REMINDER – Washington State Carbon Monoxide Requirements
If you’re not aware by now, consider this a friendly reminder that new requirements for carbon monoxide (CO) detectors kick in on January 1, 2013. Effective January 1, 2013 ALL rental housing units in the State will be required to be equipped with CO detectors. There are NO EXEMPTIONS for properties without attached garages and/or fuel sources. RHA has seen some misinformation pubilished on this issue in recent weeks and recommends that members continue to follow the information published in UPDATE and online at www.RHAwa.org.
The installation and location of carbon monoxide detectors are not directly guided by law. Due to the uncertainty of where and how carbon monoxide detectors should be installed, RHA recommends that landlords install the detectors per their given instructions. Typically this means installing an alarm or alarms within the immediate vicinity (15 feet) of the bedrooms, and a minimum of one on each floor of multi-floor units.
Types of alarms to consider for purchase should be limited to carbon monoxide-only detectors, and not units which combine smoke and carbon detectors due to the reason that a smoke detector disabled due to burning food will no longer offer carbon monoxide protection to the residents. Also, detectors should be battery operated or backed up by batteries to ensure that during a power outage, when most carbon monoxide deaths occur, the detector will continue to function.
Tenant responsibilities for maintaining the carbon monoxide detectors are similar to those of smoke detectors. RHA’s lease agreements already include such a clause to ensure that members are protected when they install carbon monoxide detectors.
