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Carbon Monoxide
How to prevent carbon monoxide accumulations,
injuries and deaths on the boats you build.
Winter is the season of Carbon Monoxide poisonings and deaths. This
is not to say that CO deaths don't occur during the other seasons.
They do. But in the winter many people resort to using portable
generators and portable heaters to keep warm when storms knock out the
power. Unfortunately they sometimes use them indoors filling the building
with CO. (See
Carbon Monoxide in the Home (thanks to Amy and Ryan) http:/www.qrcodesrealestate.us/home-safety-carbon-monoxide.html)
Even people who have been trained about the dangers, and normally would
not expose themselves to CO, sometimes do things that put them at risk.
For example, just a few days before I wrote this (December, 2008) 29 people were
treated for CO poisoning at a warehouse, simply because they closed the
big doors to keep the place warm during a snowstorm. They were also using fork lifts
that had internal combustion engines, inside the warehouse. The
people who closed the door probably didn't even consider what the
consequences would be.
So what has this to do with boats? In most of the world where
winters are frigid, few people go boating. So the problem is
probably at it's low point in the winter for boats. But, in the summer,
especially in areas that are hot and humid, the opposite problem, keeping
cool, exists. This is especially so on boats, particularly houseboats, but
it is not confined to them.
CO poisoning on boats is not a new problem. The problem has become
worse because boats have gotten better. Up until the 1960's, when
fiberglass boat building really took off and boats became mass produced,
boats were notoriously cold, drafty and damp. When boats began to be mass
produced, manufacturers ramped up the comfort factor, making them warmer
and less drafty. This meant tightening up the interior with few gaps in
compartment bulkheads, insulating hulls and overheads and seriously
improving the look and style of the interiors and exteriors. All
this meant less ventilation. So CO is more easily trapped inside the
boat. However, any gaps in bulkheads, such as around wires and
pipes, allow the CO to get out of the engine room and into passenger
areas.
Also engine rooms are tighter and better insulated to reduce
noise. This also traps CO. Boats also have much larger and
more powerful gasoline engines which need lots of air to run properly.
When they don't get enough air they produce more CO. Styling
decisions, to make boats more marketable, have also resulted in larger
accommodations and designs that tend to create low pressure areas behind
the boat that suck in exhaust, allowing it to enter through drains and
vents. Styling has also resulted in placing exhaust outlets below swim
platforms and on flat transoms, another way to trap CO.
Another factor contributing to more CO was the increased use of
permanently installed generators. Many of these were gasoline
powered (most are diesel now) and are typically used when the boat
is at anchor or tied up to the dock, to power air conditioners and a
plethora of other electrical appliances such as refrigerators,
televisions, computers and even electric stoves. The exhaust from
these generators has been a major culprit in CO deaths.
What to do:
The first, and most important step is education. Boat builders
must provide educational material on CO for the customers who buy their
boats. Most of this is free and available from
NMMA,
the
US
Coast Guard, the
Consumer Product Safety Commission and other
organizations. Why? To prevent deaths which often wipe out
whole families. It also reduces the manufacturer's exposure to liability
and to having their good name destroyed.
Just as important is designing the boat to reduce the possibility of CO entering the
boat.
ABYC
has standards and technical reports that provide ways to reduce CO.
This includes eliminating holes in bulkheads, providing adequate
ventilation in engine rooms, and designing exhaust systems that direct CO
away from the boat. Also, designing the interior and exterior of the
boat to reduce areas that would tend to suck in CO is extremely important.
It is not as easy as it sounds.
Design Considerations:
Where is the engine exhaust outlet? Is it under or on the swim
platform?
Where are drains and vents placed in respect to exhaust outlets?
Where are the engine air intakes/outlets positioned in relation to the
exhaust?
Is the engine getting enough air?
Are interior bulkheads watertight and air tight?
Are accommodations adequately ventilated?
Is there a path for air to travel through the boat to vent CO out of the
boat?
Installing marine carbon monoxide detectors is also crucial. Even
after all the above has been done, conditions can exist that allow CO to
get in the boat. CO detectors will give the occupants adequate
warning to get out and ventilate the boat.
In one
state, Minnesota, CO detectors are required on certain types of
recreational boats sold in the state. Known as Sophie's Law, it is
named after 7 year old Sophie Baechler who died from carbon monoxide
poisoning on her familie's boat. As of May 1, 2017, any new boat to be
sold in Minnesota, that
has an enclosed accommodation compartment must have a CO detection
system. The requirements are the same as the
ABYC standard
for Carbon Monoxide detectors. Boat builders should obtain the following
ABYC Standards:
A-24 Carbon
Monoxide Detection Systems
TH-22 Educational Information About Carbon
Monoxide
TH-23 Design, Construction and Testing Boats
in Consideration Of Carbon Monoxide.
H-2 Ventilation Of Boats Using Gasoline
The law also
requires warning labels in the aft reboarding area, galley, and the
helm. (this section added 08/15/2016. Excerpted in part
from ABYC magazine, The Reference Point, Summer 2016 Issue)
Certainly last but not least is the engine. Provide information
to the customer about why it is so important to keep the engine properly
tuned. It goes way beyond getting the most efficiency and economy.
Provide maintenance procedures in the owners manual that include
engine maintenance, inspecting exhaust systems, changing exhaust hoses
when needed, and not running engines when not necessary. Provide an owners
manual for the generator with the same type of information.
In addition to the above you can place CO warning labels on the boat in
prominent places such as the engine room hatch or door. Placing a warning
label on swim platforms is very important. Provide emergency medical
procedures in the owners manual in the case CO does get into the boat, and
how to get help.

Links to sites about Carbon Monoxide Poisoning:
Carbon Monoxide Kills
http://www.carbonmonoxidekills.com/
USCG On Carbon Monoxide
http://uscgboating.org/recreational-boaters/carbon-monoxide.php
California Boating And Waterways on Carbon Monoxide
Carbon
Monoxide Warning Pamphlet by NMMA USCG and ABYC
http://uscgboating.org/assets/1/AssetManager/CO-Brochure-2015.pdf
Houseboat-Associated
Carbon Monoxide Poisonings on Lake Powell --- Arizona and Utah, 2000: Center for Disease Control
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm4949a1.htm
Carbon
Monoxide Alert David Pascoe on Yacht Survey .com
ABYC
Standards. Look for: TH-22 Educational Information On Carbon Monoxide
Carbon Monoxide Safety
A site by Qualified Hardware with many links for information on CO.
Carbon Monoxide The Silent Killer:
References about Dealing with Carbon Monoxide:
See
Professional Boatbuilder Digital Issues
Professional Boatbuilder #107 Jun/Jul 2007 Reducing the Risk
Professional Boatbuilder #109 Oct/Nov 2007 Venting The Boat Part 1
Professional Boatbuilder #110 Dec/Jan 2008 Venting The Boat Part 2
Professional Boatbuilder #111 Feb/Mar 2008 The Dry Exhaust Part 1
Professional Boatbuilder #112 Apr/May 2008 The Dry Exhaust Part 2
Links to sites referenced above.
Portable Generators
https://newboatbuilders.com/docs/portable.pdf
National Marine Manufacturers Assoc,
http://www.nmma.org/certification/products/brochures US Coast Guard on carbon Monoxide
http://uscgboating.org/recreational-boaters/carbon-monoxide.php
American Boat and Yacht Council Downloadable Standards
https://abycinc.org/store/ViewProduct.aspx?id=9622692
Carbon Monoxide Kills
http://www.carbonmonoxidekills.com/
California Boating and Waterways
http://dbw.parks.ca.gov/pages/28702/files/pubs_cobrochure.pdf
Houseboat-Associated Carbon Monoxide Poisonings on Lake Powell --- Arizona and Utah, 2000
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm4949a1.htm Carbon Monoxide Alert David Pascoe on Yacht Survey .com
http://www.yachtsurvey.com/carbon_monoxide_alert.htm
Revised 04/09/2019 © newboatbuilders.com 2010 All rights reserved.
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