Carbon monoxide (abbreviated CO) is a colourless and odourless gas with considerable hazard potential. It is produced during incomplete combustion of materials made of carbon. This type of combustion requires high temperatures and a low oxygen supply. Carbon monoxide can also occur in rooms where there is no source. This is particularly dangerous in bedrooms such as dormitories or children's rooms, where there can be a risk of gradual CO poisoning during the night if the gas enters from outside.
When the gas is inhaled, it enters the bloodstream via the lungs, where it combines with the haemoglobin of the red blood cells. This happens exactly at the point where oxygen would normally dock, which is why the red blood cells can no longer transport sufficient oxygen. Due to the resulting lack of oxygen, carbon monoxide can quickly lead to unconsciousness and death at high concentrations.
Three causes and sources of carbon monoxide
Gas heaters and fireplaces
Defective or unmaintained gas boilers and fireplaces are a source of danger. Even in the summer, accidents with carbon monoxide occur there time and again - especially when outside temperatures are very high. This can lead to a backflow of flue gas, as the gases are not hot enough to be extracted compared to the outside air and can therefore no longer be discharged correctly. Modern appliances often have a protective mechanism that detects such a backpressure and can switch off the appliance automatically. However, if this is defective or, as in the case of older gas boilers, does not exist, this can lead to an unnoticed increase in carbon monoxide in the room air. The use of extractor bonnets and air conditioners can also pose a risk or increase the effect. This is because oxygen-rich air can be released into the open air, but the resulting negative pressure causes CO to enter the interior through the flue pipes.
Barbecues and mushroom heaters
Another risk and one of the most frequent causes of accidents in summer is the use of mushroom heaters on cooler summer evenings and charcoal barbecues in closed or only half-open rooms such as garages, loggias or summerhouses. There, the smoke and the carbon monoxide produced cannot escape sufficiently, which can lead to life-threatening situations due to high CO concentrations.
Petrol-driven power generators
To secure the power supply in secluded gazebos, people often resort to petrol-powered generators - for example, to run the energy-hungry air conditioner in the warm summer. The mobile generators produce exhaust gases that can be drawn into the interior. Especially during the start-up phase of the engines, combustion is not optimal because the operating temperature has not yet been reached. Dangerous CO is then increasingly produced.
The air-Q air measuring device as a CO warning detector
The symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning may seem unspecific at first - signs and symptoms include headaches, drowsiness or dizziness. For prevention, it is not only recommended to regularly maintain fuel-operated appliances, but also to install carbon monoxide detectors in the premises.
The air-Q measures carbon monoxide and also functions as an active CO alarm. Even at low levels of the dangerous gas in the room air, the gas measuring device sounds the alarm and thus warns in good time so that there is enough time to react accordingly. Even low, not yet critical concentrations can be viewed by means of history analyses in order to detect dangers already in a preventive manner. Thus, the smart air measuring device offers good protection and helps to prevent possible accidents with carbon monoxide.
