Carbon Monoxide "The Silent Killer"

It is estimated that 10,000 people per year seek medical therapy due to carbon monoxide poisonings.

What is carbon monoxide?

Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, deadly gas created when fuel burns. Carbon monoxide is made up of one carbon molecule and one oxygen molecule (chemical symbol = CO), this means that it has almost the same weight as air and mixes with air easily.

Where does carbon monoxide come from?

Heating oil, natural gas, propane, kerosene, gasoline, wood and almost anything that burns can produce carbon monoxide. You may be exposed to carbon monoxide if :

You leave your motor vehicle engine running.
Your home contains an incorrectly vented or malfunctioning water heater, furnace, space heater, fireplace or stove.
You burn charcoal, alcohol or gasoline in an enclosed tent, camper or garage.

What is the concern?

Because carbon monoxide is colorless, tasteless and odorless gas that is quickly absorbed by the body and the symptoms often resemble other illness, it is known as the silent killer. It prevents the ability of you blood to carry oxygen from your lungs to the rest of your body. Organs that utilize a lot of oxygen such as the heart and brain are most at risk. Carbon monoxide has to only to be present in small amounts to cause an effect. The majority of people killed are overcome as they sleep. Carbon monoxide poisoning is often misdiagnosed because its symptoms are similar to other common illnesses such as the flu and food poisoning.

Some of the symptoms associated with carbon monoxide poisoning are:

Headaches
Dizziness
Drowsiness
Confusion Nausea
Vomiting
Disorientation
Loss of consciousness
Coma
Seizures
Respiratory failure
Cardiac arrest may occur

What precautions should you take?

Before winter sets in, there are several ways you can safe-guard your family against accidental carbon monoxide poisoning:

Have your heating system inspected by a qualified contractor before you turn your furnace on every fall.
Check your chimney or flue for leaves, branches, bird' nests or other blockage that may have accumulated over the summer.
Use non-electrical space heaters only in well-ventilated areas and keep in good condition.
Use gasoline or diesel-powered generators outdoors.
Never leave a car motor running in a closed garage.
Make sure vents on fuel-burning appliances are clear.
Avoid burning coal or charcoal in a closed space, even a garage with the door open.
Install and test a carbon monoxide and smoke detector in your home.

What about carbon monoxide detectors?

Carbon monoxide detectors can help alert you to increased levels of carbon monoxide in your home, but they are NOT foolproof! The Consumer Product Safety Commission recommends installing at least one carbon monoxide detector per household, near the sleeping area.

FURNACE ALERT COULD HAVE SAVED LIVES

Virginia Natural Gas says:

Inspectors had ``red-tagged'' the home's furnace as defective. About 10 years ago, Norfolk asked to be notified only when inspectors found gas furnaces with cracked heat exchangers. Norfolk says:

If Virginia Natural Gas had turned off the home's gas, the city could have declared the house unfit for habitation and padlocked it because it would have had no heat or hot water. Municipal officials told Virginia Natural Gas more than a decade ago not to notify the city about some ``red-tag'' warnings, abandoning a policy that could have prevented the carbon monoxide deaths of four persons, a company spokesman said Wednesday.

Ed Ware, director of public affairs for Virginia Natural Gas, said the city asked to be told only when gas company inspectors found gas furnaces with cracked heat exchangers.

Before the city made its request - between 10 and 12 years ago - the utility supplied reports of all ``red-tag'' inspections, including those that uncovered faulty furnace exhausts like the one that caused a back-up of carbon monoxide at a rented, two-story house at 208 W. 30th St., Ware said.

"We were complying with their information request," he explained.

Sherman Edmondson, Norfolk's assistant director for codes administration, angrily disagreed Wednesday that the city should accept blame for the tragedy.

Edmondson suggested that the deaths could have been averted if the gas company had stopped service to the home.

"If Virginia National Gas had turned off the gas," Edmondson said, "the building would have been unfit for human habitation. No heat and no hot water. Then we could have padlocked the building."

On March 11, 1993, the gas company "red-tagged" the home's gas furnace, warning residents that the heating system needed to be repaired before it was used again. Although the utility turned off a valve through which gas flowed to the furnace, it did not shut off gas service to the dwelling.

Someone apparently turned the valve on again and started using the furnace. Officials said they found the furnace's chimney blocked by a buildup of fallen bricks and soot, causing the back-up of the deadly, odorless gas.

Julia Dempsey, 38, was found dead late Monday afternoon on the second floor of the residence along with two of her children, Lakisha Dempsey, 15, and William E. Dempsey, 5. William Staton, Dempsey's 41-year-old fiance and the father of William Dempsey, also was found dead.

Three of the bodies were found on or near beds. The 5-year-old boy was found in a hallway.

The bodies were found by another of Dempsey's children, 17-year-old Mashuana, who had returned home Monday afternoon after spending the weekend at another residence. Police believe the family may have died as early as Saturday, the last day they were seen alive.

Edmondson said Wednesday that city building inspectors tried several times in March to get into Julia Dempsey's home to inspect the installation of a new water heater. Each time, she said, no one came to the door.

Edmondson said the city is notified whenever work is required under a building permit, such as the installation of a new water heater. The gas company's red-tag warning had nothing to do with a building permit.

Meanwhile, a city councilman on Wednesday said the city needs to revamp its method of building code enforcement to ensure that Monday's carbon monoxide tragedy is not repeated.

Herbert Collins, who represents much of central Norfolk and parts of 30th Street where Monday's accident occurred, promised to introduce an ordinance that would attack the problem.

"We have to have some kind of code enforcement that won't tolerate those things happening," Collins said. "There is just not enough code enforcement at a lot of this rental property."

Edmondson said her staff has developed a new plan. She declined to go into detail until the council is briefed.

Family members said following the tragedy that Julia Dempsey had repeatedly complained to the landlord about the furnace. The building's owner, Suzanne Marshall, of Virginia Beach, could not be reached for comment Wedensday. Fire investigators are continuing their investigation.

MEMO: TIPS FOR PREVENTING CARBON MONOXIDE CASES

Have fuel-burning equipment installed by a qualified technician.
Have a certified technician adjust all fuel-burning appliances for correct fuel/air mixture, sufficient ventilation of combustion gases and sufficient fresh-air intake.
Check each appliance yearly.
Never burn charcoal inside the house or garage, whether in a grill, hibachi or fireplace, for cooking or heating.
Don't use your gas range oven to warm a room.
Don't use a stove or fireplace that is not properly vented.
Don't run an auto engine, lawn mower or any combustion engine in a closed garage.
Don't burn anything in a stove or fireplace that is not properly vented.

A Cracked Heat Exchanger Is Nothing To Ignore

Written By Greg Wayman, CRI

What is a Heat Exchanger?

The heat exchanger is the metal wall or tubing that is heated up when the burners are ignited. The inside of the heat exchanger allows the toxic flue gases produced from the burners to exhaust out through the furnace flue. The outside of the heat exchanger is where the cold air passes over, becomes warmed, and is blown throughout the ductwork of the home. The heat exchanger is the only wall separating the toxic flue gases from the supply air. If a crack develops in the heat exchanger, there is a potential for carbon monoxide gas to leak over to the supply side and be blown throughout your rooms. Carbon monoxide gas is odorless. The human senses will not detect its presence. However, there are signs. Light-headedness, nausea, and flue-like symptoms are all signs of CO gas leaking into your home. On an extreme case, if the crack in your furnace is bad enough and the conditions are right, you and your family may enter into a permanent sleep.

Longevity

Gas forced air furnaces last approximately 15 years, some more, some less, depending on how well maintained the unit is. Some conditions that may shorten the life of your furnace are: the evaporator unit of the air conditioner leaking onto the heat exchanger causing it to rust out, dirt/dust building up on the high-limit control switch forcing your furnace to turn on and off more frequently, a dirty filter that drastically reduces air flow which also will force your furnace to kick on and off more, or dirt on the burners producing inefficient flames causing excess soot buildup on the heat exchanger. If a furnace is poorly maintained, it is not uncommon to find a crack in the heat exchanger much sooner than 15 years.

Having your furnace annually serviced is one way to help extend its life. When your furnace reaches 10-12 years, it is strongly recommended that you hire a licensed HVAC (Heating Ventilation-Air Conditioning) company to perform a heat exchanger inspection. This test should be performed annually from this point forward until the furnace is replaced. Why? Just as a piece of metal is bent over and over again eventually fatigues and breaks, a similar force is being exerted on your furnace's heat exchanger. During operation, the thin metal of the heat exchanger is being heated to high temperatures (sometimes over 175 degrees Fahrenheit) and cooled down to room temperature (70 degrees F). Each time, the metal expands as it warms up and contracts as it cools. Eventually, the metal fails and a crack is formed. A crack will always develop in a heat exchanger. How soon depends on the conditions it has been subjected to over its lifetime.