if this helps just one...

Collarspace Discussion Forums

Home Login Search

if this helps just one...

View related threads: (in this forum | in all forums)

Logged in as: Guest

All Forums >> [Casual Banter] >> Off the Grid >> if this helps just one...

Page: [1] 2 next > >>

Login

Message

<< Older Topic Newer Topic >>

if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 4:34:00 AM

sirsholly

Posts: 42360
Joined: 9/7/2007
From: Quietville
Status: offline

my story....

Quite a few years ago i was married to my first husband. He had surgery to clear a blockage of an artery. It was a fairly serious surgery and i expected him to be laid up for a bit. When we finally got home he was having trouble keeping warm so he asked that the furnace be turned on. It was September...in the mid 70's outside...so a running furnace had me sweating. I opened a window in a spare bedroom on the second floor and would go up there to cool off.
After a few days i noticed he was not recovering as i thought he should. To add to that, i had a tension headache that would not go away. It seems all he did was sleep, and all i did was down Tylenol.
Finally it occured to me...the problem is in the house! I called the gas company and told them of my concern and they were there within an hour. THey had meters to measure the carbon monoxide levels and as they headed to the furnace said that a reading over 9% meant we would have to leave. Our reading was 67%.
The problem, we later found out, was a birds nest that fell into the chimmney. Yes, our chimmney was covered with a screen that we assumed was secure. The screen lifted enough to allow the nest to fall into the chimmney, causing the blockage that sent the carbon monoxide into the house.
My husband was readmitted to the hospital with fluid around his heart. I developed pneumonia but refused admission because i needed to be home to have the heating issues resolved and then have the red tag removed from our gas line.
When i think of what might have happened if i closed that window...if one time the temp dropped...if one time it rained...if i hadn't opened the window to begin with.
We thought we were fairly safe having done all recommended procedures to prevent something like this from happening. Our incorrect assumption nearly cost us our lives.

Considering the time of year it is many are turning on their furnaces. A carbon monoxide detector costs less than 50.00. If you don't have one please consider what happened to us and get one as soon as possible.

_____________________________

PICKED UPON
TECHNO-DOLT
MEMBER OF THE SUBBIE MAFIA
GRACEFULLY CHALLENGED :::::splat:::::
BOOT WHORE
VAA/S FAN

GIVES GOOD HEART (Lushy)

CREATOR OF MAYHEM (practice)

Post #: 1

RE: if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 4:54:30 AM

GreedyTop

Posts: 52100
Joined: 5/2/2007
From: Savannah, GA
Status: offline

thank you, Holly....

_____________________________

polysnortatious
Supreme Goddess of Snark
CHARTER MEMBER: Lance's Fag Hags!
Waiting for my madman in a Blue Box.

(in reply to sirsholly)

Post #: 2

RE: if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 5:31:19 AM

colouredin

Posts: 4279
Joined: 2/2/2007
Status: offline

gosh that must have been so scary for you, the thing is we all think we are safe till something like that reminds us we have to actually take care of our safty

_____________________________

Resident Lime(y) Tart
There would be no gossip without secrets
I don't want to be anything other than what I've been trying to be lately

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELvfMJoKDAk

(in reply to GreedyTop)

Post #: 3

RE: if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 5:36:31 AM

sirsholly

Posts: 42360
Joined: 9/7/2007
From: Quietville
Status: offline

the scary part was something was slowly killing us that we couldn't see, taste, smell, etc. Thats why i always try to pass it on. We were so very lucky and if our experience helps just one person it will be worth it

_____________________________

PICKED UPON
TECHNO-DOLT
MEMBER OF THE SUBBIE MAFIA
GRACEFULLY CHALLENGED :::::splat:::::
BOOT WHORE
VAA/S FAN

GIVES GOOD HEART (Lushy)

CREATOR OF MAYHEM (practice)

(in reply to colouredin)

Post #: 4

RE: if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 5:39:52 AM

GreedyTop

Posts: 52100
Joined: 5/2/2007
From: Savannah, GA
Status: offline

*adores Holly*

_____________________________

polysnortatious
Supreme Goddess of Snark
CHARTER MEMBER: Lance's Fag Hags!
Waiting for my madman in a Blue Box.

(in reply to sirsholly)

Post #: 5

RE: if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 5:57:06 AM

colouredin

Posts: 4279
Joined: 2/2/2007
Status: offline

see my one is always unplug your electrics, a lot of people dont know that (after a power cut especially) there are electrical surges so even if an appliance is turned off but still plugged in sparks can happen, our house burnt down in this way a hair dryer near a newspaper and poof it was gone. People think im odd running around pulling plugs out but you know what id rather be thought odd than look rather charcoal

_____________________________

Resident Lime(y) Tart
There would be no gossip without secrets
I don't want to be anything other than what I've been trying to be lately

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELvfMJoKDAk

(in reply to GreedyTop)

Post #: 6

RE: if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 6:05:50 AM

MadAxeman

Posts: 4171
Joined: 8/28/2008
From: UK
Status: offline

'Holly's Safety Tips'
There's a thin volume lol
Thanks for the heads up though.

(in reply to colouredin)

Post #: 7

RE: if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 6:30:01 AM

subtex

Posts: 129
Joined: 9/16/2004
From: Dallas
Status: offline

I did a quick search and found a carbon dioxide alarm for less than $30 at Walmart.

(in reply to sirsholly)

Post #: 8

RE: if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 9:05:24 AM

sub4hire

Posts: 6775
Joined: 1/1/2004
Status: offline

Was your husband ok in the end? You said he had to be readmitted but left it at that.

I agree, everyone should take proper precautions. Here you don't have to worry about our chimneys.
I already had a fire going in both fireplaces well over a month ago...it got cold for a week.

(in reply to sirsholly)

Post #: 9

RE: if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 9:07:01 AM

JoanieHoney2001

Posts: 44
Joined: 7/14/2007
Status: offline

Holly,
Thank you very much for that. It's especially true if you happen to have a fuel oil furnace. We have a detector in the basement just outside the room the furnace is in and also one at the top of the basement stairs near the bedrooms.

And don't forget to check those batteries!!!!

(in reply to subtex)

Post #: 10

RE: if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 9:10:25 AM

sirsholly

Posts: 42360
Joined: 9/7/2007
From: Quietville
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: sub4hire

Was your husband ok in the end? You said he had to be readmitted but left it at that.

He was in the hospital for about a week but made it through. He was one hell of a fighter

_____________________________

PICKED UPON
TECHNO-DOLT
MEMBER OF THE SUBBIE MAFIA
GRACEFULLY CHALLENGED :::::splat:::::
BOOT WHORE
VAA/S FAN

GIVES GOOD HEART (Lushy)

CREATOR OF MAYHEM (practice)

(in reply to sub4hire)

Post #: 11

RE: if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 9:42:24 AM

beargonewild

Posts: 22716
Joined: 5/7/2007
Status: offline

My house is heated by natural gas and I have a carbon monoxide detector plugged in the stairwell outside the furnace room. The city I'm in passed a bylaw a couple years ago making smoke detectors mandatory. Even the company for my house insurance gives me a break on the premiums because of having both types of detectors installed.
I found the easiest way to remember to change the batteries is to do so New Years morning: A new year means new batteries.

< Message edited by beargonewild -- 10/4/2008 9:44:24 AM >

_____________________________

Do Not Rile da Chosen Bear

Promiscuous boy you already know
That I’m all yours what you waiting for?

Resident MANWHORE ~1000 Bear pts~

10 NZ points
Whips~n~Cuffs

(in reply to sirsholly)

Post #: 12

RE: if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 10:18:20 AM

soul2share

Posts: 7084
Joined: 12/18/2007
From: somewhere out there.....
Status: offline

Holly, the same thing happened to me...I moved into a small house with an old fashined wall furnace....ran on gas. I was unpacking and settling in, and was pooped, but wrote it off the the 350 mile move and subsequent unpacking. Along about the time that I was going to give up and take a nap, the mailman came by, smelled the odor of gas literally surrounding my house and knocked on the door. Once I opened the door, the odor just about knocked me over. I called the gas company, the guy came out with the meter thingy, and immediately shut off my gas supply.....there was about 7 times the normal amount of CO in my house...and it was tiny...maybe 600 square feet! I opened up all the windows, kicked the dog out of the house, and turned on three fans to air it out. I called the maintenace guy, and he sent someone over to clean out the furnace. When he took it off the wall, literally YEARS of this thick, black, oily crap fell out of it onto the floor.....it had never been cleaned out before. I immediately went and got a CO detector, and was so paranoid about it happening again that I replaced the batteries on it EVERY month! Ironically, one of the TC's in another district died of CO poisoning just a week prior to me moving in.

Please, everyone....get your furnaces and chimneys checked at least once a year!!!!! Going to sleep and not waking up will really fuck up one's day!

_____________________________

I have to stop saying "How stupid can you be?"...people are starting to take it as a challenge!

*Not a fuck was given.*

(in reply to beargonewild)

Post #: 13

RE: if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 10:49:00 AM

sirsholly

Posts: 42360
Joined: 9/7/2007
From: Quietville
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: subtex

I did a quick search and found a carbon dioxide alarm for less than $30 at Walmart.

THANK YOU!!!

_____________________________

PICKED UPON
TECHNO-DOLT
MEMBER OF THE SUBBIE MAFIA
GRACEFULLY CHALLENGED :::::splat:::::
BOOT WHORE
VAA/S FAN

GIVES GOOD HEART (Lushy)

CREATOR OF MAYHEM (practice)

(in reply to subtex)

Post #: 14

RE: if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 10:50:37 AM

sirsholly

Posts: 42360
Joined: 9/7/2007
From: Quietville
Status: offline

Soul...thank God for that mailman. Were you ok after that?

_____________________________

PICKED UPON
TECHNO-DOLT
MEMBER OF THE SUBBIE MAFIA
GRACEFULLY CHALLENGED :::::splat:::::
BOOT WHORE
VAA/S FAN

GIVES GOOD HEART (Lushy)

CREATOR OF MAYHEM (practice)

(in reply to sirsholly)

Post #: 15

RE: if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 11:04:43 AM

servantheart

Posts: 960
Joined: 10/26/2006
From: Houston, TX
Status: offline

Thank you to everyone for sharing your experiences. I'm glad all of you are safe and with us today *HUGS*

_____________________________

When you really trust someone, you have to be okay with not understanding some things.
~Real Live Preacher, Real Live Preacher weblog, 07-08-04; Anonymous author of RealLivePreacher.com

(in reply to sirsholly)

Post #: 16

RE: if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 12:08:43 PM

sirsholly

Posts: 42360
Joined: 9/7/2007
From: Quietville
Status: offline

i also found out where you put the alarm doesn't matter. With a smoke alarm they are to be placed high on the wall as the smoke rises. Carbon Monoxide is everywhere...replacing oxygen.
We have the alarms that have both a plug and a battery back-up. The only time the battery is used is in a power failure.

_____________________________

PICKED UPON
TECHNO-DOLT
MEMBER OF THE SUBBIE MAFIA
GRACEFULLY CHALLENGED :::::splat:::::
BOOT WHORE
VAA/S FAN

GIVES GOOD HEART (Lushy)

CREATOR OF MAYHEM (practice)

(in reply to servantheart)

Post #: 17

RE: if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 1:32:06 PM

DesFIP

Posts: 25191
Joined: 11/25/2007
From: Apple County NY
Status: offline

And keep your muffler in good working repair.

Years ago the ex and I and the family were driving back from a weekend at the beach. We hit a bad pothole on the Long Island Expressway but as the tire didn't blow, thought nothing of it. The ex smoked and had his window open partway while the rest of us used the a.c., by the time we got home the only one who was awake was the ex. We didn't put it together till the next day as to why we were all asleep for six hours straight and horrible headaches. Cracked where the muffler met the tailpipe and the exhaust was feeding right into the car.

And get your fireplaces and wood stoves cleaned yearly or every two cords, whichever comes first. My furnace is direct vented, no chimney but the wood stove has a carbon monoxide detector not ten feet away.

< Message edited by DesFIP -- 10/4/2008 1:42:54 PM >

_____________________________

Slave to laundry

Cynical and proud of it!

(in reply to sirsholly)

Post #: 18

RE: if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 1:39:20 PM

proudsub

Posts: 6142
Joined: 1/31/2004
From: Washington
Status: offline

Thanks for sharing your story. Let me give everyone anaother warning. A friend told us about some friends of theirs who drove with the tailgate of their stationwagon opened and the carbon monoxide from the exhaust got sucked into the car and their two children in the back seat died from it.

_____________________________

proudsub

"Without goals you become what you were. With goals you become what you wish." .

"You are entitled to your own opinions but not your own facts"--Alan Greenspan

(in reply to sirsholly)

Post #: 19

RE: if this helps just one... - 10/4/2008 2:40:12 PM

tweedydaddy

Posts: 673
Joined: 9/1/2008
Status: offline

We have a carbon monxide detector and took care to get a mains powered one with a light to indicate that it is working. Remember that batteries wear out sooner than you think!

(in reply to sirsholly)

Post #: 20

Page: [1] 2 next > >>

All Forums >> [Casual Banter] >> Off the Grid >> if this helps just one...

Page: [1] 2 next > >>

Jump to:

New Messages	No New Messages
Hot Topic w/ New Messages	Hot Topic w/o New Messages
Locked w/ New Messages	Locked w/o New Messages

Post New Thread

Reply to Message

Post New Poll

Submit Vote

Delete My Own Post

Delete My Own Thread

Rate Posts

Collarchat.com © 2025

Terms of Service

0.078