Can you get carbon monoxide poisoning from a car air conditioner?

Can you get carbon monoxide poisoning while driving with the air conditioning on and some windows open? It’s possible if a number of things happen, such as: Because the car exhaust generates enough carbon monoxide and the surrounding air is calm, CO enters the passenger cabin as a result of a poorly sealed passenger cabin.

What Are Dangerous Levels of Carbon Monoxide in My Vehicle?

There are no CO standards established for the air inside your car. Since different agencies and organizations have various recommended exposure levels, it can be confusing. Certain principles can be extrapolated to personal safety. Below is a table that summarizes the carbon monoxide exposure:

Agency Limits WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO) 9 ppm average over 8 hours ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (EPA) 9 ppm average over 8 hours THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF HEATING, REFRIGERATING, AND AIR-CONDITIONING ENGINEERS (ASHRAE) 9 ppm average over 8 hours National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) 35 ppm average over

Can You Get Carbon Monoxide from Sitting or Sleeping in Your Car?

Do not sleep in your vehicle with the engine running. Additionally, avoid running the engine and spending a lot of time in your car.

Unknowingly, carbon monoxide may enter and accumulate within your vehicle cabin as it has done to many that have died from sleeping in their vehicle due to carbon monoxide poisoning.

When a vehicle is stopped, carbon monoxide may gather in the area around it, be diverted back into it, or be blocked from entering it. Dangerous carbon monoxide may enter your car through the HVAC intake if debris, snow, or exhaust are directed there. This type of death happens frequently, so exercise extreme caution.

Can Car Exhaust Set Off a Carbon Monoxide Detector?

It may or it may not. Many factors are at play.

Follow our suggested CO test procedure to successfully test your CO meter or detector using common objects.

There are numerous “bad” things that happen when someone sticks their CO detector directly to the exhaust pipe of their vehicle that the average person might not consider.

The carbon monoxide concentration is NOT constant. Exhaust gas varies in CO level. Sometimes it is low and sometimes it is high. When it exits the tail pipe, it quickly dilutes with atmospheric air, and may further be manipulated by a cross-wind.

It has a large amount of humidity and is expelled at a high temperature. The combination of high temperature and humidity will likely damage the CO sensor and present a false reading or alter the CO sensor calibration, making it inaccurate for further use.

The high content of humidity in the exahust will create a “false positive” to the CO detector. In other words, high humidity will make the CO sensor react as if it is actually reading carbon monoxide.

The exhaust gas has acidic gas components such as NOx that cancel the real CO sensor output. Special filters are needed to remove humidity, treat acidic gases, and condition the exhaust stream before it is exposed to the gas sensor of your CO detector. Furthermore, the acidic gas itself may permanently poison the CO sensor element.

All in all, do not stick your CO detector or CO sensor at the tailpipe of your vehicle .

How carbon monoxide can get in cars