Tips to Protect Against Carbon Monoxide Poisoning

When it comes to managing the property you own, it is important that you pay special attention to health and safety standards. Making sure that every aspect of the property is up to code can be a difficult task. But, with the right property management company, you can be sure that every ground that should be covered will be.  As a property manager, it is vital that you adhere to the strict building and fire codes set in place for residential properties.  One of the codes that has recently changed in Ontario is the law surrounding carbon monoxide detectors.

Just like smoke detectors, properties are now required to have carbon monoxide detectors near specific areas throughout the property.  You may ask yourself why such a code is placed on property managers and homeowners, and to that we say “safety first.”  Carbon monoxide is truly a silent killer that takes the lives of 50 people per year in Canada, and hospitalizes even more.  Here are some tips for protecting yourself from carbon monoxide poisoning.

1. Placement.  This is everything.  Ontario building and fire codes require that carbon monoxide detectors be placed in areas where people sleep on every floor.  There are certain areas in the home that are inappropriate for CO detectors.  For example, placing one in front of an exhaust stream is not useful to anyone and won’t detect when carbon monoxide is present in these sleeping areas.
2. 88 percent of all homes have something in their home that pose the risk of death by carbon monoxide poisoning, so if you’re thinking that your home is immune to the release of carbon monoxide, think again.  It is unlikely that your home is one of the small minority of homes that are not susceptible, so why risk it?

As a property management company, your first concern for your tenant should absolutely be their safety. The building and fire codes put in place by the province are there for a reason and should be strictly adhered to.  To ensure the safety of each tenant on your property, get your carbon monoxide detectors installed, check them regularly and keep a log entry on-site in case the fire marshal pays a visit and for your peace of mind.