CO Detectors in a High Rise Apartment Building

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mkgrady

Senior Member
Location
Massachusetts
This isn't really an NEC issue but I don't know how else to find out in a hurry what might be required.

This bid is for an eight story apartment building in Quincy, Mass, where I am pricing the electrical work involved in the removal of existing oil burners and replacement with gas fired boilers for building heat and domestic hot water.

The spec says to include CO detectors in the basement and any other areas required by code. These are high effeciency boilers that take air from ducts tied directly to the outside. I have no idea what might be required for CO detectors and there isn't an engineer to ask.

I assume the building has a seperate fire alarm system and it probably has a security system. I also assume if CO detectors are installed in just the boiler room it will not be heard by anybody until someone happens to open the BR door. Seems like it should be tied into the fire alarm panel but I don't know. If it ties into the existing FA panel or on one of the zones I would sub it out but I wouldn't know what to carry for that in the bid.
 

nhfire77

Senior Member
Location
NH
This isn't really an NEC issue but I don't know how else to find out in a hurry what might be required.

This bid is for an eight story apartment building in Quincy, Mass, where I am pricing the electrical work involved in the removal of existing oil burners and replacement with gas fired boilers for building heat and domestic hot water.

The spec says to include CO detectors in the basement and any other areas required by code. These are high effeciency boilers that take air from ducts tied directly to the outside. I have no idea what might be required for CO detectors and there isn't an engineer to ask.

I assume the building has a seperate fire alarm system and it probably has a security system. I also assume if CO detectors are installed in just the boiler room it will not be heard by anybody until someone happens to open the BR door. Seems like it should be tied into the fire alarm panel but I don't know. If it ties into the existing FA panel or on one of the zones I would sub it out but I wouldn't know what to carry for that in the bid.

Not just the boiler room, not just homes, it doesn't have to be tied to the FA, but that might be a good idea.

"For buildings with fossil-fuel burning equipment or enclosed parking areas, the new regulations require carbon monoxide detectors on every level of the home and within ten feet of each sleeping area and in habitable portions of basements and attics"


http://www.mass.gov/?pageID=eopsterminal&L=8&L0=Home&L1=Public+Safety+Agencies&L2=Massachusetts+Department+of+Fire+Services&L3=Department+of+Fire+Services&L4=Office+of+the+State+Fire+Marshal&L5=Public+Education&L6=Fire+Safety+Topics&L7=FS+Topics&sid=Eeops&b=terminalcontent&f=dfs_osfm_pubed_firesafetytopics_carbonmonoxide&csid=Eeops
 

mkgrady

Senior Member
Location
Massachusetts
Not just the boiler room, not just homes, it doesn't have to be tied to the FA, but that might be a good idea.

"For buildings with fossil-fuel burning equipment or enclosed parking areas, the new regulations require carbon monoxide detectors on every level of the home and within ten feet of each sleeping area and in habitable portions of basements and attics"


http://www.mass.gov/?pageID=eopster...ed_firesafetytopics_carbonmonoxide&csid=Eeops

I'm thinking that these apartment buildings are already in compliance with current CO requirements and that I would only be obligated to install CO detectors that would be required as a result of converting from oil burners to gas burners. Maybe that quantity is none if they already had to have them in the boiler rooms.
 

nhfire77

Senior Member
Location
NH
I'm thinking that these apartment buildings are already in compliance with current CO requirements and that I would only be obligated to install CO detectors that would be required as a result of converting from oil burners to gas burners. Maybe that quantity is none if they already had to have them in the boiler rooms.

Doesn't matter oil or gas, they are both fossil fuel burning appliances. The law was retroactive to all existing structures, so they should already be in compliance.
 

mkgrady

Senior Member
Location
Massachusetts
Doesn't matter oil or gas, they are both fossil fuel burning appliances. The law was retroactive to all existing structures, so they should already be in compliance.


Thanks for the info NH. I feel like I know a little more about it now. I plan to tell the owner there shouldn't be any CO work required if they are already in compliance.
 

nhfire77

Senior Member
Location
NH
CO detectors have about a 3 year lifetime.

What do you base that on?

UL 214 makes the end of life timer 5 years from date of manufacture.

I use specialized portable gas meters (underground monitoring). We calibrate the sensors every 30 days and we might get two years, if that.
 
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