Carbon Monoxide alarm when on gen set & AC running

Well, guess I am glad I am awake at this house. The Alarm began to go off and I  got up... And it appeared it was the carbon monoxide and indeed it was a red light and a loud alarm... I opened the door, turned off the ac and then the generator too. And was able to open one dinette window... Other one will not be opened except with my trusty hammer. Guess my test drive could have ended up dead. Amazing... And not the result I was looking for. The fumes from the GenSet should not be coming in with the ac... That is not good at all. I was not aware of that before. And earlier the coming and going may have helped change the air quality to fair.  Could have come home from dinner to find a dead dog companion too.... The thoughts are enough to keep me awake tonight. Camping with no electric plug in seems to be not for me.

Have to see why this would have happened and if it can be fixed.

Have now to check and see how many windows will open if needed. These are nice to look at but opening has always been a PIA...
the unit is 2910T.   3 slides but tonight only 1 slide out. The dinette. This could have been a nightmare for grandaughter... Not nearly as clever as it was supposed to be. P

WOW, so glad you are ok. This should be a lesson for everyone to test the carbon monoxide and smoke detectors often and replace the batteries  in the old non-sealed types  annually. Test your propane detectors too because those are only designed to last about 5 years .

It seems odd that the generator exhaust fumes would be getting into the roof air conditioner. Maybe get your generator checked for an exhaust leak. Where is the generator and exhaust pipe located relative to the dinette?

What I realized tonight after thinking on this and getting home near Tampa... I did not have the sofa slide open... maybe the seal is not good when the slides are not out... I should have turned on the ceiling exhaust fans too... and awaken from sleep I was not sharp at all. Usually I use the generator when I am on the road... but this was first time sleeping and ac was on and generator. I may not do that again. I will have someone look at it tomorrow. And it was suggested that the door to genset might be left open... but it is open to the ground underneath. The alarm/sensor is the same one for several things installed in the 16 models..it has lp and a green light and other things and is installed near door way exit near our refrigerator... near floor level. I feel like my luck did not run out yet. When I told my son what happened he relayed when he was camping and 2 campers in a camping trailer nearby died from same problem and no alarm when their heater failed. So it is important equipment to have on board. I have at home too. Well my test run was 1488. and the jeep battery died so I did something wrong... new test starts tomorrow. I have to get it right.

maybe the seal is not good when the slides are not out

Patricia, the slides are sealed when fully IN and fully OUT.  In between there is no seal at all.  So unless something is wrong with the seal that should not be an issue.  No window open in the sofa slide?  Truck driver's window open?

Door to the genset should always be closed, it is part of the cooling air path for the genset and they can overheat if the door is left off.

The windows sometimes get very tight because the seals are a bit 'sticky' and if not opened for a long time can be hard to open.  Try a slow steady pressure on the knob.  At least if you have the new model windows, sliders I do not know about.

No windows open at all in RV when I had the carbon monoxide episode. Nothing partly open. I could have had a window in the back open I guess. And experienced RV eers who had a look did not understand how it happened. Suggested a exhaust extension.. but that would be awkward. I had ran the generator at a different location, in Tennessee, and I was keeping the dog cool while I visited old friend in medical facility. was no hint of any failure. so I wonder if I should put another such detector towards the front wall to be sure no problems happening before it reaches the floor detector at the kitchen area... I have one at home. Will look at that. I feel like Jim was watching over us for this jaunt. The RV handled well in Mts and so I did the 1500 miles 4.5 days.  Some work then we go again.

Good news is the CO monitor did it's job.  And likely went off with a still 'safe' concentration.  So it may have just got a whiff that set it off.

I had the unfortunate experience of getting CO poisoning when I was a teen.  Not an experience I wish to repeat.  Doctor gave me (and others) a shot of something to boost our oxygen levels and said even a few more minutes and someone would not have made it.  I puked my guts up for hours and was sick for a week.

I seriously doubt that the A/C unit had anything to do with this.  It just recirculates inside air so it is not going to bring in fumes from outside.

Just another thought:  Are you sure it was CO and not LP?  I think the detector in my rig is a combo so it could be either.  And the LP detector will go off on hairspray or a variety of other 'harmless' gases.

Just another thought:  Are you sure it was CO and not LP?  I think the detector in my rig is a combo so it could be either.  And the LP detector will go off on hairspray or a variety of other 'harmless' gases.

Including "harmless" dog gases! 

After midnight and sound asleep it was not a hairspray event. I don't spray on the road. The detector was green on LP light and the carbon monoxide lighted bright red and the alarm was loud so I have to assume the alarm activated to what it sniffed. Smoke alarms have alerted to hairspray. Jim used hairspray but he died April 25th so hairspray is not a factor now. The apparatus is big square one near floor before you go down steps and is marked for several things it appears. I have to trust its sniffer.