Carbon Monoxide DetectorTesting

[OldSnipe]

I bought a CO detector about 6 years ago and plugged it in an outlet near the stove. At the time I had a wood stove. I just bought the second pellet stove that replaced the pellet stove that replaced the wood stove. The detector has nothing but a green LED and a Red LED plus an alarm. How the heck do I test this animal? It has never gone off since I've had it. (That's a good thing I think). I got curious about it last week so I took it to the driveway where my Jeep was parked, plugged it into an extension cord and set it near the tailpipe. After about a minute of running the Jeep it went off.

Well, that proves it works I guess but it seemed like to me it should have reacted quicker. I'd rather have no detector at all then think I'm protected and I'm not! How do you test these things? I think I paid about $75.00 bucks for it new. I'd like to determine if it is fit for use. I'd replace it in a minute with a canary if I could figure out how to make the canary chirp when it died and shut up when it was alive!

Seriously, I could use some advice here.

 

[elkimmeg]

Aprilaire Detectgas®
Used by professional heating/cooling contractors to test your carbon monoxide detector.

 

[drizler]

Thats how I test my 15 year old digital every year. It really does take a lot more co than you would think. To even get mine to start to read you can almost begin to taste and smell it clearly. It sounds pretty well proper to me. I like the digital. When we had the ice storm in 98 I was getting enough co into the house to make it start to read from the other side of the house. Best part was the generator was in a windy spot under an overhang. The stuff came up into the soffit, Plastic perforated type, over the top inside the roof and into the bedroom on the other side. Not enough to make you sick but just enough to begin to notice it if you have been gassed slightly before. I think mine is a KIDDE model, straight co but digital. Around $35. Darned things are double important to have since that study that found about 50% of the folks who get gassed seriously die of heart failure in not very many years.

 

[OldSnipe]

Aprilaire Detectgas®
Used by professional heating/cooling contractors to test your carbon monoxide detector.

But mate,

I'm not a professional heating contractor. I'm a retired Navy Snipe that is a usta was professional, operating superheated steam boilers, turbines, Diesels and other things that make ships go. Where do non professionals buy this stuff. and how do you calibrate it! I know it works, as I said, my Jeep tailpipe set it off. What I don't know is it sensetive enough to go off before I'm dead. Maybe I should put the thing in a canary cage and see if it goes off before the canary falls off the perch?
Thanks,

 

[HarryBack]

love the icon snipe....looks like hes drinking some of that Type 1, Mod 1 Navy coffee......you know, the kind that you can float a horseshoe in?

 

[JAred]

In my not so bright days, My roomate bought a digital one that read ppm. We sat in a truck and smoked ciggerettes and watched it climb till the alarm went off. Again not a very bright thing to do.

I think most go off at 35-45ppm? I'm probably totaly wrong here. I can't find the manual for the one I bought.

 

[FGZ]

Bump to this old thread, looking for a way to be sure my new Kidde works. It has the digital PPM display but has sat at zero for the several weeks it's been plugged in. I just want to see it register some other number by exposing it to CO - any safe way to do that?