Can a propane detector double as a carbon monoxide detector?

John Roberts
Former Retired Electronics Specialist at British Telecommunications (BT) (1967–2000)Author 

No , for propane you are detecting flammable vapour. In a carbon monoxide detector you are detecting the absence of oxygen. The propane detector uses an infrared module thar sends 2 different wavelength of infrared to a photo detector. The wavelength are calibrated for propane, when the beams are altered by the propane it sounds an alarm. With carbon monoxide there is a coated silicon chip which when carbon monoxide is present rests with the coating altering its resistance and tripping the alarm.

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