Quote:
Originally Posted by monteginger
Any information would be helpful...I have friends a family of six four kids oldest 12. They live in Colorado and recently installed two ventless heating systems in their home (natural gas). They have a 1800sqft home w/low ceilings. This past winter I heard of a problem they were experiencing w/oldest daughter being sick after several doctor visits and tests they found nothing? We are from Cali and this past April we visited them and stayed in their home...I noticed one heater placed in the living room w/ reasonable fresh air from front door and the other placed in the L part off an L hall closer to the oldests bedroom in which we stayed in. So hot very uncomfortable I felt like their was no air I opened the bathroom window and the daughters windows just to get air to sleep. It didn't dawn on me and my husband untill recently that might be why their daughter was sick most of the winter. Their other three daughters share rooms that are in more direct local of ventilation not in a back corner of their home were their oldests room is and closest to the heater. And I noticed a funky smell like gas comming from their heater. Does any one have anything to add to my concerns or does anyone know of anybody that has experience with these types of heaters? If so I would apreciate your input.
Thank you!
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First, recognize that correlation does not equal causation. At best, it implies causation that needs further inspection. Otherwise it gets silly:
https://www.tylervigen.com/spurious-correlations
Second, in reductive reasoning as many possibilities as can be found get checked out and ruled out.
Sample questions might be:
Does the eldest daughter do drugs?
Does she have a genetic difference?
Is her diet different?
Are her activities significantly different?
(I could go on for pages, but the point is not to completely fixate on a single causal suspect until all have been at least cursorily examined.)
Third, Colorado elevations compared to California average elevations suggest that breathing issues in those susceptible may be exacerbated simply by the move.
The amount of carbon MONoxide given off by a properly functioning space heater is infinitesimally small. The conversion of natural gas to carbon DIoxide and water is the way the way the reaction (combustion) works when there is sufficient oxygen available.
All of the above said, there are concerns with the setup you describe. The way you describe it, the heater is pressed into over-use and heating the air above normal levels, and in a confined space. Hot air is less dense than colder air. Hot air therefore contains less oxygen than cooler air. The air in the confined area that has been overheated also contains more carbon dioxide waste product. You can see where this is going - less and less oxygen both to burn and to breathe.
I would be surprised if there WASN'T a somewhat increased carbon monoxide level in that situation. New heaters are designed with oxygen depletion sensors to limit this problem, but they are not foolproof. A CO detector is a fallback, but the bottom line is that the location of this particular heater is not one that I would feel comfortable with.
I use an unvented heater in winter and am pleased with it, but it is in a large area and there is sufficient air infiltration AND I am at a much lower altitude. The water vapor given off is a plus, and reduces my sinus issues. The dry winter air in Vermont had me susceptible to every cold that went around, as well as numerous nosebleeds.
As for carbon monoxide, I'd place a wager that I have less of it in my rural home than many people have simply by living in a city in the northeast.
I don't think I am overreacting when I say that the unvented heater location you describe is a critically poor one, and that heater is inappropriate for it. I would replace it with a vented model or some other form of heating even if there weren't health issues where it was suspect.