co in cabin

[pipe dream]

last weekend it rained while we were boating so i zipped all of the canvas on and proceeded to drive back to the dock, about 20 minutes into the drive the co alarm activated, i opened the hatches and canvas to purge the cabin air and the alarm stopped after about another 20 minutes.Question, not sure why alarm went off, if the co was from the exhaust why didnt i smell it,i know you dont smell co. why didnt the alarm turn right off when i purged the cabin air?
My boat is a 2700 scr,2001 7.4 litre,bravo 3. thank you for any input.

[seapuppy]

PD,
welcome to the Zoo...well..there's a couple things you should know bout CO...1)as you know..co is invisible and can't be smelt nor seen...with that said ..be careful..2) the station wagon effect from the stern of your camper canvas is the culprit of the effect in the salon..amazing how it gets down there isn't it....3)the way to keep from being overcome by the fumes is to have fwd to aft ventilation in effect...meaning open the fwd vent top just a small amount...there is usually a setting on the hatch fittings that allow you to secure the vent in the cracked open position...and leave the cabin door open some..the positive pressure will keep the air flowing from fwd to aft......4)or partially unzip the fwd eisenglass to allow air to come thru the front and force the air out the back...keeping your cabin from being overcome by fumes...and finally..5)you need to find out if the CO monitor is old or not...they should be replaced every couple of yrs because the active sensor looses it's capability to detect CO and when it does...it takes forever to shut off....so..chances are it's depleted...

hope this helps....

SP

[biggerseagar]

The detector went off because of the obvious.........you had co gases in your cabin. Remember your safe boating class where the instructor tells you that co gas is heavier than air so it will sink to the lowest part of the boat. The co alarm could still sense traces of the gas even after you openning up your canvas tells me you had a pile of it in your cabin.

You might think about having someone check your manifolds your exhaust leaks. I would run with the something open in the front and back to keep a flow of air going until you get the manifold check out.

Thats my 2 cents worth hope it helps..............be safe!

Roger

[Twmcneilly]

It's not only a result of the canvas in use; I get my co alarm frequently even with all canvas still at home. Typically not at idle speeds, but higher speeds evidently create enough of a pressure reduction to pull CO into the cabin. I had mine going off steadily on Sunday morning as I was cruising at minimum on plane speed. I have a 3300 with 7.4's.
The important thing is to trust the alarms and do something to vent the cabin. Way better safe than sorry.

[pascavone]

1. do you have the original unit in the boat for 2001? the 12v unit has a life of 5 years and is dated on the back.
2. the 2001 unit draws 400 ma, when a new 12v one draws 40ma due to modern curcuit board, but also is dated for 5 year life.
3. are you using a battery one that you would use in your house? those are to sensitve for something with an engine and wind.
4. it should be mounted in the rear berth, 12 for any window per the instruction.
5. me think's your unit has expired....buy a new one for $68 bucks.

[vffb507]

Ventilate is the first and best thing to do for this, as has been said cross ventilating is most effective to get the gas out and keep fresh air coming in.
Don't ignore - even lower levels of CO can "build up" in your blood over exposure time causing increasing health effects. It takes about 5.5 hrs to reduce the level to half of what it was in "fresh air". Some people are much more prone to affects than others - health issues, elderly or youngsters..
Some of the better detectors will actually show levels detected. A marine unit is not any less sensitive, just uses a different power source.
Be sure to keep all fuel burning devices (appliances, genny too) well maintained and tuned to ensure there is little to no CO produced.
If a detector is pretty much never exposed to its detective gas it COULD last up to 7 years, much more typical is 3 to 5 due to occasional exposures and othe environmental effects.
And on a side note... some cleaners and chemicals will also set off the detector too (but they are all pretty much not good to breath either).

[pipe dream]

Thank you so much for taking the time to respond to my post. I was told about this site from another Maxum owner at our marina in Lake George. I had joined the wrong club at first called maxumowners.org and got no response for two weeks then found this site and figured this must have been the one he meant I can now see why he spoke so highly of this site. You guys are great. I'm sure I'll have more questions in the future
Matt (pipe dream)

[seapuppy]

glad we could help....post the results of what happens.....


SP

[biggerseagar]

Yes welcome PD...........I was on that website too and SP saved me. This is much better over here! The light is much brighter..........

Roger