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Have I seriously poisoned myself?


RickS

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33 minutes ago, booke23 said:

 

I think that could be your culprit. But do carefully check the stove and chimney. 

Also carbon monoxide has a half life in your blood stream, of 320 minutes, so do breathe fresh air for a long time!!

Thanks booke23 - useful info

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2 minutes ago, RickS said:

I don't consider myself to be an idiot, and I thought I understood sources and risk of CO poisoning but didn't even consider the ash bucket. The taste in my mouth should have been a bit of clue - he says with perfect hindsight!

 

Feeling like an idiot beats the alternative!

 

Open all your doors, hatches and windows NOW.  There will still be a lot of CO present inside the boat.

 

You NEED to replace all the warm air in your boat with the nasty cold stuff from outside.

 

If you have a big fan use that too.  Get the boat cold and keep checking your CO alarm.  If it doesn't have a PPM gauge on it see if you can beg borrow or steal one off a nearby boater.

  • Greenie 2
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56 minutes ago, nicknorman said:

Most likely the flue is partially blocked. My experience is that if burning smokeless coal a hard deposit forms inside the flue which is very difficult to remove and certainly not with a brush. The other thing to check is the top of the throat plate, stuff tends to fall down the flue and land on the plate, blocking the exit to the flue after a while.

 

That's the thing to look at before sweeping the flue to see if that was causing a blockage. Then definitely clean the plate after sweeping too.

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54 minutes ago, Eeyore said:

Sounds like a close call, glad to hear you are ok.

let's tick off the obvious stuff so that others with more experience can get on with giving you advice.

Chimney still in place.

All vents clear.

Ash bucket left outside.

Seal between flue pipe and stove (fire cement or rope) intact.

Seal between flue pipe and roof collar (fire cement or rope) intact.

Thanks Eeyore - ash bucket left outside prompted me to check, which otherwise I probably wouldn't have. 

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Take the positives.  You are not dead.  You have learned what not to do in future, and have had some sound advice about regular flue cleaning and stove checks.   You know the CO monitor works. You know what early stage CO poisoning feels like.

 

As far as flue cleaning  for the really baked on stuff, try a dished (not a cup) angle grinder wire brush attached to the end of a metre or more piece of M14 studding.  The studding screws into the centre of the brush where the angel grinder would fit and can be locked there with an M14 nut. Scrub the brush  vigorously up and down the flue, with the fire out.  Then clean out the stove and the top of any baffle plate or back boiler.

 

N

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36 minutes ago, Goliath said:

Yep, big mistake. 
Always put outside. 
Don’t take any chances with the discarded ash whether you think it cold or no. 
Put it proper outside, not out under the Cratch cover but outside 

Thanks Goliath. Will not be making that mistake again. Quite scary finding the ash bucket hotter than it was when I put the ashes in!

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1 minute ago, RickS said:

Thanks Vagabond. To be honest, I feel a bit of a dick. I don't consider myself to be an idiot, and I thought I understood sources and risk of CO poisoning but didn't even consider the ash bucket. The taste in my mouth should have been a bit of clue - he says with perfect hindsight!

 

 

I dare say most of us on here have had to have this pointed out to begin with, so you’re not a dick

A dick would ignore it and not ask for advice


and yeah don’t it pong when you put water on 😂

just make sure you’re standing up wind when you pour the ash

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I realise that you appear to have resolved your CO2 issue which is good, but as several people have mentioned build up inside the chimney, there is a compound which you can use periodically on the stove which is clamed to clear it. I got some from a stove manufacturer, but I never used it as I didn't fit the stove. I everntually gave it to a friend who said it seemed to work. I assume any stove supplier will be able to get it.

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7 minutes ago, blackrose said:

 

That's the thing to look at before sweeping the flue to see if that was causing a blockage. Then definitely clean the plate after sweeping too.

Yes, will do blackrose. Thanks

9 minutes ago, TheBiscuits said:

 

Feeling like an idiot beats the alternative!

 

Open all your doors, hatches and windows NOW.  There will still be a lot of CO present inside the boat.

 

You NEED to replace all the warm air in your boat with the nasty cold stuff from outside.

 

If you have a big fan use that too.  Get the boat cold and keep checking your CO alarm.  If it doesn't have a PPM gauge on it see if you can beg borrow or steal one off a nearby boater.

Yes, doing that now. The cold stuff is replacing the hot air as we speak. 

6 minutes ago, David Schweizer said:

I realise that you appear to have resolved your CO2 issue which is good, but as several people have mentioned build up inside the chimney, there is a compound which you can use periodically on the stove which is clamed to clear it. I got some from a stove manufacturer, but I never used it as I didn't fit the stove. I everntually gave it to a friend who said it seemed to work. I assume any stove supplier will be able to get it.

Interesting, thanks David. I will look into that.

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Watch out for a headache, or sleepiness, or a sharp intake of "stuffy breath" when you open stove door. 

The gas CO is same weight characteristic as air, so it may sink to floor, or it may hover anywhere, you need two or more monitors, one in bedroom, one in saloon both at your nostril height. 

VENTILATE, with a through draught plus all windows open if you set off alarms. 

Shift the air right throughout the boat and outside. 

A back draught or still weather can lead to mushrooms bringing smoke in to the boat. VENTILATE. 

Edited by LadyG
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9 minutes ago, BEngo said:

Take the positives.  You are not dead.  You have learned what not to do in future, and have had some sound advice about regular flue cleaning and stove checks.   You know the CO monitor works. You know what early stage CO poisoning feels like.

 

As far as flue cleaning  for the really baked on stuff, try a dished (not a cup) angle grinder wire brush attached to the end of a metre or more piece of M14 studding.  The studding screws into the centre of the brush where the angel grinder would fit and can be locked there with an M14 nut. Scrub the brush  vigorously up and down the flue, with the fire out.  Then clean out the stove and the top of any baffle plate or back boiler.

 

N

Thanks BEngo. M14 studding? what is that then? I know M14 is the size but not sure what you mean by studding

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Suggest you go for a walk. I know it’s dark and grim out there but your bloodstream may be overloaded with CO. It’s cumulative. You need to resaturate with 02.

Just watch you don’t go dizzy.

You should recover fairly quickly.

we were at Ricky in the 80s when an idiot on chapmans farm ran the Genny  in the well deck and went ‘to sleep’ They were lucky and got pulled out. Next night they did it again, thinking it was only for an hour or so. Ended up back in hospital for second time.

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11 minutes ago, Mike Tee said:

sometimes known as M14 threaded rod

Ah right, thanks Mike. I couldn't quite see how that was to be bolted to the 'studding' and then go down the flue. Makes sense now.

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17 minutes ago, RickS said:

Thanks BEngo. M14 studding? what is that then? I know M14 is the size but not sure what you mean by studding

Google Orbital Fasteners , search for 14mm studding and you should get an illustration. Not suggesting you buy from them but you'll get a good idea of what it looks like.

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1 hour ago, RickS said:

I have had the fire on pretty much all day for the last week and today I had a strong taste of coal in my throat, like I'd smoked 40 gaspers in 5 minutes and was a bit wheezy - and then the CO alarm went off!

I have opened doors and windows and can gradually move the alarm back to where it was without it going off, so assume that whatever set it off is dispersing.

Feel a bit tight across the chest but nothing serious.

What I really would like to know is what I have done to cause this and how not to do it again. Am I incorrectly burning the coal? Does the flue need sweeping do you think? I have one of those brushes on a long wire, which I assume I just shove down the flue from the outside (with door closed obviously) then sweep out the stove? 

 

Just an addition - I chucked a lump of wood onto the fire to burn off any bits of coal that might be giving off CO by not being fully burnt - mistake? Door is shut to force gases up the flue

Are you running the fire with the door open?

 

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43 minutes ago, MartynG said:

Thank you for posting and glad you have discovered your mistake when you did.

By the way the same is true regardless of the solid fuel that is being burned , including wood.

I keep my kiln dried wood inside the boat after delivery at 20%, I am sure it dries out even more. 

I try to dry out my fuel ovals, before they go on the fire. 

Faffing about keeps the stove burning efficiently. 

Check that the stove door is a good seal, use the vents on the stove to let air in to burn fuel efficiently. 

Keep door closed if fire is lit. 

Edited by LadyG
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@RickS Although you might be feeling like a bit of an idiot, it may just be that someone searching on the forum for ‘CO alarm’ will find your post and consequently take action that could save their life. It may even be, that as I type, other boaters are scurrying outside with their ash buckets!

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2 hours ago, RickS said:

Thanks Vagabond. To be honest, I feel a bit of a dick. I don't consider myself to be an idiot, and I thought I understood sources and risk of CO poisoning but didn't even consider the ash bucket. The taste in my mouth should have been a bit of clue - he says with perfect hindsight!

I don't think you're a dick. My guess is that most people have made the same mistake, or learned about it somewhere like this.

 

In my early days of narrowboat and Boatman stove ownership, I used to shovel the hot Ash into the Ash tray in front of the fire. One night, ( maybe the first night), me and the dog woke to the CO alarm. Eventually discovered it was the Ash tray, and haven't made the same mistake since.

 

Thank God for CO alarms!

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