Gas Detectors

Andros Incorporated

Sierra Monitor Corporation

Guide to Gas Detectors

How to find gas detectors to meet personal and industrial needs
By Laurel Brown

There is often a need for gas detection in both homes and in businesses. Professionals working in such industries as refrigeration, car repair and manufacturing, oil refining and firefighting can find themselves in situations that require the use of gas sniffers. Even more widely used than these industrial gas detectors are gas detectors for the home, particularly carbon monoxide and natural gas detectors.

Gas leak detectors can be differentiated into several groups. These include the single-gas detector, the multi-gas detector, the fixed gas detector and the portable gas detector, as well as specialized gas sniffers such as the carbon monoxide and natural gas detectors. These last two types of gas leak detector are the most commonly available and are easy to find for sale online and in home improvement stores.

Whatever you need in a gas sensing system, you should keep the following points in mind:

1. Decide if you need your gas leak detector to be portable or fixed in place.

2. Buy the gas detector that best fits your needs--a carbon monoxide detector is most useful in a home-environment, while multi-gas industrial detectors are often more appropriate in businesses and industries.

3. If you’re buying gas detectors for installation or for re-sale, you can get better rates buying in bulk or from manufacturers.

4. Look for the commonly available carbon monoxide and natural gas detectors in home improvement stores, as well as online.

Action Steps

The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Educate yourself on potential gas hazards and find the appropriate gas detectors. Different gases are present in different environments, and a gas leak detector is only useful if it senses the right gases.

I recommend:  The National Institute of Health has an article on the dangers of natural gas leakage as well as features to keep in mind when considering natural gas detectors. Detector manufacturers, such as RKI Instruments, offer downloadable information sheets on hazardous gases and the environments in which they are found.

Find the gas detector most appropriate for your needs. While a home may need nothing more than a carbon monoxide gas detector, many industries and professionals need a wider variety of gas detectors for safety. Most gas detector manufacturers and dealers offer single-gas and multi-gas detectors, portable and fixed detectors and home and industrial detectors.

I recommend:  Specialized portable detectors are available from RKI Instruments. Honeywell Analytics is the largest gas detector manufacturer and offers a feature that tells you which detector is best for each specific gas.

Find local suppliers of gas detectors. Many types of gas detector are readily available from suppliers and from home improvement stores. They have the advantage of speed and avoid shipping costs.

I recommend:  Thomas Global provides a list of over 1,000 suppliers of gas detectors worldwide, ordered by country. Manufacturers, such as RKI, also give locations of dealers across North America.