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Residential Carbon Monoxide Detectors

Fire Safety Education

BOARD OF FIRE PREVENTION REGULATIONS SETS REQUIREMENTS FOR RESIDENTIAL CARBON MONOXIDE DETECTORS

On February 2, 2006, State Fire Marshal Stephen D. Coan and Board of Fire Prevention Regulations Chairman David Demers announced that the board has passed emergency regulations on carbon monoxide detectors. The Legislature directed the BFPR to draft regulations as part of the recently enacted "Nicole's law" that requires carbon monoxide detectors in all homes with potential sources of carbon monoxide - those with fossil-fuel burning equipment or enclosed parking areas.

Coan said, "These regulations bring us another step closer to full implementation of this law. The Department of Fire Services will be working with a consortium of fire, health, housing and other groups to educate concerned groups and the public on effective implementation of these regulations."

NICOLE'S LAW

On November 4, 2005, Governor Romney signed "Nicole's Law", named after 7 year old Nicole Garofalo who died on January 28, 2005 when her Plymouth home was filled with deadly amounts of carbon monoxide on January 24. The furnace vents had been blocked by snow during a power outage.

"Today, we have the opportunity to turn the senseless death of Nicole Garofalo into the wake-up call that the little girl never heard," said Romney. "In signing this bill, we've taken a big step toward preventing similar tragedies from striking other families in the Commonwealth."

In 2003, there nearly 3,000 carbon monoxide cases reported statewide, most of which occurred in residences during the winter months.

"The passage of this law means that something good has come from Nicole's death," said Mark Garofalo, Nicole's father. "Her legacy will be one of protecting other little boys and girls from the deadly dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning."

To prevent future cases of carbon monoxide poisoning, Nicole's Law requires residential buildings that contain enclosed parking or equipment such as boilers, furnaces and hot water heaters to have working carbon monoxide detectors. Local fire departments will inspect residences upon the sale or transfer of a property to ensure compliance with the law.

PROVISIONS OF NEW REGULATIONS FOR CO DETECTORS

For buildings with fossil-fuel burning equipment or enclosed parking areas, the new regulations require carbon monoxide detectors on every level of the home and within ten feet of each sleeping area and in habitable portions of basements and attics. The CO detectors may be:

  • Battery operated with battery monitoring; or
  • Plug-ins with battery back-up; or
  • Hard-wired with battery backup; or
  • Low voltage system; or
  • Wireless; or
  • Qualified combination (smoke/carbon monoxide alarm)

Acceptable combination smoke detectors and carbon monoxide alarms must have simulated voice and tone alarms that clearly distinguish between the two types of emergencies. The State Building Code mandates that only photoelectric combination alarms are permitted within twenty feet of a bathroom or kitchen.

All affected residences must install approved carbon monoxide alarms by March 31, 2006, although where hard-wired systems are required, the deadline is January 1, 2007.

Fire Marshal Coan indicated that the board is continuing to develop additional CO alarm requirements for certain transient residential buildings such as hotels and motels, in addition to requirements for certain institutional buildings. It is anticipated that the regulations for these types of buildings will be promulgated in the very near future in order to meet the statues January 1, 2007 deadline.

ALTERNATIVE COMPLIANCE OPTIONS

The regulations allows for alternative compliance options that may be more practical for larger buildings with multiple dwellings units that contain minimal or no sources of CO inside the individual units. The option allows owners to target the CO alarm protection only in those areas that could be potential sources of CO. Examples include rooms that contain boilers, hot water heaters, central laundry areas and all adjacent spaces, in addition to enclosed parking areas. This CO protection option requires hard or low voltage wiring, monitoring and certain signal transmission requirements. The deadline for compliance with this method of protection is January 1, 2007.

LANDLORDS MUST INSPECT ANNUALLY AND AT START OF EACH RENTAL PERIOD

Landlords must inspect, maintain, and replace, if necessary, required CO alarms annually and at the beginning of any rental period. Tenants should report any problems with detectors to the landlord immediately and learn to recognize the difference between smoke alarm and the carbon monoxide detector.

ENFORCEMENT

State Fire Marshal Stephen D. Coan said, "Most homeowners are surely eager to comply with these new regulations in order to protect their own families and their tenants. We know the carbon monoxide poisoning can kill right away, but a recent study (by the Journal of American Medical Association, 2006-295-398-402, Minneapolis Heat Institute Foundation) has shown that suffering carbon monoxide poisoning increases the risk of heart problems later on that can lead to premature death."

The Department of Public Health is required to adopt and enforce this requirement on landlords as part of the State Sanitary code.

Fire departments are currently required to inspect smoke alarms when one-five unit homes are being sold and transferred. Starting March 31, 2006 (or January 1, 2007 where hard-wired are required) fire departments will be required to inspect all residences upon sale and transfer for carbon monoxide detectors. Maximum fees to separate or joint inspecting of CO alarms and smoke detectors are $50.00 for single-family homes or units (i.e. condo), $100.00 for 2-family dwellings, $150.00 for 3-6 unit dwellings and $500.00 for 6 or more unit buildings.

DANGERS OF CARBON MONOXIDE

According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), an acceptable level of CO is a 15 parts per million (PPM) average over a time span of eight hours of a 22 PPM average for an hour. If you have 1,000 PPM for over thirty minutes, it puts you at a high level of danger in the form of a collapse into a coma or permanent brain damage. Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless gas that results form incomplete combustion of fossil fuels such gas, propane, oil, wood, coal and gasoline.

Note - The CO alarm requirements for certain sidewalled gas fueled equipment installations (see 248 C.M.R. 5.08), required by the State Plumbing code, remain in full effect and are not affected at this time by the passage of Nicole's law. This CO requirement is to be enforced by the local plumbing/gas inspector (for more information, see the Fire Marshal's advisory Revised Emergency Gas Code Regulation).

Information obtained from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the Fire Marshal's Office.