2025-03-07

A few notes on today’s News Roundup:

• The wording ‘It is recommended that a CO alarm be placed outside of sleeping areas’ is ambiguous. CO alarms should be placed near enough to sleeping areas that they would awaken sleepers. Better wording would be ‘Carbon monoxide alarms should be installed in hallways or common spaces directly adjacent to bedrooms to ensure they’re audible during sleeping hours.’
• You may want to get a combined CO/natural gas alarm.
• Over time, as with all our alarms (leak, smoke, etc.), we should plan to move over time to a networked system (probably based on the Matter standard).
• The illustration looks like an old First Alert alarm that is no longer manufactured. You may want to consult Consumer Reports (available through the Montgomery County library) or other sources for recommendations.
• The mixed paper recycling tips failed to note that all boxes need to be broken down before being placed in the recycling bins. As always, please refer to either the Bylaws or the House Rules for official building policy. This is from the House Rules:
  • Newspapers, magazines, telephone directories and small boxes shall be broken down and placed in the appropriate recycle receptacle in the disposal rooms. Items not suitable to be recycled, such as broken glass, sharp objects or potted plants, shall be put into a container and labeled for disposal with appropriate warnings (if applicable) and placed on the disposal room floor for pick up by porters.
  • Unit owners and residents shall not leave any large bulky items in the disposal rooms. Such items shall be placed in the G3 level dumpster. Unit owners and residents shall arrange for items too large for disposal in the G3 level dumpster (such as mattresses or furniture) to be picked up by the Association’s trash vendor at their own expense. Large cardboard boxes shall be broken down and placed in the cardboard box dumpster on the G3 level.