Heating and cooking appliances fueled by coal, smokeless fuels, wood and oil can be just as likely as a gas appliance to cause carbon monoxide poisoning if they are poorly installed, faulty, or incorrectly used. Carbon monoxide poisoning is mostly caused by inadequate ventilation or a lack of correct maintenance of appliances, flues, and chimneys. Some incidents are also due to incorrect installation or deterioration of the structure of the chimney. Poisonous carbon monoxide gas is produced when fuel does not burn properly. You can die from carbon monoxide poisoning or your health can be permanently damaged. If you would like to learn a little more about carbon monoxide poisoning then please follow our short guide below.
What is carbon monoxide?
By now we all know that carbon monoxide is a very dangerous, colorless, odorless gas, generally associated with your home heating system but for a little better understanding let's take a quick trip back to school chemistry class. The gas or oil you burn for home heating are compounds known as hydrocarbons (hydrogen + carbon). In your stove or fire these hydrocarbons are mixed with oxygen from the air in your home and burned to produce heat. When your stove or fire and chimney are working properly the gas or oil is burned more or less completely and the resulting fumes are mainly carbon dioxide (carbon + 2 oxygen atoms) and water vapor. If your boiler doesn't get enough oxygen either because the house is too tight or the chimney isn't functioning properly carbon monoxide (carbon +1 oxygen atom) is produced instead. It's the lack of that one little oxygen atom that causes all the trouble.
Why is carbon monoxide poisoning on the increase?
1. Today's houses are more air tight due to energy conserving measures. Consequently there is less fresh air coming into a home and not as many pathways for stale or polluted air to leave it. When fires and boilers are starved of the oxygen needed to burn fuels completely carbon monoxide is produced. Many newer houses are so airtight that powered exhaust fans in the kitchen and bathroom can overcome the draft in the boiler chimney and literally pull the toxic gases into the living space.
2. The new high-efficiency gas and oil boilers when hooked up to existing flues often do not perform at an optimum level. The differences in performance create conditions that allow combustion by-products to more easily enter home living spaces.
3. The above conditions join a number of older, on-going problems including damaged or deteriorating flue liners, soot build-up, debris clogging the passageway, and animal or bird nests obstructing chimney flues.
Carbon monoxide & chimney maintenance
When gas and oil burn in vented heating systems the dangerous fumes that are the by-products of combustion (including carbon monoxide) are released into the chimney through a connector pipe. Funneling these fumes out of the living area is the primary purpose of a chimney. In addition to carrying off toxic gases chimneys also create the draft (flow of air) that provides the proper air and fuel mixture for efficient operation of the heating appliance. Unfortunately many chimneys in daily use in homes throughout the country either are improperly sized or have conditions that make them unable to perform their intended function.
Gas
Natural gas is a clean-burning fuel but today's high-efficiency gas boilers pose special problems. The fumes they produce are cooler and contain high levels of water vapor which cause more condensation than older models. Since these vapors also contain chlorides picked up from house-supplied combustion air the flues are subjected to more corrosive conditions than before and can quickly deteriorate or plug up completely.
Oil
Oil flues need to be cleaned and inspected annually because deposits of soot may build up on the interior walls of the chimney. The amount of soot depends on how well tuned the boiler is and whether the house provides sufficient air for combustion. Excessive soot causes problems ranging from inefficient boiler operation to completely blocked chimneys.
To the extent that problems with either of these heating systems interfere with the flow of toxic gases and particles out of the house they may also force carbon monoxide into the home. They may cause a one-time high-level exposure situation or release smaller amounts more regularly over a longer period. These problems should never be ignored.
Preventing carbon monoxide problems
Numerous agencies and organisations now recognize the importance of annual heating system inspection and maintenance in preventing carbon monoxide poisoning.
A well tuned stove or boiler connected to a venting system or flue that is correctly sized, structurally sound, clean, and free of blockages will operate efficiently and produce a warm and comfortable home. Carbon monoxide detectors are now readily available and no home should be without at least two, one near the appliance and one near the sleeping area of the home. Detectors are NOT a substitute for routine maintenance but can be a lifesaver should problems occur.
Considering the risks involved when gas or oil systems are neglected and the benefits that accrue when they are properly maintained we suggest you have your appliance serviced yearly by a qualified technician and your chimneys checked annually and cleaned or repaired as necessary.
