Carbon Monoxide Myths
What they don't tell you can kill you!

Industry Insider Debunks the
Myths About Carbon Monoxide,
Your Heating System and Your Health

Find out if you are REALLY safe.  Even though your furnace passed inspection, carbon monoxide issues may still exist.

The furnace is only a part
of what needs to be inspected.

Learn one the dirty little "Secrets"
in the HVAC Business.

Knowing about this cash-cow can save you a lot of money, frustration, and potential danger.

Hint:  if you hear the words "heat exchanger" and carbon monoxide in the same sentence, pay attention. You are about to be "sold".

Read on and you'll find that the public has been systematically misinformed for years. The gas furnace industry has been passing on myths and half truths about carbon monoxide in the interest of "safety" and sales. They've even managed to write some of these wives' tales into local ordinances and gas utility company operating procedures.

The net result has been increased costs to consumers, premature equipment replacement, delayed real estate transactions, difficulty getting occupancy permits and, most importantly, an almost total disregard for the real issues that affect gas equipment safety in the home.

It's time someone spoke up. 

Almost every natural gas utility has mandated (made it part of their policy) that gas furnaces be replaced (or their heat exchangers replaced) if a hole or crack is detected. Consequently, service companies make furnace heat exchanger checks their high priority when performing routine maintenance or repairs.

Many local ordinances require you to have the gas utility "inspect" your gas furnace to insure it operates safely and the heat exchanger is intact before a change in property ownership can take place.

In fact, if you are trying to sell your home, this is one area where you can not negotiate with a potential buyer. You are REQUIRED to replace the furnace (or heat exchanger) before the sale can proceed.

This situation may appear to be OK from a safety standpoint, but consider the following:

• The reason heat exchangers appear to be critical to safety is because of a misguided belief that a crack or hole in a heat exchanger will allow carbon monoxide to enter a home. This is a myth and I prove it.
  
    
• The fear of carbon monoxide from a simple heat exchanger crack is probably a hold over from the "old" days of pot-belly (round) heat exchangers and gas conversion burners or in-shot burners (circa 1950's.) Splits in those heat exchangers caused problems with carbon monoxide entering the home. In fact, gas conversion burners had the ability to "push" CO laden air into a home' s air stream and could produce high levels of carbon monoxide.
  
  
• Gas furnaces with heat exchangers made in the last 20 to 25 years do NOT emit carbon monoxide just because of a crack or hole. If a furnace is generating high levels of CO, there are other problems that need to be identified and solved. 
  
   
• Visual heat exchanger checks are questionable at best. Short of dismantling the furnace, there is NO definitive way to guarantee that a heat exchanger does NOT have a crack or hole. In many heat exchangers, it's almost impossible, even with a remote camera, to inspect all surfaces for cracks.
  
  One of the better detection methods currently being used is a lighted remote camera (camera on a stick) with a water sprayer. But even this method is not a 100% guarantee that the heat exchanger is intact.
  
   
• The conditions that lead to carbon monoxide poisoning are usually ignored because mechanics are focused on gas appliances as the potential culprits. Consequently the home owner is never briefed on how operating certain devices in the home and how the home itself is constructed will have a major impact on carbon monoxide safety. (This is the point of this web site and the report Carbon Monoxide Myths.) 

Fear of Carbon Monoxide is the Easy Way to a Sale

Here's the fastest way to make a furnace sale - perform a heat exchanger check while doing routine maintenance or repairs. (Most service companies and gas utility providers mandate that heat exchanger checks be performed whenever a furnace is serviced.)

If there's a "crack" in the heat exchanger, a sale of some sort is almost guaranteed. In effect, the $89.00 furnace "clean and check" becomes a potential $2,400 furnace installation. (The cheaper the "clean and check", the more likely it is that your furnace will have a problem.)

With all the publicity about carbon monoxide and heat exchangers, the customer's anxiety level will be high enough that they won't be asking many questions. This makes the sale a fairly easy task.

The gas utilities promote heat exchanger checks and are happy to see new, more efficient gas furnaces being installed.

Why Holes Are Profitable

Needless to say, the smallest, insignificant hole in a heat exchanger becomes a sales opportunity once a service technician spots it.

The bottom line is that you are at the mercy of the technician looking at your equipment. If you deal with reputable service companies that employ people who are honest, you'll be OK. Going for the "cheapest" rate when selecting a company could prove to be a lot more expensive in the long run. Ask around, check with your friends and neighbors. Use Angie's List and check with your local BBB (Better Business Bureau.)

Like it or not, service people in many organizations receive rewards or monetary incentives based on the dollar volume they generate or their equipment sales. So, while you are thinking that there's no reason for a service mechanic to mis-inform you, there may be a very good reason to "shade" the truth - his wallet.

I'm not saying all mechanics worry more about incentives versus what's right for the customer. I'm sure most mechanics are conscientious, honest, hard working people. But, between the inducements to sell equipment and the misinformation about carbon monoxide, there are a lot of furnaces being prematurely replaced due to questionable diagnostics.

What Happens If You Don't Do Your Homework?

Some folks I know (friends of the family) didn't do their homework and found out the hard way just how frustrating and expensive a poor choice of service contractors can become.

I happened to see the family's old furnace sitting in their driveway and stopped to have a look at it. I couldn't easily see the reason the furnace was being replaced. I'm standing in the cold with nothing but a light jacket on, watching two guys pull the rest of the old plenum and return-air duct work out of the house, wondering why they were changing equipment.

I caught one and asked him what was wrong with the furnace they replaced. He said he understood it was a bad heat exchanger, but wasn't the one who did the inspection. I then talked to the other mechanic who told me that there was a hole in one of the cells.

I asked him to show me, because I couldn't see any defect, and was curious if I was going to have the same problem. He tipped the cabinet on its back and pointed to an area were the cells were connected to the front plate of the heat exchanger. There was a small hole, about 1/4 inch in diameter, that appeared to be a combination of rust and a misinformed crimp.

After I mentioned that the hole wasn't very big, the mechanic emphatically stated that it was "a good thing they caught it when they did because the amount of carbon monoxide that can get through that 1/4" hole would be enough to put the family to sleep or cause serious carbon monoxide poisoning." When I asked him how the CO was supposed to get out of the heat exchanger, he couldn't answer, and mumbled something about the heat from the burners pushing the CO through the hole. He knew he was on shaky ground and avoided any more questions.

This family really didn't need a furnace.

They certainly didn't have the extra money to spend on a furnace. But, they were convinced they were in danger since their furnace was "red tagged" and shut off the night before. 

So, without much choice or the ability to get other quotes, they purchased a "bare bones" gas furnace which happened to be "in stock" just so they would have heat.

That 1/4" hole has probably been there since the furnace was installed 12 years ago. Frankly, it could probably be there another 12 years without being a problem.

Myths Make for Easier Sales

This is just one of a number of "myths" circulating in the HVAC industry. This kind of myth stops the customer from asking too many questions. It lets the companies in the HVAC business slip out from under potential liability by simply "condemning" equipment based on some vague notion that it is un-safe to operate. With everyone's fear of carbon monoxide and cracked heat exchangers, no one really questions the practice. 

The myths have been reinforced by repeated exposure in the media, volumes of news articles, consumer protection information and even utility company policies. It does not matter whether the myths are true or false. Every contractor, code enforement and safety organization operates as if they are true, so they must be true. Right?

Another myth that's perpetuated by the media and government agencies is the number of deaths caused by carbon monoxide poisoning each year. Some sources declare that "hundreds" are killed each year. Other media outlets use headlines like "Thousands Die Each Year Due To Carbon Monoxide." Well guess what ... they are wrong, totally wrong! Nobody checks their facts! They simply reprint what other agencies have published.

According to the Consumer Products Safety Commission, which has been tracking incidents for the last two decades, fatalities caused by carbon monoxide poisoning averages a whole lot less than what the media report! (It's actually less than 100 people per year for gas furnaces.) We've put together the numbers to prove it.

They Don't Care If You Are Left In the Cold

I've stood in service meetings and posed this question to mechanics;

"If it's the middle of winter with 20 degree temperatures and you checked a furnace and found a small hole or crack in a heat exchanger that was NOT creating carbon monoxide (CO), would you red-tag the furnace?"

Every mechanic, without exception, said yes, the red-tag was warranted and they would shut down the furnace.

Then I asked, "What about the family and the water lines in the house? The shut-down will cause a lot of inconvenience and may cause damage to their property if the water lines freeze." There was usually silence. Then some wise guy would always pipe up with "we have to shut it down because of liability." (In the back of the room you can see the company owners shaking their heads in agreement.)

Here's the Big Problem

Nobody asked the question;

"Is the crack causing a combustion problem?"

If there is no major flame disturbance or rollout or other operating problems, then the furnace is probably safe to operate on a temporary basis.  It may have been operating for years with the crack exactly like it is.

Come on - where is common sense?

How about a little compassion? 

In the dead of winter we force a family out of their home, leave them open to potential damage because of water line freeze ups and use "liability" and "danger" and "the rules" as the excuse?

Did the mechanic at least use a CO meter to test the supply air stream inside the home to see if the furnace was producing any amount of carbon monoxide before they shut down the heat? 

It Has Been Happening for Years, Now Everyone Believes It

This find-and-condemn concept is so ingrained in the fabric of the business that I have had mechanics not believe their own eyes and test equipment when I tried to explain what was really happening inside the furnace.

Liability issues loom large and are responsible for many of the policies adopted by code enforement, gas utility companies and HVAC firms.

I don't mean to imply that all furnaces with heat exchanger cracks or holes are OK to operate - even temporarily. Some should be shut down and red tagged.  Any system with a large flame distur-bance, flame rollout, concusive ignition or evidence of overheated wiring or components should be turned off and disconnected.

However, the majority of furnaces with heat exchanger cracks will operate for years without incident.  Why throw a family out of their home by condemning their equipment in the middle of winter when there is no clear safety issue?

In the end, the consumer feels the pain with premature equipment replacement, mis-diagnosed combustion problems and a lot of needless inconvenience.

Homeowners need to know what is safe to operate, and what should be avoided. Most homeowners have the power to minimize their risk from carbon monoxide poisoning once they understand what to look for. But, without the knowledge, it's easy to fall prey to quick solutions and misdiagnosed equipment.

How Does This Affect You?

If you have a gas fired appliance, like a gas stove, or a gas water heater, or a gas clothes dryer, you are affected.

You need to be aware of what dangers your appliances can pose and what you can do about them.

Misrepresenting CO issues is done by "omission."

There are NO direct efforts or conspiracies by any government agencies or safety organizations to misinform the public. It's a case of only presenting part of the information, and is very similar to using a statement out of context. If you never find out the full story, you assume the information you've received is accurate. This is also how many of the myths about carbon monoxide proliferate.

I'm here to tell you that what you've been hearing about carbon monoxide issues is NOT accurate. You've only been hearing part of the story. 

What Can You Do to Protect Yourself?

First, become aware of the potential dangers and acquire a basic understanding of how your gas-fired equipment should operate.

Second, Read Gus' letter.

Third, survey your home and equipment to make sure you haven't been living with a hidden time-bomb.

Fourth, get familiar with the 12 myths.