By Eric Spacek
When you think of carbon monoxide poisoning, you may picture a home with a faulty furnace or a gas burner that was mistakenly left on. While those are certainly common scenarios, carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning can happen in a recreation facility, too.
CO is a colorless, odorless gas produced any time you burn fuel in cars or trucks, small engines, furnaces or other pieces of equipment. It can build up indoors and poison the people who are breathing it, which is why it is often called the “silent killer.” At low concentrations, CO can lead to fatigue in healthy people and chest pains in people who are suffering from heart disease. At higher concentrations, it can cause nausea, confusion, dizziness, headaches and impaired vision. If a person breathes in enough CO, it can be fatal.
In a recreation facility, some sources of potential CO buildup include:
A vehicle that is left running near the building’s ventilation system, bringing poisonous gas inside.
- A piece of equipment (such as the heating system for a pool) that is faulty.
- A sauna that hasn’t been properly inspected.
Protect From CO Poisoning
As building owners and managers, you are responsible for protecting the people who use your facility from CO poisoning. To do so, you first need to recognize the signs of a CO problem:
- Streaks of soot around fuel-burning appliances.
- Excess moisture found on windows, walls or other cold surfaces.
- Excessive rust on flue pipes, other pipe connections or appliance jacks.
- Orange or yellow flames (should be blue) in the combustion appliances.
- Small amounts of water leaking from the base of the chimney vent or flue pipe.
- Damaged or discolored bricks at the top of the chimney.
To prevent a CO problem from occurring (or catch it before it harms anyone), you should:
- Bring in a professional: Have all furnaces, gas stoves and fireplaces checked annually by a qualified professional, who will make sure they are venting properly. This individual should check flue pipes for rust holes, poor pipe connections and blockage, such as a bird’s nest.
- Install CO alarms throughout the building: These alarms can save lives by alerting everyone in the building there is a lethal amount of CO in the air. Test the alarms regularly and replace them every five to seven years.
- If you have a kitchen, use vents when running the stove: Even if you’re simply warming something up, it’s important to run an exhaust fan and open a nearby window to circulate air. A large number of CO poisoning cases have resulted from issues with stoves.
- Avoid idling vehicles for a long time: It is especially important not to idle vehicles close to the building’s air input system. That could introduce CO inside, which could put everyone in the building in danger.
- Never use generators indoors: If there is a power outage, generators should always be placed 10 to 15 feet away from the facility.
- Never use gas-powered tools indoors or in confined spaces: This could result in that space becoming permeated with CO, putting the user in extreme danger.
Regardless of the steps you take, however, you always run the risk of having a CO poisoning incident that might result in a lawsuit. That’s why you need to talk to your insurance agent to make sure you have the right coverage in such a situation.
About the Author
Eric Spacek is assistant vice president – Risk Control, Church Mutual Insurance Company, S.I. For more information, visit www.churchmutual.com.