[Greenbuilding] Question on tight house, carbon monoxide

[RT]

On Fri, 17 Feb 2012 13:40:22 -0500, KTOT (g) <ktottotc at gmail.com> wrote:

> I have a very tight home built last year in a winter climate.
>
> Every time I make soup or jams (or other canning which involves  
> sterilizing then heat processing the jars in boiling water), both of  
> which involve boiling liquid for multiple hours, my digital CO alarms  
> read above the safe levels so I end up opening doors, even on cold  
> winter days and nights, to let the CO out.

First of all, it sounds like the ventilation strategy could use revising.

Are means in place to provide the necessary ventilation air changes to  
ensure occupant health ?

On the matter of soups and jams and CO levels:

C3H8 + 5 O2 → 3 CO2 + 4 H2O + heat
propane + oxygen → carbon dioxide + water

is what happens when complete combustion of propane takes place


When there is insufficient oxygen available, incomplete combustion occurs:

2 C3H8 + 7 O2 → 2 CO2 + 2 CO + 2 C + 8 H2O + heat
Propane + Oxygen → Carbon dioxide + Carbon monoxide + Carbon + Water

Clearly then, there is incomplete combustion occuring if the CO alarms go  
off and it is occurring because of an inadequate supply of oxygen... which  
brings us back to my first question.

ie The long-time burning of propane consumes oxygen from the interior air.  
If that interior air is not being replenished with fresh air ... well, you  
know.





-- 
=== * ===
Rob Tom
Kanata, Ontario, Canada

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