|
Professional HVAC Contractors Since 1991 ♦ Carbon MonoxideAccording to the CDC, 50,000 people each year in the United States alone, are seriously injured by accidental carbon monoxide poisoning and admitted to the emergency room.
Also, according to the CDC, nearly 500 people each year are killed from accidental carbon monoxide poisoning. |
A Personal Message From The Owner,
The danger of carbon monoxide poisoning if your furnace is not firing clean or not venting properly is very real and in many cases, the homeowner is unaware they are at risk, until it has been checked by a qualified technician. Carbon monoxide poisoning can be caused by a number of conditions; the most common causes are; (1.) Clogged burners; caused by rust build-up on top of the burners. (2.) A cracked heat exchanger; the carbon monoxide is introduced into air flow. (3.) A clogged or partially clogged flue vent, the carbon monoxide backs up and again gets introduced into your air flow, and even worse if the unit is in a furnace closet, inside the house. (4.) Bad air/gas mixture if the burners are not properly adjusted. (5.) Low manifold gas pressure, causing the burners not to burn clean which in-turn, causes soot to build-up inside; clogging the heat exchanger. When this occurs; you have a mess on your hands. (6.) Insufficient oxygen for proper combustion (a number of reasons could cause this condition) you should have a qualified technician to identify the causes for any of these problems. I'd rather service your system 2 times a year; once for the a/c and once for the furnace, but if you could only do one of them a year, please do the furnace if nothing else.
Thank you, for reading my rant about carbon monoxide.
Mark Reynaud
Carbon monoxide can be the result of a poorly maintained furnace or any other gas fired appliance.
Carbon monoxide (CO) is a colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas that is slightly lighter than air. It is toxic to humans and animals when encountered in higher concentrations, although it is also produced in normal animal metabolism in low quantities, and is thought to have some normal biological functions. In the atmosphere it is short lived and spatially variable, since it combines with oxygen to form carbon dioxide and ozone.
Carbon monoxide consists of one carbon atom and one oxygen atom, connected by a triple bond that consists of two covalent bonds as well as one dative covalent bond. It is the simplest oxocarbon, and isoelectronic with the cyanide ion and molecular nitrogen. In coordination complexes the carbon monoxide ligand is called carbonyl.
Carbon monoxide is produced from the partial oxidation of carbon-containing compounds; it forms when there is not enough oxygen to produce carbon dioxide (CO2), such as when operating a stove or an internal combustion engine in an enclosed space. In the presence of oxygen, carbon monoxide burns with a blue flame, producing carbon dioxide. Coal gas, which was widely used before the 1960s for domestic lighting, cooking, and heating, had carbon monoxide as a significant constituent. Some processes in modern technology, such as iron smelting, still produce carbon monoxide as a byproduct.
Worldwide, the largest source of carbon monoxide is natural in origin, due to photochemical reactions in the troposphere that generate about 5 x 1012 kilograms per year. Other natural sources of CO include volcanoes, forest fires, and other forms of combustion.
In biology, carbon monoxide is naturally produced by the action of heme oxygenase 1 and 2 on the heme from hemoglobin breakdown. This process produces a certain amount of carboxyhemoglobin in normal persons, even if they do not breathe any carbon monoxide. Following the first report that carbon monoxide is a normal neurotransmitter in 1993, as well as one of three gases that naturally modulate inflammatory responses in the body (the other two being nitric oxide and hydrogen sulfide), carbon monoxide has received a great deal of clinical attention as a biological regulator. In many tissues, all three gases are known to act as anti-inflammatories, vasodilators, and promoters of neovascular growth. Clinical trials of small amounts of carbon monoxide as a drug are ongoing.
The danger of carbon monoxide poisoning if your furnace is not firing clean or not venting properly is very real and in many cases, the homeowner is unaware they are at risk, until it has been checked by a qualified technician. Carbon monoxide poisoning can be caused by a number of conditions; the most common causes are; (1.) Clogged burners; caused by rust build-up on top of the burners. (2.) A cracked heat exchanger; the carbon monoxide is introduced into air flow. (3.) A clogged or partially clogged flue vent, the carbon monoxide backs up and again gets introduced into your air flow, and even worse if the unit is in a furnace closet, inside the house. (4.) Bad air/gas mixture if the burners are not properly adjusted. (5.) Low manifold gas pressure, causing the burners not to burn clean which in-turn, causes soot to build-up inside; clogging the heat exchanger. When this occurs; you have a mess on your hands. (6.) Insufficient oxygen for proper combustion (a number of reasons could cause this condition) you should have a qualified technician to identify the causes for any of these problems. I'd rather service your system 2 times a year; once for the a/c and once for the furnace, but if you could only do one of them a year, please do the furnace if nothing else.
Thank you, for reading my rant about carbon monoxide.
Mark Reynaud
Carbon monoxide can be the result of a poorly maintained furnace or any other gas fired appliance.
Carbon monoxide (CO) is a colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas that is slightly lighter than air. It is toxic to humans and animals when encountered in higher concentrations, although it is also produced in normal animal metabolism in low quantities, and is thought to have some normal biological functions. In the atmosphere it is short lived and spatially variable, since it combines with oxygen to form carbon dioxide and ozone.
Carbon monoxide consists of one carbon atom and one oxygen atom, connected by a triple bond that consists of two covalent bonds as well as one dative covalent bond. It is the simplest oxocarbon, and isoelectronic with the cyanide ion and molecular nitrogen. In coordination complexes the carbon monoxide ligand is called carbonyl.
Carbon monoxide is produced from the partial oxidation of carbon-containing compounds; it forms when there is not enough oxygen to produce carbon dioxide (CO2), such as when operating a stove or an internal combustion engine in an enclosed space. In the presence of oxygen, carbon monoxide burns with a blue flame, producing carbon dioxide. Coal gas, which was widely used before the 1960s for domestic lighting, cooking, and heating, had carbon monoxide as a significant constituent. Some processes in modern technology, such as iron smelting, still produce carbon monoxide as a byproduct.
Worldwide, the largest source of carbon monoxide is natural in origin, due to photochemical reactions in the troposphere that generate about 5 x 1012 kilograms per year. Other natural sources of CO include volcanoes, forest fires, and other forms of combustion.
In biology, carbon monoxide is naturally produced by the action of heme oxygenase 1 and 2 on the heme from hemoglobin breakdown. This process produces a certain amount of carboxyhemoglobin in normal persons, even if they do not breathe any carbon monoxide. Following the first report that carbon monoxide is a normal neurotransmitter in 1993, as well as one of three gases that naturally modulate inflammatory responses in the body (the other two being nitric oxide and hydrogen sulfide), carbon monoxide has received a great deal of clinical attention as a biological regulator. In many tissues, all three gases are known to act as anti-inflammatories, vasodilators, and promoters of neovascular growth. Clinical trials of small amounts of carbon monoxide as a drug are ongoing.