Smoke/Carbon Monoxide Detectors?

[ylomnstr]

I'm assuming a carbon monoxide detector is a good idea after installing a pellet stove? Or would a smoke alarm be good enough? Not sure how pellet stoves are regarding carbon monoxide. Suggestions?

 

[RonaldAdams]

I have a combination smoke and carbon monoxide detector on every level of my home.

 

[oc4man]

I'm assuming a carbon monoxide detector is a good idea after installing a pellet stove? Or would a smoke alarm be good enough? Not sure how pellet stoves are regarding carbon monoxide. Suggestions?

I have invested in both!! I'll be sleeping better.

 

[cncpro]

I am using both. I had existing devices but wanted to upgrade to a bit of an early warning system...

I added a new smoke detector in the same room as the stove and it is special in that it is wirelessly linked to another brand new unit in my bedroom. The end result is that if I get a smoke / fire problem with the stove I will be awoken immediately by the unit right over my bed.

 

[itworks]

They're a MUST!

 

[imacman]

....it is special in that it is wirelessly linked to another brand new unit in my bedroom. The end result is that if I get a smoke / fire problem with the stove I will be awoken immediately by the unit right over my bed.

Is that the First Alert OneLink units? I have 4 of them in my home....they work great! This one does smoke and co2 at the same time.

 

[stoveguy2esw]

I'm assuming a carbon monoxide detector is a good idea after installing a pellet stove? Or would a smoke alarm be good enough? Not sure how pellet stoves are regarding carbon monoxide. Suggestions?

wood stoves, coal stoves,pellet stoves , gas stoves , oil stoves all have one thing in common... combustion. this creates CO even if visible smoke isnt there. virtually all stoves of any type will not release CO or smoke into a home under normal circumstances. smoke and co detectors are for "abnormal circumstances"

bottom line...
if it makes a fire, and its in your home i dont care what it burns or who made it, you GOTTA have em smoke as well as CO. ive learned that sometimes smoke detectors may not go off even in a smoke event with a heating appliance even an electric heater, adding CO detectors gives an added level of security. my family would not be sleeping in a home that doesnt have them both in it. bottom line , if you aint got em yet , be at the door of the nearest store that sells em when it opens . sorry if i came on a bit strong , but im a bit anal about safety. numerous lives are saved by these devices every year, and they arent expensive, protect your family , install and test regularly the life they save may be you or your family.

 

[R&D Guy]

I'm assuming a carbon monoxide detector is a good idea after installing a pellet stove? Or would a smoke alarm be good enough? Not sure how pellet stoves are regarding carbon monoxide. Suggestions?

wood stoves, coal stoves,pellet stoves , gas stoves , oil stoves all have one thing in common... combustion. this creates CO even if visible smoke isnt there. virtually all stoves of any type will not release CO or smoke into a home under normal circumstances. smoke and co detectors are for "abnormal circumstances"

bottom line...
if it makes a fire, and its in your home i dont care what it burns or who made it, you GOTTA have em smoke as well as CO. ive learned that sometimes smoke detectors may not go off even in a smoke event with a heating appliance even an electric heater, adding CO detectors gives an added level of security. my family would not be sleeping in a home that doesnt have them both in it. bottom line , if you aint got em yet , be at the door of the nearest store that sells em when it opens . sorry if i came on a bit strong , but im a bit anal about safety. numerous lives are saved by these devices every year, and they arent expensive, protect your family , install and test regularly the life they save may be you or your family.

I couldn't agree more! Smoke/CO dectectors are cheap and I'm glad I live in a house where if 1 goes off, they all go off which is great for when everyone is sleeping. I've got one in every room except the kitchen.

 

[cncpro]

....it is special in that it is wirelessly linked to another brand new unit in my bedroom. The end result is that if I get a smoke / fire problem with the stove I will be awoken immediately by the unit right over my bed.

Is that the First Alert OneLink units? I have 4 of them in my home....they work great! This one does smoke and co2 at the same time.

No. Mine are actually Kidde brand. Those First Alert ones look nice though.

 

[globewyre]

CO2 detector are code in our town in NJ. I don not think it was when the house was built 5 yrs ago. When I finish my basement the inspector wanted one on every floor there was a bedroom. I go the first alert from HD that plugs into the wall.

 

[imacman]

Just happen to see this ad from First Alert specifically for people who live in Minnesota. It seems the State fire law now requires CO2 detectors in all homes. They are offering $5.00 off the order until Oct 31,2008.

(broken link removed to http://www.firstalertstore.com/mn-co-offer.htm)

The ones I have in my home are shown in this link and are the "Onelink Wireless Talking Battery Operated Smoke & Carbon Monoxide Alarm"

www.firstalertstore.com/store/catalog.asp?item=1236

But I think you can probably get them cheaper on eBay or Amazon.com

And NO, I do NOT work for them (LOL)....just liked their product and thought I'd pass the info to everyone here...I am BIG on safety when my family is concerned.

 

[billb3]

I use living plants for CO2 detectors.
If they die I make a point of breathing again.

 

[flashbang]

both.

 

[tinkabranc]

Both are a good idea
In MA it is actually mandatory to have a CO detector on
each floor now.

 

[DiggerJim]

I'm assuming a carbon monoxide detector is a good idea after installing a pellet stove? Or would a smoke alarm be good enough? Not sure how pellet stoves are regarding carbon monoxide. Suggestions?

Both. But while some of the combo units are nice, you really want them split. A smoke alarm is good when mounted high on the wall or ceiling 'cause smoke rises. A CO detector is better located low because CO is heavier than air and tends to sink. Kidde makes a good CO unit that plugs into any wall outlet and because wall outlets tend to be located low, it's a perfect location. At least have one of them in the room the stove is in. I have a nice Nighthawk that cost about $40 with an LED CO sensing display to let me know just how much CO is in the air - it's comforting to see that red 0 down there.

 

[orangecrushcj7]

I use living plants for CO2 detectors.
If they die I make a point of breathing again.

CO2 is carbon dioxide. carbon monoxide (CO) is the poisonous gas. Plants won't react to CO the same way they do with lack of CO2

I have 2 Kidde nighthawks, one on each level. $35 each at BJ's. They have realtime digital readouts, and you can check the peak levels. I have never even had 1ppm at either location with the pellet stoves running.

 

[PA Harman P 61A]

It is call the cheapest insurance you can buy. I had a carbon monoxide detector save me and my family in the middle of the night. I just bought a home, cleaned out the stack on the triple wall pipe, cleaned the stove, then fired it up. I failed to check the gasket condition on the door gasket. Well a few days later we were out of our new home and living in a motel wating for our house to air out.

 

[slheinlein]

I use both smoke alarm and carbon monoxide detector. It seems to me that anytime you have fire burning inside, you should have both.

 

[firefighterjake]

I use living plants for CO2 detectors.
If they die I make a point of breathing again.

CO2 is carbon dioxide. carbon monoxide (CO) is the poisonous gas. Plants won't react to CO the same way they do with lack of CO2

I have 2 Kidde nighthawks, one on each level. $35 each at BJ's. They have realtime digital readouts, and you can check the peak levels. I have never even had 1ppm at either location with the pellet stoves running.

I think Billb knows the difference between CO (carbon monoxide) and CO2 (carbon dioxide) and was making a funny.

For the record, I'm a firm believer in both smoke detectors and CO detectors . . . then again my brother was "saved' due to a CO detector when a faulty propane heater was loading his house up with propane a number of years ago. Due to the clean burning nature he didn't smell or see any CO (which is expected since CO by itself is colorless, odorless, etc.) . . . fortunately the CO detector activated and he didn't have any symptoms of CO poisoning (i.e. headache, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, etc.) so he contacted the propane company which had installed the system just a day or so beforehand (instead of calling the FD . . . which at the time didn't have CO monitoring equipment) and the problem was fixed.

I also really like the new smoke detectors . . . lots of great features such as the wireless interconnectivity, hush features for false alarms, lithium-powered batteries for long-life. I'm not so keen on the dual smoke/CO detectors . . . mainly because these detectors are "checking" for two very different problems -- smoke and CO. I do however like the dual ionization/photoelectric smoke detectors which hold some promise for providing excellent response to both the flaming types of fire and smoldering types of fire.

 

[richkorn]

My house uses 6 smoke detectors (each bedroom, 2 hallways, basement) wired in series with 9v batts in each for backup. I have a CO detector in the basement, one in the living room with the stove, and one in each of the two upstairs bedroom. I feel pretty secure.

Also, during the burn-in on my stove the first floor hallway smoke detector went off twice while burning on high. Evidently, that nasty smell coming off the new stove puts out some gas vapor also that the smoke detector didn't like.

 

[sinnian]

I have a smoke detector wired in series with 9v back up on every floor and garage, a CO on every floor and garage, with one of those that has a digital read out (where my gas Jotul is), and a fire extinguisher on every floor and garage.

Also, remember to change out your smoke detectors every 5-10 years or so, as they do have a certain shelf life to them.

 

[hossthehermit]

Gotta say, I'm not a big fan of the lithium batteries in these. IMO, you're a lot better off having to change batts twice a year, and doing a quick vacuum of the detector when you do it. Dust WILL build up in these units and decrease sensitivity. Advantage of the lithiums is that if you don't change the alkaline ones, the lithium will still give some protection for a long time,until they plug up. C'mon people, it's your lives you're talking about, here. It takes ten minutes twice a year, change the batts, stick the shop-vac nozzle up there, tell your wife how hard you worked, grab a cold one, sit back down for the second half of the game. By the way, remember, those lithium batteries are a special category of hazardous waste.

 

[sydney1963]

I have both. You can get a CO detector at most hardware stores for around 20-30 dollars. I also bought a fire extinguisher for around 20 dollars.

 

[imacman]

Gotta say, I'm not a big fan of the lithium batteries in these. IMO, you're a lot better off having to change batts twice a year.....

My First Alert One Link Smoke/CO detectors specifically call for regular alkaline batteries ONLY. I did try some Lithium in one of them just for the heck of it, and they didn't last for crap.....put the alkalines in, and I get over a year on them.