Residents Can Take Steps to Lessen Risk of Lethal Gas Leak

All in the Marshall family felt like they had the flu back in February. Their symptoms got worse, however. Within a few days, the whole family was bedridden and barely mobile. By the time they figured out what was happening, their 10-year-old son, Lawrence Jr., had died in his sleep.

What killed Lawrence Jr.--and nearly killed the rest of the family--was carbon monoxide (CO) being emitted from a faulty wall furnace in the family’s Pasadena home. CO is a colorless and odorless gas that is the byproduct of burning oil, natural gas and other fuels. Simple, flulike symptoms mark the first stages of CO poisoning. The symptoms grow more serious as the air concentration of CO grows in a home and as blood levels of the lethal gas escalate.

The Journal of the American Medical Assn. reports that CO poisoning is responsible for 1,500 deaths and 10,000 illnesses annually in the United States.

“Carbon monoxide poisoning is something you don’t expect, and we hadn’t been educated properly,” said Lawrence Marshall, father of Lawrence Jr. The exhaust manifold of the family furnace wasn’t properly expelling the lethal CO through the roof, Marshall recalled, and the home had recently been weatherized to make it air-tight. The result was that the whole family was being poisoned and they didn’t know it. “The effect of the gas makes you like you’re drugged,” he said.

This deadly gas is a byproduct of common home appliances such as gas or oil furnaces, hot water heaters, ranges, refrigerators, clothes dryers, fireplaces and barbecue grills. Car exhaust fumes are also a major culprit.

Awareness about the problem with CO has been growing as a result of the recent death of tennis star Vitas Gerulaitis, and as a result of damage from the Northridge earthquake. The January temblor shook loose many venting and exhaust systems in the San Fernando Valley, and residents are having to properly reconnect some of their CO-emitting appliances.

How can you avoid the risks of carbon monoxide poisoning at home?

Perhaps the easiest, and certainly the cheapest way, is simply to call Southern California Gas Co. Why? The Gas Co. makes house calls for free to check your gas appliances for proper venting. This has become especially popular since the earthquake because many vents and appliances were moved out of their proper place, said Michelle Bagley, a spokeswoman for the Gas Co. in downtown Los Angeles. It’s also a good idea to have the Gas Co. check your heater and other gas appliances once a year, even if there is no earthquake. The number to call for a free home inspection is (800) 427-2200.

Residents can also lessen the risk of CO poisoning by keeping the area around forced air units or wall heaters free from dust and lint, which may block the entrance of air at the base of the gas burner. When a blockage of air occurs, the normal blue flame will turn yellow and become larger. The flame gets bigger because it is reaching up for the oxygen it needs. When complete combustion is interrupted, carbon monoxide is produced. It is also helpful to regularly clean or replace furnace air filters every few months.

There are also several manufacturers of CO detectors who claim that their detectors are a good way to lessen the risk of poisoning. Before you go out and buy a detector, however, it pays to do a bit of research.

Unlike smoke--which you can see and smell--carbon monoxide is both colorless and odorless. It is quickly absorbed in the body and often can cause death while the victim is asleep. A handful of companies--most notably First Alert--are now making CO detectors for home use that sell in the $50 to $80 range. All of these units look very much like smoke detectors and sound similar 85-decibel shrieks. The detectors are supposed to sound an alarm well before a person would experience dangerous levels of carbon monoxide.

But tests of these detectors have yielded mixed results. The problem, according to a story in the May issue of Consumer Reports, is that once some of these detectors go on, it takes up to two hours for them to shut off. The nuisance leads many consumers to simply disconnect the units, which often issue false alarms.

Some companies are also selling carbon monoxide detection cards with spots that change color when exposed to certain levels of carbon monoxide. While these cards are inexpensive--$5 to $15--they won’t do you much good if you’re sleeping.

Besides the issue of effectiveness, there are also people who question the need for carbon monoxide detectors in Southern California.

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“I don’t think it’s something as important on the West Coast,” said Bob Nickols, service manager at Fire Master, a fire prevention company near downtown Los Angeles. “It’s more of an East Coast problem where homes are sealed tight to keep heat from escaping in winter.”

Because homes are not as air-tight in Southern California, Nickols said, a gas leak, for example, isn’t likely to cause a lethal buildup of carbon monoxide. Most poisonings in California come from people who do something like use a barbecue indoors, Nickols said. “You don’t need a detector to realize that it’s not smart to have a barbecue indoors.”

Nickols reported that his company has received many inquiries from worried homeowners in the Valley since Gerulaitis’ death. “I think the interest is something being created by the panic of his death,” Nickols said. “The media has sensationalized it and the manufacturers of carbon monoxide detectors have taken advantage of the scare.”

If people want to use CO detectors, they need to be aware of the limitations, warned Bagley, the Gas Co. spokeswoman. “There is a wide range of price and performance,” she said. The Gas Co. is studying the use of CO detectors, Bagley reported. “But we haven’t come to any conclusions.” Most of the CO detectors being sold are sensitive devices that need regular testing. “If consumers can’t test weekly or monthly, they might not want to get one.”