MONOX
What is it?
Carbon monoxide is a toxic gas that you can neither see nor smell. It is mainly released by malfunctioning appliances or combustion engines, i.e. those using gas, petrol, fuel oil, coal, wood or ethanol. The majority of poisoning cases occur at home.
Carbon monoxide poisoning affects everyone: headaches, nausea, dizziness and vomiting can all be signs of the presence of carbon monoxide in your home.
Dangers and symptoms
Once inhaled, carbon monoxide is dangerous for health. Once breathed in, carbon monoxide replaces oxygen in the bloodstream. The effects can be fast: in the most severe cases, it can lead to coma or even death in a matter of minutes. Every year, carbon monoxide affects more than one thousand homes in France, causing around one hundred deaths. Those poisoned sometimes suffer lifelong after-effects.
Main symptoms
MILD POISONING
Headaches, nausea, dizziness, drowsiness, concentration deficit, vomiting and coordination disorder.
MODERATE OR SEVERE POISONING
Impaired judgement, confusion, loss of consciousness, convulsions, chest pain, shortness of breath, low blood pressure and coma. Most poisoned victims are no longer able to move and must be rescued. Symptoms appearing in the same place, at the same time of day or week, are highly suggestive of carbon monoxide poisoning.
Poisoning: what to do?
- Ventilate the premises immediately by opening doors and windows.
- Switch off your combustion appliances if possible.
- Evacuate the premises and clear all occupants.
- Call emergency services:
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| Single European emergency number | Fire brigade |
- Do not return to the premises until a qualified professional has been called to identify the cause of the poisoning and recommend the necessary corrective action.
How can you protect yourself?
Have a carbon monoxide (CO) detector fitted in your home supplied with natural gas, in accordance with the law. While the decree requires carbon monoxide detectors to be installed in gas-fired homes, it is also strongly recommended to do the same for any home fitted with a combustion appliance.
Have your boiler checked before the cold season. Ask a qualified professional to come and carry out a full check once a year. If you're going to be away, you can leave it idling to protect your individual heating system from freezing. Make sure that the chimney flue is in good condition if the boiler is connected, whatever the material it is made of (masonry flue, fitted elements or casing, made of aluminium or stainless steel) and that it is completely empty. Chimney sweeping is mandatory twice a year.
Clean the burners of your gas cooker regularly (a short blue flame should be seen coming out of each orifice). If they are clogged, the air-gas mixture does not happen as it should and the burner may go out, particularly when reduced to idle. A well-adjusted flame should not blacken the bottom of saucepans.
Check that the smoke is exhausted outside the building. Note that mobile auxiliary heaters running on butane, propane or petrol, which emit combustion gases containing carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides, should only be used intermittently in ventilated rooms. They must be fitted with atmosphere-control safety devices.
Never use heat-emitting panels intended for large, well-ventilated rooms, even if they are fitted with safety devices, or with camping heaters intended for outdoor use, or by turning on the cooker oven with the door open. Avoid using work-site heating panels with no safety devices.
New natural gas appliances must be CE marked, and some top-of-the-range cooking appliances must bear the NF GAZ Sélection mark. Only use small water heaters without flue vents intermittently and for a short period of time, not exceeding 8 minutes. They must be installed in a large enough, well-ventilated room. The minimum volume for a room must be 8 m3 when using a cooking appliance and 15 m3 with a small water heater. They are not permitted in a bathroom or shower, a bedroom or living room, or in one-room flats (studios).
It is forbidden to install a hood connected to the outside in a room where there is also an appliance connected to a flue. This could seriously disrupt the operation of the flue-connected appliance. Prefer an air recycling hood and consult an installer.
Make sure that your building manager arranges for maintenance and checks to be carried out on individual and collective safety devices. The latest gas appliances connected to a natural draught flue now have a safety system against the backflow of combustion products, called SPOTT (Permanent Thermal Draught Observation System), the operation of which must be tested during maintenance operations.
Test your skills :
Expert in preventing carbon monoxide poisoning? Click on the link below to participate in the quiz and evaluate your preparation for the prevention of risks of carbon monoxide poisoning!
