New Law Requires Homes to be Equipped with Carbon Monoxide Detectors

The General Assembly enacted a new carbon monoxide detector law during the 2001 legislative session. Senator John Celona was the prime sponsor of Senate Bill 339 "An Act Relating to Health and Safety" which is now Public Law Chapter 177.

The new law requires that the following, occupied residential properties which are transferred by sale on or after January 1, 2002, must be equipped with the required number of carbon monoxide detectors: all existing, single-family, two or three-family homes. Those apartment buildings and rooming houses which were built or converted to residential use before 1976 must also comply. There is no exemption for summer homes.

• New residential properties or existing properties that are converted to residential use and have gas utilities must comply with this law.
• A minimum of one carbon monoxide detector must be mounted on each occupied level of a single-family home and within ten feet of all bedrooms; in multi-family housing, a minimum of one carbon monoxide detector must be also be mounted in each dwelling unit.
• The carbon monoxide detectors must emit an audible signal having a minimum rating of eighty-five (85) dBA at ten (10) feet and have a visible intermittent or steady "power on" indicator.
• Carbon monoxide detectors must be mounted in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions, and sellers should keep a copy of those instructions.
• Carbon monoxide detectors can be either battery-operated, "plug-in", or hard-wired for existing homes; they must be hard-wired in new construction.
• Combination smoke/carbon monoxide detector units can be used in new construction.
• Battery-operated or "plug-in" carbon monoxide detectors can cost anywhere from $29 - $70 per detector.
• The law requires the seller to arrange for a carbon monoxide detector inspection by the local fire marshal or other official in the town where the property is located within sixty days prior to transfer.
• A joint carbon monoxide detector and smoke detector inspection will cost $30; if a reinspection is required, it will cost another $30.
• If an inspection cannot be arranged before the closing, the seller can sign an affidavit stating that he has installed carbon monoxide detectors and arranged an inspection, assuming that the buyer and buyer's lender agree.

For more information, contact the State Fire Marshal's office at 294-0861 or the local fire marshal in the town where the property is located.

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