Abandoned Buildings

Abandoned buildings are required to be locked, though there are few regulations regarding aesthetic issues. Contact the county zoning commission or your county health department if you suspect a public health nuisance or have a concern regarding an abandoned building.

County Zoning Commission: 356-6083
Johnson County Public Health Office: 356-6040

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Detectors

Consumer Product Safety Commission
Carbon Monoxide Detectors Can Save Lives
CPSC Document #5010

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The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) recommends that consumers purchase and install carbon monoxide detectors with labels showing they meet the requirements of the new Underwriters Laboratories, Inc. (UL) voluntary standard (UL 2034). The UL standard, published in April 1992, requires detectors to sound an alarm when exposure to carbon monoxide reaches potentially hazardous levels over a period of time. Detectors that meet the requirements of UL 2034 provide a greater safety margin than previously-manufactured detectors.

About 200 people die each year from carbon monoxide poisoning associated with home fuel-burning heating equipment. Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless gas that is produced when any fuel is incompletely burned. Symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning are similar to flu-like illnesses and include dizziness, fatigue, headaches, nausea, and irregular breathing. Carbon monoxide can leak from faulty furnaces or fuel-fired heaters or can be trapped inside by a blocked chimney or flue. Burning charcoal inside the house or running an automobile engine in an attached garage also will produce carbon monoxide in the home.

The first line of defense against carbon monoxide is to make sure that all fuel-burning appliances operate properly. Consumers should have their home heating systems (including chimneys and flues) inspected each year for proper operations and leakage. Inspectors should check all heating appliances and their electrical and mechanical components, thermostat controls and automatic safety devices.

Properly working carbon monoxide detectors can provide an early warning to consumers before the deadly gas builds up to a dangerous level. Exposure to a low concentration over several hours can be as dangerous as exposure to high carbon monoxide levels for a few minutes - the new detectors will detect both conditions. Most of the devices cost under $100. Each home should have at least one carbon monoxide detector in the area outside individual bedrooms. CPSC believes that carbon monoxide detectors are as important to home safety as smoke detectors are.

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The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission protects the public from the unreasonable risk of injury or death from 15,000 types of consumer products under the agency's jurisdiction. To report a dangerous product or a product-related injury, you can go to CPSC's forms page and use the first on-line form on that page. Or, you can call CPSC's hotline at (800) 638-2772 or CPSC's teletypewriter at (800) 638-8270, or send the information to info@cpsc.gov. Consumers can obtain this publication and additional publication information from the Publications section of CPSC's web site or by sending your publication request to publications@cpsc.gov. If you would like to receive CPSC's recall notices, subscribing to the email list will send all press releases to you the day they are issued.

This document is in the public domain. It may be reproduced without change in part or whole by an individual or organization without permission. If it is reproduced, however, the Commission would appreciate knowing how it is used. Write the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, Office of Information and Public Affairs, Washington, D.C. 20207 or send an e-mail to info@cpsc.gov.

Birds and Bats

The presence of birds and bats in a home can be a nuisance to its inhabitants. There are several ways to prevent birds and bats from entering a home:

• Secure all access areas into your home including: windows, entrance doors, and holes in siding or internal/external walls.
• If a bird or bat is already present in the home, open windows and doorways to help the animal back outside. If the animal has perished, do not attempt to handle it with your hands. Use gloves or an object to pick up the animal and either notify the local animal shelter or place in the animal in a garbage sack and dispose of it with your normal food and miscellaneous wastes.
• If animals are consistently present in the home, and you cannot rid your home of them contact a pest control service, or if you are a renter contact your landlord.

Garbage/trash/junk disposal

Most local and county landfills have annual “free dumping” dates. Contact your local landfill for more information.

Landfills can also aid in the disposal of hazardous chemicals and large junk items. Again, contact your local landfill for more information.

Iowa City Landfill: 319-356-5185

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