Ovens Can Be A Source Of CO Poisoning

(WCCO) When we hear of cases of carbon monoxide poisoning most of the time the cause is traced to a faulty furnace or water heater. But one Minnesota couple contacted us because their story wasn't so typical. As they learned any fuel burning appliance can produce that invisible poison.

Sick For 9½ Months

It's another round of medical tests for Larry Wagner. He's happy to finally be finding answers to the unknown. An MRI scan of his heart is another in a year-long battle with health problems for him and his wife Judy.

"We both started waking up with headaches," said Judy.

The happily-married, retired couple from Byron, Minn. had been the picture of health."We were the Nordic Track people. We were out walking, we were cross-country skiing," she said.

But soon after moving into their dream home in 2005 the nightmare began."We'd be misplacing things, losing things. You know we couldn't find things," said Larry. "On two different occasions I drove to my daughter's house in Rochester and I got lost, I couldn't find my way."

The Wagners had several carbon monoxide alarms that never sounded. [It's better to get a good industrial-grade detector first, rather than several cheap ones that don't work. Think about how much more it cost them in doctor visits, blood tests, MRI's, etc. when you can get a detector currently in use by fire departments, pilots, and commercial truck drivers for $129! www.transducertech.com] They had professionals check the furnace, the gas fireplace, even the stove for gas leaks.

"We had all these symptoms, and so many things wrong, and we were not finding a cause," said Judy.

Then one morning Judy woke up and walked downstairs."It was just a split second and just everything blew in my head," she recalled. "And I remember my thought was: this is my life."

She managed to get outside and the fresh air made her feel well enough to call the local fire department.

"Immediately he said we had a major problem with carbon monoxide. And then they started searching for it," Judy said.

The Problem

After nine-and-a-half months of suffering, their search ended where they least expected.

"The guy with the fire department said well let's look at the oven. So when he turned it on and put the monitor to the oven, it shot up and was registering 400 parts per million and was still rising. And he says that would have been lethal right there and he turned it off," recalled Larry.

Four-hundred parts per million is a lot of carbon monoxide. In fact, 400 parts per million is life threatening after just three hours of exposure. Studies show you can be exposed to harmful levels of carbon monoxide from simply turning on your gas oven.

"You know, all this time, nine-and-a-half months, and we're so sick ... Doctors are all trying to be so helpful and we're having all of these tests. And not once did we ever connect it to the evenings that I was baking," said Judy.

A study by the Minnesota Department of Commerce found most gas ovens release CO when they are first turned on. (This study was designed to look into houses that were retrofitted for sound proofing near the airport. Often when you tighten a house you can cause indoor air quality problems.)

Of the 3,000 gas ovens tested, 74 percent had a CO level greater than 150 parts per million after two minutes. 25 percent had a level greater than 150 parts per million after five minutes of operating. And CO levels stayed that high while 13 percent of the ovens were on.

Todd Clarey sells safety equipment and trains fire departments on how to use it. "When you're not getting a good clean crisp burn on a fuel it gives off this compound called carbon monoxide," he said.

He showed WCCO-TV a small monitor that detects levels of CO."This is one like an EMS officer or a first responder could wear right into your home."

Clarey said all homeowners should have their gas ovens checked when they're installed or serviced."They have equipment that can test to see if there's a problem with the CO or flue which is used to getting rid of the exhaust gas and they should be testing for that," Clarey said.

Unlike other gas burning appliances in your home there is no state or national building code that requires ovens to be directly vented to the outside. So any home that is sealed up tight and doesn't have proper air flow can have problems.

Tips When You Cook With Your Gas Oven

Anytime you turn on your gas oven you should also turn on the fan above it. If your fan does not vent to the outside experts suggest you turn on a bathroom fan, anything to circulate the bad air out.

Wagner's Wait For Test Results

Judy and Larry splurged on the same type of detector used by the fire department [You can get one too at www.transducertech.com] and they've replaced their old oven.

"With this experience, no, we couldn't go back to gas. No we have a new electric oven," said Judy.

But they're worried about the long-term health effects from their chronic exposure to CO. They're seeing Dr. Tim Henry at the Minneapolis Heart Institute. He says doctors are aware of the neurological damages CO causes, but carbon monoxide really cuts off oxygen to the entire body.

"If you aren't getting enough to your brain, you're also not getting enough to your heart," said Henry.

Like identifying the invisible gas that made them sick, the Wagner's know finding answers is the first step."We're very thankful that we're alive," said Judy.

Doctors say Judy's heart looks fine. Larry has some areas of concern. We'll continue to follow their progress.