Carbon Monoxide - Close call

[tomtexan]

Does the oven have pilot lights or electronic igniters? Would a pilot light emit enough fumes to cause illness?

I didn't think that gas appliances/ovens had pilot lights anymore.

Been many years since I have seen one, but I suppose it is possible that they could still exist.

My sister lives in an old house that still has a wall heater with a pilot light. It causes a lot of trouble and I have been concerned about it.

I recently moved from a rent house that had a hot water heater that used a pilot light. I now have my own home that is all electric. I sure don't like the electric bill though.

[jimlongley]

Does the oven have pilot lights or electronic igniters? Would a pilot light emit enough fumes to cause illness?

I didn't think that gas appliances/ovens had pilot lights anymore.

I have one sitting in my showroom at Home Depot right now.

A malfunctioning pilot light could cause a problem, which is why they were supposed to be designed to be fail safe, which often didn't happen.

[Dragonfighter]

Does the oven have pilot lights or electronic igniters? Would a pilot light emit enough fumes to cause illness?

I didn't think that gas appliances/ovens had pilot lights anymore.

I have one sitting in my showroom at Home Depot right now.

A malfunctioning pilot light could cause a problem, which is why they were supposed to be designed to be fail safe, which often didn't happen.

Mine, and I suppose any in the last dozen years or so, have a thermal couple that cuts off gas when the pilot light goes out. @jimlongley - I had a similar one where the family used Sterno and old oil lamps. 3 DRT, one critical that died later and one survivor. CO is nothing to mess with, it is oft called the "silent killer".

[CEOofEVIL]

Guys, I want to give you a major Thank you for helping me understand this situation. Seriously, thank you!

I'm going to get another Repairman out to the house this week to check to make sure everything is actually GTG/safe. Relating to the blood oxygen level, I do recall that the Doctor in the ER had mentioned that our levels were something like ".7" and .9" respectively, though I'm not 100% certain whose number was whose, and if it was a .07,.7, or something else. If I am recalling correctly, he mentioned that "normal" would have been 1.5 or something like that. Does that sound about right? I wonder if the bill they will be sending us has more information on it.

At any rate, I'm glad I was able to learn a lot from this in addition to still being in good health. FWIW, I'm not sure what type of pilot system our oven has. I do know that the previous home we lived in had an over with a pilot light in it and it was of the type that would shut the gas off if the pilot ever went out.

[jimlongley]

Guys, I want to give you a major Thank you for helping me understand this situation. Seriously, thank you!

I'm going to get another Repairman out to the house this week to check to make sure everything is actually GTG/safe. Relating to the blood oxygen level, I do recall that the Doctor in the ER had mentioned that our levels were something like ".7" and .9" respectively, though I'm not 100% certain whose number was whose, and if it was a .07,.7, or something else. If I am recalling correctly, he mentioned that "normal" would have been 1.5 or something like that. Does that sound about right? I wonder if the bill they will be sending us has more information on it.

At any rate, I'm glad I was able to learn a lot from this in addition to still being in good health. FWIW, I'm not sure what type of pilot system our oven has. I do know that the previous home we lived in had an over with a pilot light in it and it was of the type that would shut the gas off if the pilot ever went out.

Do the burners "tick" when you turn them on? If so, then you have electronic ignition, and gas should not flow freely when ignition fails to happen. If you have a pilot light system, when you turn the burner on, flame will travel from the pilot to the burner and that is a every distinctive process.

[kjolly]

almost 40 years ago in an older home we were watching television in my sister's bedroom when I started feeling really sick. I got up went outside without a jacket into the cold winter's night over my parents protest and some of their friends that was visitng. The fresh air helped. When I went back inside found the handle of a wall gas outlet had been cracked open a little way in the room by some furniture we had moved. Scary.

[LAYGO]

@jimlongley - I had a similar one where the family used Sterno and old oil lamps. 3 DRT, one critical that died later and one survivor. CO is nothing to mess with, it is oft called the "silent killer".

I had to look up DRT. It's the 2nd or 3rd time I've seen it recently.

http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/DRT

The definition itself is macabre with a touch of humor: "clinically kaput"

[tiviti]

Guys, I want to give you a major Thank you for helping me understand this situation. Seriously, thank you!

I'm going to get another Repairman out to the house this week to check to make sure everything is actually GTG/safe. Relating to the blood oxygen level, I do recall that the Doctor in the ER had mentioned that our levels were something like ".7" and .9" respectively, though I'm not 100% certain whose number was whose, and if it was a .07,.7, or something else. If I am recalling correctly, he mentioned that "normal" would have been 1.5 or something like that. Does that sound about right? I wonder if the bill they will be sending us has more information on it.

At any rate, I'm glad I was able to learn a lot from this in addition to still being in good health. FWIW, I'm not sure what type of pilot system our oven has. I do know that the previous home we lived in had an over with a pilot light in it and it was of the type that would shut the gas off if the pilot ever went out.

Do the burners "tick" when you turn them on? If so, then you have electronic ignition, and gas should not flow freely when ignition fails to happen. If you have a pilot light system, when you turn the burner on, flame will travel from the pilot to the burner and that is a every distinctive process.

The electronic ignition on the stove at my parent's home has been broken for at least 10-15 years. Since it can't ignite on its own, they keep a few of those long barbecue lighters in a nearby drawer to light the gas whenever they use it.

[jimlongley]

Guys, I want to give you a major Thank you for helping me understand this situation. Seriously, thank you!

I'm going to get another Repairman out to the house this week to check to make sure everything is actually GTG/safe. Relating to the blood oxygen level, I do recall that the Doctor in the ER had mentioned that our levels were something like ".7" and .9" respectively, though I'm not 100% certain whose number was whose, and if it was a .07,.7, or something else. If I am recalling correctly, he mentioned that "normal" would have been 1.5 or something like that. Does that sound about right? I wonder if the bill they will be sending us has more information on it.

At any rate, I'm glad I was able to learn a lot from this in addition to still being in good health. FWIW, I'm not sure what type of pilot system our oven has. I do know that the previous home we lived in had an over with a pilot light in it and it was of the type that would shut the gas off if the pilot ever went out.

Do the burners "tick" when you turn them on? If so, then you have electronic ignition, and gas should not flow freely when ignition fails to happen. If you have a pilot light system, when you turn the burner on, flame will travel from the pilot to the burner and that is a every distinctive process.

The electronic ignition on the stove at my parent's home has been broken for at least 10-15 years. Since it can't ignite on its own, they keep a few of those long barbecue lighters in a nearby drawer to light the gas whenever they use it.

There are two reasons for the ignitors not to work. One is that they have failed, which could have several causes, and the other is that the safety system that is supposed to keep gas from flowing if the burner is not lit has failed, and that could be dangerous.

[tiviti]

Guys, I want to give you a major Thank you for helping me understand this situation. Seriously, thank you!

I'm going to get another Repairman out to the house this week to check to make sure everything is actually GTG/safe. Relating to the blood oxygen level, I do recall that the Doctor in the ER had mentioned that our levels were something like ".7" and .9" respectively, though I'm not 100% certain whose number was whose, and if it was a .07,.7, or something else. If I am recalling correctly, he mentioned that "normal" would have been 1.5 or something like that. Does that sound about right? I wonder if the bill they will be sending us has more information on it.

At any rate, I'm glad I was able to learn a lot from this in addition to still being in good health. FWIW, I'm not sure what type of pilot system our oven has. I do know that the previous home we lived in had an over with a pilot light in it and it was of the type that would shut the gas off if the pilot ever went out.

Do the burners "tick" when you turn them on? If so, then you have electronic ignition, and gas should not flow freely when ignition fails to happen. If you have a pilot light system, when you turn the burner on, flame will travel from the pilot to the burner and that is a every distinctive process.

The electronic ignition on the stove at my parent's home has been broken for at least 10-15 years. Since it can't ignite on its own, they keep a few of those long barbecue lighters in a nearby drawer to light the gas whenever they use it.

There are two reasons for the ignitors not to work. One is that they have failed, which could have several causes, and the other is that the safety system that is supposed to keep gas from flowing if the burner is not lit has failed, and that could be dangerous.

Hmm... is there any easy way to find out which? I suppose the smell generally makes it fairly obvious when gas is flowing.