Gas heater lounge room dodgy ?

[Blr243]

Walked into a home this arv with the intention of repairing a couple of locks. I’m aware that gas heaters professlinoally installed in homes by licensed people and with cylinders outside is normal ... but this was a gas heater sitting in the middle of a lounge room floor ( moveable) and sitting beside it was a caravan or bbq sized gas bottle and that’s how they heat the room. Am I nervous to react to the sight of this method , or could a gas leak potentially blow the house up?

[No1Mk3]

G'day Blr243,
Who inherits your guns? Cheers.

[on_one_wheel]

Sounds like a carbon monoxide death is on the cards for someone.
Dodgy AF

[Oldbloke]

Sounds like a carbon monoxide death is on the cards for someone.
Dodgy AF

100% correct. A couple of open windows would dilute the CO enough. But close up the room, you go to sleep and dont wake up.

[Blr243]

I was only thinking the other day I need to state where my rifles go when I go because if the recipient of my assets is not licensed I could see them goin to the government auction and I reckon somebody is bound to pinch my scopes pre Auction so I really gotta sort that, or live to a ripe old age .....it genuinely is not me her house is down the road and far enough away not to burst my ear drums if it goes up ......on one wheel what’s the go with monoxide? Is a gas heater sposed to have a little chimney to vent dangourous gases ? I have no idea it just looked wrong to me

[deanp100]

The carbon monoxide will have nothing to do with the gas bottles being inside. A leak would happen at the heater and it wouldn’t matter if the gas bottles were outside or not.

[TassieTiger]

Two major issues with that install as per above...co2 and gas leak.

I’m in process on installing a tiny wood heater (9kg size)into a small cabin and I’ve triple walled the outlet(the 65mm flu going into a 1.2kg empty pal can, that sits inside an old billy can, that sits inside a proper stainless surround) for the flu System - and even then - spent $60 on a co2 monitor and smoke detector - just not worth the risk.

[Blr243]

After doing this research , I’m going back there at 730 am to fix the locks and give them a bloody good serve about the potential dangerous fumes. Hopefully they will answer the door when I knock because if nobody answers the door it’s going to be a bad day for all

[Oldbloke]

Do not confused CO (carbon monoxide) with CO2 (carbon dioxide) CO is way more dangerous than CO2. It blocks the red blood cells in the blood and no oxygen is transported through the body. The amount required in the air to do this is very small.

It is usually generated if the burn is inefficient. So if the room is enclosed the flames uses up (depleted) the oxygen, this results in a poor burn generating CO. Wrong jets could also cause the same issue along with a few others.

That's why we normally have a chimney/flue, the CO just vents harmlessly into the atmosphere. There are deaths every winter from CO poisoning. Good ventilation reduces the risks I said earlier, you fall asleep and simply don't wake up.

Obviously there is the other issue of a gas leak,,,,bang.

More here, https://www.health.harvard.edu/a_to_z/c ... ing-a-to-z

[rc42]

There are portable gas heaters that have bottles of propane, usually stored inside them, that are safe to use indoors without special ventilation requirements. It's important to note that they must be designed and approved for indoor use as these produce almost no carbon monoxide, the outside use ones are not safe indoors. Using a larger external bottle shouldn't be an issue as long as the gas lines are secure and away from any heat but it's probably against the rules somewhere, no licensed gas fitters needed for portable heaters though, just buy it, wheel it in and light it.

I had one in my bedroom growing up in the UK, great source of heat but do cause a lot of condensation on the inside of cold windows in the winter, that also freezes on the inside of the glass overnight, good times. We're spoiled with warm weather here in Brisbane but I understand that you actually know what frost is inland and down south.

[Blr243]

Thanks all for the input. I especially enjoy the nitty gritty specifics. I’m more likely to follow warnings when I know why rather than just blindly follow instructions It did enter my mind roughly 830 pm last night that I should go visit my neighbor with a stronger warning just in case. It would b horrible if I had visited this morning to fix the locks to find everybody is haveing their final sleep. I gave her more warnings and showed her the researched writing on my iPad but she just did not get it. And she said she only uses the heater for short periods of time. Her late husband set the heater up. And she trusts him . If I asked her to look out the window to see a grizzly bear in her back yard she would stay indoors but people are often not scared of a danger they cannot see. My other neighbor real close is the daughter of the lady with the gas heater. So I will have a chat to her I’m more confident that the daughter will have more luck getting the message across

[TassieTiger]

Show her this BLR-
https://www.google.com.au/amp/s/amp.abc ... e/12297330

[Blr243]

Thanks for the link TT. Even reading the first part was scary. If this new info from you does not make them think twice nothing will. Maybe I could sneak into her home at 2 am and smother her face with a pillow for two mins and see how she likes that

[TassieTiger]

2 minutes lol. “Does this smell right to you ??” lol
This is prob all she needs ?
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Quell-Carbo ... 2749.l2649

[Oldbloke]

Carbon monoxide is odorless .

[TassieTiger]

Carbon monoxide is odorless .

Nothing smells with a pillow smashed over your face for 2 minutes...