As of April 1st all three families and larger buildings in Wisconsin that have attached garages or “fuel burning devices” –gas heat, oil heat, gas dryers, gas stoves etc. will be required to have CO detectors. A similar law just passed the legislature for ALL one and two family buildings including owner occupied, effective February 2011.
And you will need a lot of them
CO detectors must be within 75 feet of all fuel burning device and within 15′ of each bedroom. One is required in the basement if there is a “fuel burning device” down there. They are also required in common hallways spaced no more than 75′. So a 149′ hall could get away with one, just as a 6 foot hall would need one.
There is an exemption if there are no attached garages and the only “fuel burning device” is a sealed combustion chamber unit, i.e. 90+ furnace or high efficiency water heater, that is under warranty or inspected annually.
Battery and plug in units are okay. Mount them on the ceiling or wall.
Laws such as this and lead paint are never reversed so preparation is the order of the day.
This is an area that we should collectively work on pricing. I’ve gotten them down to the mid thirteen dollar range for my volume.
Reference resources for Wisconsin’s CO detector Law:
Wisconsin Department Of Commerce CO detector Pamphlet
Installation Requirements For Carbon Monoxide Detectors as outlined in 2007 Wisconsin Act 205
2) INSTALLATION REQUIREMENTS. (a) Except as provided in par. (b), the owner of a residential building shall install a carbon monoxide detector in all of the following places not later than the date specified under par. (c):
1. In the basement of the building if the basement has a fuel-burning appliance.
2. Within 15 feet of each sleeping area of a unit that has a fuel-burning appliance.
3. Within 15 feet of each sleeping area of a unit that is immediately adjacent to a unit that has a fuelburning appliance.
4. In each room that has a fuel-burning appliance and that is not used as a sleeping area. A carbon monoxide detector shall be installed under this subdivision not more than 75 feet from the fuelburning appliance.
5. In each hallway leading from a unit that has a fuel-burning appliance, in a location that is within 75 feet from the unit, except that, if there is no electrical outlet within this distance, the owner shall place the carbon monoxide detector at the closest available electrical outlet in the hallway.
(b) If a unit is not part of a multiunit building, the owner of the residential building need not install more than one carbon monoxide detector in the unit.
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This law was undoubtedly written by trial lawyers. The installation requirements of the code are in conflict with the recommendations of the manufacturers for almost all CO detectors. Even those manufacturer recommendations that are not in direct conflict with the insatallation provisions could be easily construed as such by a bleeding heart court looking to scapegoat another landlord. Therefore, it is basically impossible to comply with this law. A standard recommendation of the manufacturers is that the detectors shoud NOT be placed in the same room as or near a fuel burning appliance. Yet the code says you must do exactly this.
I already spoke with State Dept of Commerce and City of Milwaukee about this conflict. Neither one cares.
I agree with Brian. More laws made without any thought as to what they do. More idiot lawmakers making laws they no nothing about.
Houston business law…
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