It does not matter that you don't park in your garage. One day someone will. When a garage is attached to the home it needs to be 100% sealed from the house. There can be no holes, gaps or cracks that would allow air from the garage to enter your home.
Carbon monoxide can even be sucked into a home through an open garage door from a vehicle that is running in the driveway.
Water heaters, furnaces, bathroom and kitchen fans in a home, creates negative air pressure compared to the outside. There air is often being sucked into the home.
Below is a post I made in Feb.
Bump Article #4
Is the garage in your new home Gas-Proofed from the house?Written Tuesday Feb. 3rd 2009.
Yesterday, carbon monoxide killed a Markham man and put his wife in hospital after the CO seeped into the home after their car was accidentally left running in the garage.
The couple left the car running with the garage door open while they were getting ready to go out. They changed their minds and decided not to leave. Using a remote opener, they shut the garage door, forgetting that the car was running.
Whatever the story, this same problem repeats every year, often with tragic results. While your CO detector is good defence, it's best to find and repair the cause of the problem.
This is the issue -
When a garage is attached to a home, it must be 100% gas-proofed from the home.
This means that there can be no holes, gaps, cracks, or any other openings in any part of the garage walls or ceilings that are attached to the home. The Man-door must properly self close and be of exterior grade and weather stripped. Trim around this door must be 100% sealed. The hose bib, vacuum pipes, etc., must all be caulked. Unused vacuum pipes must be sealed with red Tuck Tape.
It is absolutely necessary to confirm that your garage is 100% gas-proofed from your home. Don't depend on your builder to do this properly as most garages that we inspect, have gas-proofing deficiencies.
Homes have negative air pressure. Even more so when exhaust fans are running in bathrooms and kitchens. If the garage is not gas-proofed, then air in the garage WILL get sucked into the home.
This is what you need to look for in your new home garage - but before you start looking, consider this question. Will a bucket, with a pin hole, hold water?
1) Is the vacuum pipe and hose bib in the garage caulked where it goes through the wall?
2) If not in use, is the vacuum pipe in the garage sealed with red Tuck Tape? NOT Duct Tape or green painters tape.
3) Are there any cracks or holes in the drywall, or loose drywall tape?
4) Carefully inspect all around the Man Door trim. Is it completely sealed? Use a hand mirror to look at the top and bottom trim for any gaps or holes. There are often large gaps on the underside of the Man Door threshold.
5) Does the closer on the Man Door work? Does it close the door every time? Does it only close the Man Door when the garage door is open? If the Man Door closer does not completely close and seal that door, then it needs to be fixed.
6) Carefully inspect all drywall. In areas that are not visible, use your hand mirror and look at the underside of areas the protrude into the garage. There should be no gaps, cracks, or holes.
Pay attention to the walls and ceiling areas that are attached to the home. The interior walls of the garage that face the exterior of the home are not generally a concern.
Andy Shaw - 905 876 4761
http://www.haltoninspections.comBecause this is considered a Health & Safety issue, it is covered by Tarion for 2 years, but it's best to correct these issues ASAP.
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