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If you lose power during Hurricane Isaias and use a portable generator, remember to run it at least 20 feet away from your home. Never run a generator indoors. Carbon monoxide is a deadly gas you can't see or smell and it can kill in minutes.

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Sometimes people will run a generator in their garage with the big door open. One portable generator can produce as much carbon monoxide as hundreds of cars. Even with a large door open, there is not enough ventilation to be safe.

A: cars have catalytic converters to reduce their emissions B: generators don't have catalytic converters as standard because cats are expensive and unlike cars, generators aren't commonly used enough to significantly effect global emisions.

Not saying the amount of carbon monoxide they produce isn't dangerous, it is, but: "can produce as much carbon monoxide as hundred of midsized cars" By what mechanism is that possible other than magic?

Just a guess, but I think cars are required to reduce emissions in a way generators aren’t. So maybe they used “produce” when they really meant “emit.”

You can buy catalytic converters for small engines such as the ones found on consumer grade generators. But they would do very little to prevent the asphyxiation risk presented by them.

the magic mechanism is incomplete combustion which generates carbon monoxide modern car engines have a very low rate of incomplete combustion while these simple generator engines are prone to relative high rate of incomplete combustion

even factoring in incomplete combustion, do you think that outweighs the emissions from hundreds of cars, especially when those cars burn fuel at a higher rate than a single cylinder generator such as the on pictured? Keep in mind, best case scenario, the catalytic converters are only 95% efficient.