Don’t forget gear for the house.

Very scary, Ken — glad you're ok; it could easily have gone the other way.

Ken,

Please stick around and don't die…..lots more backpacking trips for you to take and share with others.

Glad you are okay.

Scary stuff for sure.

Or are you trying to cash in your life insurance policy???

Remember, you don't actually get to use that money for yourself. :)

Tony

Glad to be here Tony. Too many things to do yet. It was a good reminder.

Nice one Ken, that's a good reminder for me
me as moving house today.

I too am glad you're able to report in.

WHERE your detectors working?

… but just not soon enough to avoid the nausea and headache?

(I just replaced our smoke alarms, as the old ones were way to sensitive to bugs, and had been disconnect since spring.)

Wheh! Man that was a close one. Glad your OK and no worse for the close call. Thanks for the reminder and just as a reminder as well for all that smoke and carbon monoxide/gas detectors have a limited useful life and need periodic replacement.

Ken If you don't mind posting…how did the roofers stop the proper venting.

Take care,jimmyb

Hmmm. A quick spin on google suggests long term CO exposure can lead to confusion, combative bad temper and mimic the symptoms of ADHD.

Have you considered this may have started LONG LONG before the new roof. :)

(PS: Glad you are okay)

I took down our old detectors as it as time to replace them. New ones were still in the package. Coincidences. Guess from PG&E was that the roofers disturbed something when replacing the vent cap for the heater exhaust. No heat till the HVAC guy comes Wed.

I can relate. It wasn't until we had to pay (and review) our homeowners premium that I realized our smoke detectors had been off for 6 months …

And although CO detectors weren't required when we built, they'll now be going in soon. The risk is small but the "coincidences" are always just around the corner.

"Guess from PG&E was that the roofers disturbed something when replacing the vent cap for the heater exhaust. No heat till the HVAC guy comes Wed."

Yep. Something is not right somewhere. [Deleted]

I know this isn't "This Old House", but do update this thread.

Thanks.

>CO rises. It wouldn't "sink" into your house. It would have to originate from below, or get
>sucked in.

WRONG WRONG WRONG!

CO is almost the same weight as air (only 3% lighter) so it readily mixes with air. This is why you don't need to install your CO detectors on the ceiling. Many plug directly into a wall outlet.

Thanks James.

I edited out my bad info.

Thanks for the PSA. Glad you're OK. Scary!

Yeah, we bought some plug-in CO monitors after we had to have our furnace replaced. Old one could have potentially been leaking.

I had heard that you want the lower level, e.g. plug-in kind because it would detect it sooner than the ceiling ones. Though I can't say the source I heard that from was reliable, but it seems to follow with the discussion above.

Thank God you and yours are OK.

BTW, I have a CO detector on the wall outlet in the master bedroom hallway. I put it in after a fireman told me I need one as much as a smoke detector. that's the best place for it.

A young couple and their dog were found dead in their house this week about 15 minutes away from where I live. Preliminary reports show that it was a result of CO.

I almost took a dirt nap thanks to a diesel heater in my M113 20+ years ago.

I'm glad you and your wife are OK.

So coincidences continue here. The vent from our heater was indeed blocked. Filled with an assortment of material from the vent not being properly capped. But it was rusted out as well which was the real problem according to the HVAC guy. All is repaired and new detectors are mounted and tested. PG&E even adjusted our stove for better output. Repainted our gas meter while he was checking around as well.
So in the end we didn't wake up dead, always good. And repairs to the heater and new detectors came in at under $300.
Everyone is happy. We sure feel better.
Thanks for everyones comments and concerns. Scary crap that.

Maybe you could get a carbon monoxide detector for the ceiling of your hammock.

–B.G.–

We had a similar issue to Ken's several years back: the furnace at our rental house stopped working, and the repair guys happened to notice that the exhaust vent was completely blocked. It had probably been blocked for years. They have no idea how we or the house's previous renters had avoided CO poisoning.

Ever since then, I have always had CO detectors. If you don't have one, there's no excuse not to pick one up for like $20-30 at Target.

Glad things worked out well for you. Safer, more efficient…great piece of mind. Not bad for a few hundred $. Stay safe.

jimmyb

"If you don't have one, there's no excuse not to pick one up for like $20-30 at Target."

I can't use it. My home is all electric.

Maybe I should hang a big solar detector in the backyard next to the solar panel.

—B.G.–

> repairs to the heater and new detectors came in at under $300.
Blimey – CHEAP!
As in NOT expensive, that is.

Cheers

Good that your OK and found the problem.

Ive used this topic for safety meetings at work several times. My employer even gave out free CO monitors to all employees one year. I put mine in my travel trailer since house is all electric.

Used to camp with a guy that put portable heater in his tent. It had a built in CO alarm he was willing to trust his life to. Not too smart there. No doubt the cheapest made in china part available.