If you installed a carbon monoxide detector when California made it state law, it might be time to get a new one.
The California Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Prevention Act requires most new homes be built with a carbon monoxide detection. The legislation is designed to save lives, but it only works when carbon monoxide detectors are working correctly.
Since the law passed in 2011, many of the standard carbon monoxide detectors have reached their end-of-life. All carbon monoxide detectors are required to alert you with an end-of-life signal; in most cases, you’ll hear a beep at regular intervals.
When you hear this beep, it’s time to replace your carbon monoxide alarm. Changing the battery isn’t enough—it’s time for a new device.
The good news is that if your carbon monoxide detector was installed by a fire alarm provider like Advanced Security Systems, you don’t have to waste time hunting down the “beep.”
“What’s great about the carbon monoxide detectors we install is that our customers will get a call from our dispatch center alerting them that their detector has reached its end-of-life,” says Ian Schatz, Operations Manager for Advanced Security Systems. “It takes the guesswork out of it.”
Customers also benefit from the longer lifespans of professionally installed carbon monoxide detectors. The CO detectors from Advanced Security Systems are rated to last ten years—considerably longer than store-bought detectors, which are rated for 3- and 7-year life spans.
Carbon monoxide is an odorless, colorless gas, produced any time fossil fuels are burned. Carbon monoxide poisoning contributes to more than 400 deaths and 50,000 emergency room visits each year according to the Centers for Disease Control.
To learn more about preventing carbon monoxide poisoning, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
