like when your home air-conditioner or refrigerator is repaired) become worthless. Their sensors become fouled with refrigerant and will no longer sense carbon monoxide. The electronic circuitry is intact, but the chemicals that make up the CO detector's sensing mechanism no longer function. The higher quality detectors will provide an error indication or alarm to signifiy that there is a problem. The cheap detectors ... they just sit there.

Here's a a couple of good videos that illustrate the point about how carbon monoxide detectors react differently.