Saved from The Silent Killer: CO-2

[daveamkrayoguy]

A carbon monoxide leak that we did not know about, before & after:

And a photo the repairman got a better vantage point of, that I can't yet put Online...

Check your Home's Exhaust and External Ducting--We saved OUR Lives, do something that will Save YOURS!

-- Dave

 

[countryguy]

You were lucky. How did you discover the leak? CO (carbon monoxide, CO2 is carbon dioxide) detector?

 

[thomasortega]

CO detectors should be mandatory in every homes all over the world.

They are cheap and they work.

 

[turquoisedude]

Jeepers, that's scary... Thank heavens you found it before it was too late!

 

[wayupnorth]

I have had a detector for many years and mine went off just once. During that rotten ice storm of 1998, when we lost power for 2 weeks in January. I had my generator running outside the basement door. I went out to make sure I still had plenty of gas and came in and back upstairs into the main living area and right when I walked by it, I almost had a heart attack when it went off in my ear. They do work and save lives.

 

[gusherb]

Just because the exhaust was leaking into the home doesn't mean there was CO. No gas appliance should put off any CO unless it's not burning cleanly. The only exception really are gas ovens, those can and do put off way more CO than pretty much any other appliance, especially when dirty. So it's a good idea to keep the oven clean and use good ventilation while its in use.

Still, it's crucial to check all venting in all scenarios (like running the dryer and hood vent at the same time to see if it creates too much negative pressure inside and causes the flue to lose draft which would cause an exhaust spill out into the living space) because if it's leaking, the second it does start putting out lots of CO for whatever reason then it's life threatening.

 

[circlew]

One of my mom's friends, her son, and granddaughter got CO poisoning the Winter before last. Loulou is 90, and has been suffering ill effects ever since. The other two recovered quickly. The EMS should have taken them to a hospital that had hyperbaric treatemnt available, but instead took them to a small facility that didn't.

The cause was a crack in the heat exchanger of the gas furnace.

Glad you didn't suffer any ill effects.

 

[yogitunes]

what exactly is the story behind this, or how did it come to be installed like that?....and how long was it allowed to operate like that?

there is no way that would have passed any Certificate of Occupancy, whether for a rental or home purchase....

I hope it was corrected with properly secured piping and screws, and not just a patch job....

I would also be checking the structural integrity of all the flue pipes at this point.....over time they can become brittle and thin to where you can crush or push your finger through...