Carbon Monoxide Alarm

[anniej46]

Hi all, Where is the best place to situate a carbon monoxide alarm in my Tribute Trigano? High up or low down??

[Derek Uzzell]

A similar question was asked in the March 2016 issue of MMM magazine (”Tech help!” section - Page 192), but I’m not going to try to summarise the advice provided as I don’t really understand it!

 

Detector positioning was discussed in this 2011 forum thread

 

http://forums.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/Motorhomes/Motorhome-Matters/Carbon-Monoxide-monitor-positioning-confused/29599/

 

This GOOGLE-search may be helpful

 

https://www.google.co.uk/?gws_rd=ssl#q=caravan+carbon+monoxide+detector+positioning

 

and the following link

 

http://fireangel.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/W2-CO-10X%20manual.pdf

 

contains this guidance

 

“CARAVANS

 

Caravans may have additional risks of carbon monoxide admission through air vents, due to the nearby presence of other vehicles, engines, generators or barbecues, however this does not change the basic guidance on the location of the alarm. Caravans should be fitted with an alarm in the same room as any combustion appliance(s), located in accordance with previous advice in this section. If the caravan has a single living space which incorporates the sleeping accommodation, it can be considered to be equivalent to a bedsit, and a single alarm is sufficient. However, any sleeping accommodation which is in a separate room from the combustion appliance(s) should also contain an alarm, located in accordance with previous advice in this section. It is not always possible to find an optimum location for an alarm, for example, a small caravan may not have suitable vertical surfaces available. Nevertheless, when fitting an alarm in such situations, the two most important considerations when selecting an appropriate location are:

 

• Not mounting the alarm directly above a source of heat or steam.

 

• Mounting the alarm at a distance of 1-3m from the nearest edge of the potential source."

[athiest]

Hi annie, I have a carbon alarm hard wired to the 12volt system level with our heads when sleeping and a Kidde Smoke and carbon alarm battery operated attached to the roof behind the drivers seat. This is where it was fitted when we bought our van. Our safety is not something I take lightly.

[Dave225]

Globecar have fitted mine on the ceiling above one of the rear beds. To be honest I only noticed it was there when it started beeping to get new batteries. Was slightly amused when I fitted new ones, and tested it to get this US based lady telling me 'there is a fire' and then 'carbon monoxide present'. Different from my old ones that just beeped.

[Brock]

My alarm came with instructions from the manufacturer as to where to locate the detector in a motorhome. I couldn't comply with any of the instructions in our short van so we put it on a shelf. It kept going off!

 

Now it sits on a shelf and we don't know whether it is detecting or just blinking at us occasionally. We have gone for high up though, about a foot off the ceiling.

[Johnoutdoorsy]

If you want to fix the alarm to a wall then position it at head height , however the alarm does not need to be fixed on a wall (e.g. it can be placed on a table, shelf, especially when you have a portable battery alarm). My floureon alarm came with a user instruction and I just followed the instruction and place alarms in my tiny kitchen with boilers.