During the heating season, carbon monoxide can cause several fatal accidents.
What preventive measures can you take to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning? Unfortunately, being at home can present various dangers, one of the most severe being the presence of a toxic gas that can lead to poisoning and, in more serious cases, death—commonly during the heating season but also outside of it.
This gas, commonly referred to as the “silent killer,” is carbon monoxide (CO).
What is Carbon Monoxide?
Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas that is slightly lighter than air and undetectable by human senses. When inhaled, it interferes with the blood’s ability to carry oxygen, as it binds strongly to hemoglobin, the protein that transports oxygen in the body.
CO poisoning is difficult to detect because its symptoms—nausea, dizziness, headaches, and fatigue—can easily be mistaken for other illnesses. High levels of carbon monoxide can cause loss of consciousness and death within minutes.
Symptoms of Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Based on Concentration Since this gas is extremely toxic even in low concentrations, it is measured in a unit called “parts per million” (ppm).
- At 200 ppm, carbon monoxide causes mild headaches, fatigue, dizziness, and nausea within two to three hours.
- At 400 ppm, it can cause severe headaches within one to two hours and can be life-threatening after three hours.
- At 800 ppm, symptoms like nausea and loss of consciousness occur within two hours, with death likely within three hours.
- At 1,600 ppm, severe headaches, dizziness, and nausea set in within 20 minutes, and death can occur within one hour.
- At 3,200 ppm, strong headaches, nausea, and dizziness begin in five to ten minutes, with death likely within 15 to 20 minutes.
- At 6,400 ppm, these symptoms appear in just one to two minutes, with death expected in 10 to 15 minutes.
- At 12,800 ppm, death occurs within a few minutes.
Carbon monoxide is so toxic that if it reaches 1.28% of the air volume in your home, it can be fatal within three minutes.
