FLORIDA – In the wake of Hurricane Irma there have been several carbon monoxide-related injuries and deaths resulting from improper generator usage in Titusville, Daytona Beach, Orlando, Lakeland and Lake Alfred, officials said.
Authorities said a woman was killed and three others were hospitalized for carbon monoxide poisoning in Daytona Beach after a generator was used in their home.
Additionally, two adults and a child died in Orange County after they used a generator in their home post-Hurricane Irma.
In Brevard County, eight people suffered carbon monoxide poisoning Tuesday in Titusville after leaving their generator running in the garage all night, officials said.
Officials in Polk County said in the two incidents a generator was running near a closed garage.
Officials said carbon monoxide poisoning will continue to be a danger as long as the power is out.
So how can you safely use a generator during a power outage? News 6 spoke to experts who said ventilation is key.
Generators should only be used in well-ventilated locations outside the home away from all doors, windows and vents.
"The generator should be 10 feet away from your home," Paul Burns manager of Orlando Ace Hardware said.
One tip is to use heavy-duty extension cords when connecting devices to your generator.
"Ideally, you want the biggest gauge possible and the shortest cord possible," Burns said.
The smaller the gauge number, the thicker the wire is (An extension cord with 10-gauge wire is thicker than a 14-gauge wire, for example).
Never use a generator in an attached garage, even with the door open.
Place generators so exhaust fumes can’t enter the home through windows, doors or other openings; the exhaust must be directed away from the building.
In terms of your house, each appliance you use has a certain amount of wattage. You want to add those up and make sure you are not surpassing what your generator can handle, Burns said.
"You do not want to surpass your wattage," he said." It might help if you have a chart to tell you how many watts each appliance would use."
For example, a refrigerator would use an average of 600 watts.
A box fan that is 20 inches wide would use approximately 200 watts. Burns said you need to know the difference between your starting and continuous wattage. For example a 3,500-watt generator is the starting wattage but runs 2,500 watts continuously.
Burns also said it is preferred to use ethanol-free gas for a generator, but if that is not available you can add a stabilizer to your generator to keep it from going bad.
Burns said a carbon monoxide detector is also key to preventing accidents.
"These are very important because carbon monoxide is odor less and you won't smell it," Burns said.
As for generator storage, Burns gives these tips to safely store your generator.
- You want to drain the gas tank out of the generator.
- Once the gas is drained out reattach the gas line.
- Then start it up and run the remaining gas out.
- Remove the spark plug and put a teaspoon of oil in the cylinder.
- Pull the starter rope three or four times to get the oil moved around in the cylinder.
- Replace the spark plug.
- Then gently pull on the rope until it's hard to pull.
- Then stop.