odd CO detector behavior

C

capz

New Member
Mar 11, 2007
336
Quincy, MA
Boat Info
Sea Ray 270DA, Garmin 545s
Engines
Merc 7.4L Bravo III
Went for a cruise yesterday, left the boat for a few hours with hatch and portholes open. When I came back the aft CO detecter was blinking green and red (low power). I reset it all was fine. Then later I closed all the hatches as it was chilly and planned to sleep on the boat. Middle of the night the forward cabin detector woke me, screaming and blinking green (high CO).
Assuming they're working as they should, is it possible the bilge was filled with CO and hours later leaked into the cabin? And if that's true, should I start looking for an exhaust leak or should I just make sure I run the blowers for a couple minutes after docking. I usually turn them on when coming in at headway speed, but I distinctly remember not doing so yesterday.
Also, does anyone know of a detector that will give you a digital display of actual CO levels i.e parts per million? I'm kind of shook up and wary of staying overnight now.
BTW, I do not have a genny.
 
Don't sleep on board or stay enclosed until you solve this issue.

There are some CO detectors with LCD screens to display the PPMs. I think given your situation it's worth investing in one to test and solve this issue. Check your local HD, Walmart, etc.

Sources for alarm to go off:

* CO Present
* Low 12v power to the unit
* Damaged sensor

Could CO be coming from a nearby boat and making it into your cabin?

Esteban
 
Kiddie has two models with LCD PPM:

9v - Model KN-COPP-B • Part Number 900-0146
110v/9v - Part Number 900-0076 • Model KN-COPP-3

You can view them at the Kiddie web site.

Esteban
 
Well I know what my next purchase for the boat will be. I had no idea the sensors wear out. So in my case I'm SUSPECTING faulty detectors because most cases of CO poisoning come while the engine, generator, etc. are operating. In my case there was nothing running to produce CO anywhere near the boat for HOURS. So the question remains, can CO settle in an enclosed, unvented engine compartment and stay there for hours? :huh: Either way I'm getting new detectors with lcd readings. Thanks for the info and links. Very helpful.
 
Looks like Kidde does not make a wired 12V model. In fact I can't find any detectors on the net that operates on 12V and has a display. I'd rather not mess around with replacing batteries.
 
capz said:
Went for a cruise yesterday, left the boat for a few hours with hatch and portholes open. When I came back the aft CO detecter was blinking green and red (low power). I reset it all was fine. Then later I closed all the hatches as it was chilly and planned to sleep on the boat. Middle of the night the forward cabin detector woke me, screaming and blinking green (high CO).
Assuming they're working as they should, is it possible the bilge was filled with CO and hours later leaked into the cabin? And if that's true, should I start looking for an exhaust leak or should I just make sure I run the blowers for a couple minutes after docking. I usually turn them on when coming in at headway speed, but I distinctly remember not doing so yesterday.
Also, does anyone know of a detector that will give you a digital display of actual CO levels i.e parts per million? I'm kind of shook up and wary of staying overnight now.
BTW, I do not have a genny.
Click to expand...

I had the same issue when I got the boat in 2004, the CO detector was acting the same. I had it replaced and the new one worked just fine. This season the unit had exactly the same simptoms. As for the short term solution I got the 9v digital display and will replace the 12v one.

Chances are you just need to replace your CO detector as well. I do agree with suggested earlier to get additional 9v as a backup.

Alex.
 
capz said:
In my case there was nothing running to produce CO anywhere near the boat for HOURS. So the question remains, can CO settle in an enclosed, unvented engine compartment and stay there for hours? :huh: Either way I'm getting new detectors with lcd readings. Thanks for the info and links. Very helpful.
Click to expand...
I bought a digital readout AC powered unit, and have used it both on the boat (has inverter AC power, so always on) and in my garage. What I found was alarming to me. I could measure CO for hours after sources were gone. In the cabin of the boat, if closed, I think it would remain for a day. Someone else mentioned in another thread that CO weighs the same as air, so does not sink, but also does not rise out of any vents or open windows unless blown out. I would recommend you get a digital readout unit, even if you have to get an AC one and can use it only when at the dock. For me it was a real eye opener to see how the stuffs hangs around.

Your boat, however, should be fairly well sealed between the engine compartment and the cabin. If your present detector is not broken, then the source could be another boat.
 
We keep our boat at our slip behind our house so it is not around other boats unless we are cruising. The monitors never sound. But when we travel, the CO monitors will go off at a marina becuase our hatches are open and someone starts an engine near by and CO comes in the hatch. If you run your a/c, it will draw outside air in through the vents. Again, if there is CO outside your boat you might draw enough CO in to trigger the alarm. We were going out the channel last weekend with lots of other boats all around us. We had the helm air on and the salon door open and the boat was all closed up. The CO detectors kept going off because of all of the exhausts around us. As soon as we got out to Lake Michigan they shut down.
 
Capz - I had the same problem on my 300 Dancer and it ended up being a bad battery. Even with the Gen running (the battery wouldn't take a charge and feed through correctly)
 
I picked up a handheld CO detector as a way to second-guess the ones onboard. I had a devil of a time with mine last season. Most of the false alarms in the middle of the night were due to low voltage. Adding a pair of golf cart batteries solved that. But then this season they went off in the the marina, in the middle of the night of course, with no other engines running nearby. The only thing that might've caused it was a leaky refrigerator, ours had a second leak in it. It hasn't triggered since.

But since then I picked up one of these:


It's working pretty well. It powers on and starts reading within about 15 seconds. I've not done much testing with it yet, more of just having it as a standby in the event the built-in sensors go off.
 
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