Hello forums, today at around 6 in the morning, I woke up to the sound of a code 4-4 beep. At first it sounded like ____ ____ because I was in my room, far away from the battery powered Kiddie CO alarm in the basement. Anyways, once I woke up I got the dogs and myself and went out into the back yard. I called my dad, and he said there was nothing he could do from work, so I went in for a second and turned the thermostat off. I called my dad back, and told him it was still going off. He told me to go inside (Because I was FREEZING) and open the window after sticking a towel under my door. Apparently, my iPhone decided to shut itself down, so when I was on my computer my dad was trying to call me. Then a few minutes later, the fire department shows up. I go to the door before they break it down, and open it. They ask a bunch of questions, while one of them was eying my '84 LeBaron in the driveway. They went down in the basement and checked everything out, nothing. They bring the CO alarm that had been placed right on top of the furnace and remove the battery. They talk some more, and leave when my dad arrives. I tell him everything is fine, and he leaves too. Our Kiddie KN-COB-B CO alarm from 2010 had falsed, likely due to the idiots who used to live here.
Ok lets see
First of all you are an idiot … flat out … for going inside the house after the CO alarm went off. Seriously? CO gas can be deadly and has no odor or other indication of its presence. Just because you place a towel under a door and open a window does not make it ok.
They invented these things called pants and jackets a few years back… Not sure if you heard of them? Probably not…
Secondly, the fire depatment was not about to break down your f’ing door.
I doubt it had anything to do with the “idiots” who used to live there. If you felt there was an issue perhaps you should have taken the initiative to repalce it and relocate it.
You probably should never be left home alone again by the way.
You look 8 years old by the way on your facebook page.
None of the other alarms were going off, indicating if there WAS CO that it was not near me yet. Kiddie recommends on their website that you need fresh air, indicating to open a window or go outside. I even put a towel under the door.
I was obviously wearing pants and a jacket, but still it was 40 degrees out, with wind and frost.
Well, if they thought I was unconscious, they would have broke down the door within a minute or two.
I never even noticed the alarm before, that was the firefighter’s advice the alarm was in a bad spot and should have been relocated. It was a fault with the alarm anyways, because after it was removed from the area it still was in alarm.
Are you a stalker? I did not post my Facebook or anything, you would have needed to look around for a while.
I am of legal age to be home alone, by the way I do it all the time.
Why so much hate? I was just posting an experience of something fire and CO related, and you swoop in bashing it.
Aren’t moderators supposed to be (at least somewhat) nice?
Also: I would be a really lucky 8 year old… you know, having a car and a phone. But I’m not.
Even if it goes faulty, you don’t re-enter a building once you’ve evacuated, that’s just common sense. You call the fire department, tell them your situation, and wait for them to show up. When they arrive explain to them what’s going on, and make sure they have good entry into the house. Have them assess the situation, and then determine whether or not it’s safe for you to re-enter your house.
I doubt they broke anything down, otherwise why would you father just leave you alone back at home with a broken down door? The way you versed your initial comment it sounds like you have an issue with the fire department, but something in this whole “saga” doesn’t make sense.
A faulty carbon monoxide detector, if it is indeed faulty, may not be the fault of previous tenants. Maybe the detector just went bad because it’s a faulty product. If it was indeed improperly placed, maybe it needed time in a fresh air environment to reset itself.
That helps a bit but it is not enough, you have to go outside and stay outside until your house is cleared by the fire department. Can you show where Kidde made this recommendation?
How obvious?
Firefighters only break down doors as a last resort. First they try to force the lock open and a few other methods to minimize damage.
I’ve dealt with this.
I’ve never heard of a legal age to be home alone before.
Well you did risk your life because you said you were chilly. CO is odorless, tasteless, and invisible. If there actually had been CO present in your house, or even lethal levels, you could have gone unconscious and died.
In response to Andrew:
1.
2.
It was 6:00 in the morning in Colorado… yeah.
3.
I just went to the door quickly because a firefighter was there.
4.
I used to live in Maine, they have a law there but I’m not sure in Colorado.
In response to NickyVeee:
I don’t have a problem with the fire department, I just did not want them to attempt breaking down the door.
I did not want to call the fire department either, because just about nobody knows the number and I believe that a possible CO condition is not worth a 911 call. The old occupants placed the alarm onto the furnace, and the heat and dust damage was likely to cause it to break. I just tried it again and was in an alarm condition still. Anyways, I only went inside for 10 seconds to stop the furnace, to prevent a possible fire. I have too many things that I would not want to loose to fire anyways.
Also, may I note to my original post, I opened a few windows, and turned my bathroom fan on as I was leaving.
First of all, you did not gain any points by calling someone an idiot in your OP. You have NO idea if anything they did caused the unit to malfunction. I had a kiddie CO at our cabin that had gone off on its own and it was installed properly Sometimes things just break! IF you want people to BE nice to YOU, try being nice first.
Your facebook user name is your user name here on the forum. It took all of .2 seconds.
It is my responsability to see if a user may be under the allowed age. Why? Because they are a liability to us not only from a legal standpoint but for their own saftey.
I would love to know what “questions” they asked… All they need to do is come inside with a handheld calibrated CO meter to see what, if anything is going on. Not much to it. The “questions” were probably more like “hey kid what are you doing inside?” I would have loved to be in the group after they left the house to hear what they had to say.
You beleive WRONG. 911 is the first number you dial for a CO alarm. The fire department is there to serve you when your life may be in danger. Not only for when you see flames shooting out of the roof.
You may stay home alone, but you clearly do not know how to handle your self. Being afraid to call 911 and not knowing the fire department number? My parents had the “non emergency” number posted on the fridge and programed in the phones when i was younger.
And for Andrew, many states have laws as to what age you can be left home alone at. Some states do not really have one, and some leave it up to the parent to decide if they are mature enough. In some states, if you leave your child home alone and an emergecny arises and the child does not know how to deal with it, the parent or guardian can be charged with neglect.
They put it right on top of the furnace, which the firefighter stated “The furnace bursts up some gases when it turns on, and since it’s been here for a while it must have accumulated making the alarm eventually sound.” They actually asked me what my name was, and where the alarm was located. They didn’t even ask me why I was inside, because the windows were open. It’s not like a fire. Again, NOBODY knows the non-emergency numbers in the house, and ONE ALARM was going off. I know you are here for safety, but I wish you guys did not moderate so rudely. How do you even know that Facebook page was me? There is virtually no way to verify that. Just because I call somebody an “idiot” does not mean anything. Grow up and stop taking offense to petty insults that aren’t even aimed at you.
Thank you,
MyTech
If that is the case you have a LEAK… I have a CO mounted DIRECTLY over my furnace connected to a central station. It has been like that for many years with no issues. I have seen similar setups in multiple homes. Typically you see 110V units mounted over or next to furnaces in very close proximity to what may be a flu or vent. Never ever seen that issue before.
I will happily post the link to this discussion and I will allow everyone to judge for them self if you like… Because it IS you.
You really need help. First of all I doubt they would not educate you on the dangers of CO and staying inside. Secondly. CO is worse than fire. You can not see it and you can not smell it. I would rather be in a building that is on fire than one that has CO inside. Just because one alarm was going off means nothing. Do you understand how CO moves about a building? What if the other alarms were faulty? What if … I will stop as I think I made my point. You are not educated enough to know what is safe and what is not…
IYou do not come on here and make wild statements about people so ruldey and expect to be treated kindly. Secondly, when you say you stayed inside the house and that no one in your house even knows the phone number to the fire department what do you expect?
And by the way… When you called your dad outside did you consider googling the local number for the fire department?
Even more so… you said “your window was open” then you said “the windows were open” which is it? If the “windows” were open and they knew this (as you stated, as they did not ask you why you were inside) why was the fire dept about to break down the door?
By the way … oppening your window with the heat off… I have bad news for you but it will be as cold in your room as it is outside!
I am starting to think this entire story is just bull shit…
No, I didn’t think about that. I said I went before they broke down the door, I did not say anywhere that they were going to. My window was open, and the one near the back slider. By the way, my room has my computer in it, so even with the window open, it’s 80 degrees! Why would I go through so much effort for a fake story? It’s real.
Wait a min…
If that is a stand alone CO alarm, i want to know how the fire dept was called to “break down the door” to gain access.
Honestly, i think this is BS.
It’s because my dad called the fire department after my phone died, because it didn’t pick up.
I don’t care if you don’t believe it, just telling my story.
Yup! You told your “Story” alright.
Hey, no need to be rude. I’m subbed to you anyways and your friend on the forums…
lolwut?
Send me a PM, i need to discuss something with you.
I’m not an idiot, all the other alarms were tested with CO spray and worked. As I recall, you also called me an idiot, making you a pretty big hypocrite. You guys have became overcome with power, because I have seen you very rude along with other mods.
@mytechtime
I see you are a new user. The one thing I hope you understand is that you will NEVER win with “MrNerd.” He is an incredibly smart man, works in law enforcement, and has more life safety experience than anyone else on this forum.
He has saved many people’s lives, some being on this very forum. So why mess with him?
That and you keep changing your story…
- You stated you got the CO information of Kidde’s website… then showed a picture of the back of the CO alarm.
- Freezing became 40 degrees, which is 8 degrees above freezing. 40 is a bit chilly but tolerable. Freezing is like you went into a giant freezer. You even said you used to live in Maine, so you must be familiar with the climate I am comparing your area to.
- “My window was open” became “The windows were open”
Jake may come off as rude, cold, or mean in his responses but he’s trying to help / teach you here.
He’s not trying to make you feel bad or anything, just trying to help. He was telling you what you should do next time.
Trust us, you’re not going to win here unless you quit being afraid to admit you screwed up.
It’s alright – there’s no perfect person in this world. Everyone messes up. It is part of learning.
I hope we can put this matter to rest now.
Facebook is a public website that no longer allows users to shed them self from searches. Simply being a member of facebook means you are willing for anyone and anybody to be able to look for you publicly. As I stated, your facebook user name and forum user name are the same. No privacy issues there. By the way, I recomend securing your facebook a little better.
What exactly is a “licensed” firefighter? You mean certified? You do not even know the phone number to the fire department! Do you know the departments requirements to be a firefighter? Are you aware what training they have in dealing with CO alarms and leaks? Did they meter? You never mentioned that, which is a pretty major part missing to the story for them to tell you everything is ok.
Still waiting to hear how the fire dept. knew the windows (which hows now become a door and one window) were open since they never saw it as they were banging on the door. If they saw an open door slider that would have been the point of entry. Just a little FYI since you are so uneducated, fire departments do not just smash down doors. They are typically pretty smart people. They look for other entry methods. Typically one or two of the men on the truck will “size up” the situation and walk around the house outside. They would have been walking in your slider before you even had a chance to be at the door they were about to break down.
I have five computers in my office. They are not toys or a collection, they serve signifiicant puporses, and they are never shut down. If I open the window in 40 degree weather it will get pretty cold in there pretty fast.
I would LOVE to see and I mean LOVE to see this furnace that caused a CO alarm to go off. Please… post a photo of this furnace so we can see it! We are all very currious as to see where the CO is comming from to have set off the alarm because it built up over time.