CO and Fume Detectors
Most boats have a gasoline
or diesel-fueled internal combustion engine. Many also include gas-burning
appliances for cooking or heating. Having one or more sources of fuel
on board presents a potential danger, especially if you are unaware of
leaks or vapor accumulation.
Many boaters have some serious misconceptions
about fuel fumes in the bilge or engine compartment. One is that the
engine blower will eliminate dangerous fuel vapors prior to starting
a gasoline engine. In fact, any sort of fuel leak can create new fumes
as quickly as the blower fan can clear them out, so the risk of explosion
is always present, whether the blower is running or not. And although
diesel vapors are not explosive, high concentrations can make you sick.
One approach is to recognize that any fuel vapor in any part of your
boat presents a risk serious enough to warrant the investment in a fume
detector.
Fuel vapor detectors will detect more than just gas fuel vapors-they
are sensitive to any combustible vapor-cooking fuels, hydrogen, solvents,
and certain cleaning compounds. Here's how they work: a special wire
in the sensor has a small electrical current passing through it whenever
the unit is turned on. The presence of combustible hydrocarbon vapors
causes a change in resistance in the wire, which triggers the alarm.
The
Effects of Carbon Monoxide
Carbon monoxide (CO) can overcome a person quickly, and in high concentrations,
it can be fatal in just minutes-see the chart below. The most prevalent
source of CO is exhaust from gasoline engines and generators. These
fumes reach boaters from leaks in the exhaust system, fumes sucked back
into the boat, or from other boats. There are many, many ways CO can
find its way aboard.
Since carbon monoxide is colorless and odorless, the installation of
CO detectors aboard all recreational boats is recommended. Be sure to
use a carbon monoxide detector designed for marine use. These are calibrated
at a significantly different standard than household detectors.
Remember: gasoline detectors don't detect CO!
| Concentration
of CO to Air |
Symptoms
and Time |
| 100 ppm /.01% |
Slight headache in 2-3
hours |
| 400 ppm /04% |
Frontal headache in
1-2 hours. Widespread in 2.5-3.5 hours |
| 800 ppm/.08% |
Dizziness, nausea, convulsions
in 45 minutes. Insensible in 2 hours |
| 1,600 ppm/.16% |
Headache, dizziness,
nausea in 5 minutes. Death within 30 minutes |
| 3,200 ppm/.32% |
Headache, dizziness,
nausea in 5 minutes. Death within 30 minutes |
| 6,400 ppm/.64% |
Headache, dizziness
within 1-2 minutes. Death in 15-20 minutes |
|
