For safer emergencies, give your power generator some space
Wednesday, October 7, 2009 - 03:00
in Physics & Chemistry
To subdue the steaming heat of hurricanes or to thaw out during a blizzard, gasoline-powered, portable generators are a lifeline during weather emergencies when homes are cut off without electricity. But these generators emit poisonous carbon monoxide - a single generator can produce a hundred times more of the colourless, odourless gas than a modern car's exhaust. New research from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) shows that to prevent potentially dangerous levels of carbon monoxide, users may need to keep generators farther from the house than previously believed - perhaps as much as 25 feet...