Personal carbon monoxide detectors for RGIs

I'm now a convert and think it's worth having, I keep mine clipped to my tool bag and it's been there for a year, I was working on a HE boiler that was firing away happily and showing no fault characteristics what so ever, within a few minutes the co alarm kicked in identifying a presence. What impressed me was that in a well ventilated boiler house with the tool box on the floor the alarm kicked in, I was caught totally unaware, it turned out the burner was split and the flame picture would have been brutal, if it weren't for the detector I may have walked away from what looked like a safe boiler leaving a hazard behind me:o.

kscobie

Good idea,never would have thought of that

Joey the lips

Have you thought of writing to the rgii with this information? They may update there information as a result..

DGOBS

+1. I feel safer since I started carrying the alarm
Have had it alarm a few times walking into oil boiler houses

To RGIs, new safety bulletin on the rgii site regarding inspection of extended and concealed flues

Joey the lips

Joey the lips wrote: »

Have you thought of writing to the rgii with this information? They may update there information as a result..

Telling RGII would be like telling my wife i deserve my birthday treat;) early because I've emptied the dishwasher, they would pretend to listen but they're not really interested:(.

anuprising

rgii is a not for profit company charged with implementing rules regulations and policy documents on behalf of the commission for energy regulation .
rgii dont have any power or interest to take new ideas from anyone except the cer .
its explained on the website here

http://www.rgii.ie/about-us/the-rgii-register.2713.html

the commission is always interested in new ideas and anybody can make a submission to them for inclusion in their meetings , but they get very few from the public as people mistakenly send them to rgii .

GASMANN

anuprising wrote: »

rgii is a not for profit company charged with implementing rules regulations and policy documents on behalf of the commission for energy regulation .
rgii dont have any power or interest to take new ideas from anyone except the cer .
its explained on the website here

http://www.rgii.ie/about-us/the-rgii-register.2713.html

the commission is always interested in new ideas and anybody can make a submission to them for inclusion in their meetings , but they get very few from the public as people mistakenly send them to rgii .

LOL

anuprising

anuprising wrote: »

rgii is a not for profit company charged with implementing rules regulations and policy documents on behalf of the commission for energy regulation .
rgii dont have any power or interest to take new ideas from anyone except the cer .
its explained on the website here

http://www.rgii.ie/about-us/the-rgii-register.2713.html

the commission is always interested in new ideas and anybody can make a submission to them for inclusion in their meetings , but they get very few from the public as people mistakenly send them to rgii .

I find RGII very frustrating to deal with and the lack of interest in gas safety is a disappointment, but it may be CER haven't given them the
tools to function properly or I'm right and they're just cert chasers.

paddy147

Should be mandatory.

paddy147

paddy147 wrote: »

Should be mandatory.

If we're going down that road can we start with a u gauge:D, that'd be nice.

paddy147

gary71 wrote: »

If we're going down that road can we start with a u gauge:D, that'd be nice.

Well the fire brigade or senior fire officer wouldnt send in a fireman into a blaze without a breathing mask and tank,so why should a gas man/plumber be expected or allowed to go into house or workplace and work on a boiler or the likes of a gas fire or cooker without a monoxide dector.

Its a matter of life and death here.

It should be made mandatory in this day and age of health and safety.

paddy147

gary71 wrote: »

I find RGII very frustrating to deal with and the lack of interest in gas safety is a disappointment, but it may be CER haven't given them the
tools to function properly or I'm right and they're just cert chasers.

The CER is/are useless too.:rolleyes:

gary71

gary71 wrote: »

I'm now a convert and think it's worth having, I keep mine clipped to my tool bag and it's been there for a year, I was working on a HE boiler that was firing away happily and showing no fault characteristics what so ever, within a few minutes the co alarm kicked in identifying a presence. What impressed me was that in a well ventilated boiler house with the tool box on the floor the alarm kicked in, I was caught totally unaware, it turned out the burner was split and the flame picture would have been brutal, if it weren't for the detector I may have walked away from what looked like a safe boiler leaving a hazard behind me:o.

Just as a update the burner wasn't the only reason the boiler was producing unreadable levels of carbon monoxide, the boiler fitted 18 months ago was never converted for LPG:eek:, the boiler was working so well unconverted it took me awhile to ( a second visit Sat morning) nail it, Friday night at 8 o'clock after a few hours messing I was almost talking myself in to leaving it on as the boiler was working so well albeit with shocking CO levels, which I thought was due to a layer of soot from when the burner was firing when it had split originally, long story short I'm now glad I left it capped and my paranoia won the day, be careful out there;)

DGOBS

Did it have a 'lpg' databadge? (G31)
or still have a G20 badge?

Am aware of a number of these that have been found recently

anuprising

what was the co2 readings and the O2 readings , they should have been way off .

DGOBS

DGOBS wrote: »

Did it have a 'lpg' databadge? (G31)
or still have a G20 badge?

No, when I first got the call I thought it hadn't been converted, installer said he converted it, house holder said "of course it was converted", found the working pressure to be 75 mbar, changed the split burner, fired it, back of the net:cool:, what are the chances of two funky faults on one boiler;).

This boiler a Vitdens 100 has never shown a flame fault code, the stat in the flue has never kicked in, this boiler has been running a long time with no issues. The mistake I made was ass uming:o a unconverted boiler could not run for soo long without breaking down or melting, so no matter how big I get for my boots there's always a boiler waiting round the corner to put me on my arse

DGOBS wrote: »

Am aware of a number of these that have been found recently

There's loads, but normally the boiler logic picks it up or it's spotted when the flue melts, DOH.....

And Tony, I'm now over the fact that you didn't pick up Friday night when I was a bit tearful:o that the boiler won.

anuprising

anuprising wrote: »

what was the co2 readings and the O2 readings , they should have been way off .

The readings were brutal, but I put it down to the soot that had formed in the boiler burning off, I thought the soot had come from the split burner as the boiler had been used for a time with the burner split:eek:.

DGOBS

opps, never even noticed the missed call, phone on silent (for once)
we'll have another therapy session soon!

GASMANN

gary71 wrote: »

No, when I first got the call I thought it hadn't been converted, installer said he converted it, house holder said "of course it was converted", found the working pressure to be 75 mbar, changed the split burner, fired it, back of the net:cool:, what are the chances of two funky faults on one boiler;).

This boiler a Vitdens 100 has never shown a flame fault code, the stat in the flue has never kicked in, this boiler has been running a long time with no issues. The mistake I made was ass uming:o a unconverted boiler could not run for soo long without breaking down or melting, so no matter how big I get for my boots there's always a boiler waiting round the corner to put me on my arse

There's loads, but normally the boiler logic picks it up or it's spotted when the flue melts, DOH.....

And Tony, I'm now over the fact that you didn't pick up Friday night when I was a bit tearful:o that the boiler won.

might have a problem with the gas pressure reg if its letting 75mb through

GASMANN

GASMANN wrote: »

might have a problem with the gas pressure reg if its letting 75mb through

yep, that was the original fault, regulator was defective allowing the boiler to run at 75mbar working, this caused the burner to split due to explosive ignition, the regulator was replaced then the burner, it was when i was doing my basic checks after fitting the burner that the fun started:(

What i couldn't/can't get my head around is they have been running the boiler for a year and a half unconverted and it caused them no problems and generated no fault codes, so other than producing unmeasurable life threating levels of CO you'd never know, every other boiler i'v worked on fired without first being converted has been damaged or showed some sign of being over gassed.

GASMANN

yeah i read that back and your right, was it lpg on ng or vice versa

GASMANN

GASMANN wrote: »

yeah i read that back and your right, was it lpg on ng or vice versa

NG Vitodens 100 on LPG:mad:

Billy Bunting

gary71 wrote: »

I'm now a convert and think it's worth having, I keep mine clipped to my tool bag and it's been there for a year, I was working on a HE boiler that was firing away happily and showing no fault characteristics what so ever, within a few minutes the co alarm kicked in identifying a presence. What impressed me was that in a well ventilated boiler house with the tool box on the floor the alarm kicked in, I was caught totally unaware, it turned out the burner was split and the flame picture would have been brutal, if it weren't for the detector I may have walked away from what looked like a safe boiler leaving a hazard behind me:o.

Jumping back to the topic, could i ask Gary what personal CO alarm you use? i use a all4one unit stuck on my tool box, thankfully its never gone off but i would be interested in a unit thats proven its worth. Without wanting to cause fits of laughter, do RGII have these units :eek:

GASMANN

Billy Bunting wrote: »

Jumping back to the topic, could i ask Gary what personal CO alarm you use? i use a all4one unit stuck on my tool box, thankfully its never gone off but i would be interested in a unit thats proven its worth. Without wanting to cause fits of laughter, do RGII have these units :eek:

you could test it yourself billybunting handy enough, just hold it up to a flue if it sounds it works, you could also mcguyver it to your flue gas analyser and see what the lowest readings it will activate at

Billy Bunting

I have done the test and it does go off, but as a very lucky survivor of CO
poisoning i still would feel safer with a unit thats been proven in my working enviroment.

Billy Bunting

Billy Bunting wrote: »

Jumping back to the topic, could i ask Gary what personal CO alarm you use? i use a all4one unit stuck on my tool box, thankfully its never gone off but i would be interested in a unit thats proven its worth. Without wanting to cause fits of laughter, do RGII have these units :eek:

It's from Charlie at CSL and its the same one our uniformed cousins wear at BG, as for testing i have a dog beside me you can have, he's releasing some unidentified gases to atmosphere thats making me nauseous and dizzy:(

Billy Bunting

Billy Bunting wrote: »

lucky survivor of CO
poisoning .

strangely enough i was talking to someone else this week who nearly didn't come home because of CO from a boiler, i wonder if this silent killer is more common than we'd hope for with the modern regs we adhere to now and balanced flued boilers.

Billy Bunting

In my case thankfully it was just a faulty 3 way fridge unit on a boat, (just a bloody fridge) some clown had installed it without a flue and no vents in the cabin, i remember every minute of the 14hrs i was trapped semi contious but unable to remove myself from the cabin, it was only the voice of my wife on the phone that pushed me onto my feet and out to safety.

And still gas safety doesnt extent to the boating community.

anuprising

did the original installer not change the gas flow restrictor in the gas valve ?
deserves a kick in the ge#!

out of curiosity , did the original lad change the fan speed on the software to 1 ?

GASMANN

Billy Bunting wrote: »

I have done the test and it does go off, but as a very lucky survivor of CO
poisoning i still would feel safer with a unit thats been proven in my working enviroment.

but thats not possible really, the only way of getting a degree of confidence is to test your own device regulary. you cant take it for granted that if you buy the same brand as gary71 that you'll be fine. if you test your own device continuously and get same results then the device wont let you down.
assuming you and gary71 dont work together, his and your working enviroments are not the same.

Billy Bunting

Billy Bunting wrote: »

i remember every minute of the 14hrs i was trapped semi contious but unable to remove myself from the cabin, .

:eek:
That sounds absolutely frightening

Billy Bunting

but thats not possible really, the only way of getting a degree of confidence is to test your own device regulary. you cant take it for granted that if you buy the same brand as gary71 that you'll be fine. if you test your own device continuously and get same results then the device wont let you down.
assuming you and gary71 dont work together, his and your working enviroments are not the same.

The unit i use isnt made for personal protection, i have it just stuck on my box, Gary's is designed for personal use, thats what i'm looking for.

gary71 wrote: »

:eek:
That sounds absolutely frightening

Difficult to discribe how that feel but it really does give you a very health respect for CO and how little it takes to get ya.

anuprising

anuprising wrote: »

did the original installer not change the gas flow restrictor in the gas valve ??

NO

anuprising wrote: »

deserves a kick in the ge#! ?

It was his first job after doing his 18 day course, i spent a hour on the phone with him explianing the error of his ways and how close he came to spending time in a cell with a fella called Bubba with a thing for bad gas fitters, he's one gas fitter who now has a better undertstanding of gas safety;) and how easy it is for a mistake that could kill .

anuprising wrote: »

out of curiosity , did the original lad change the fan speed on the software to 1 ?

i did it and with my lack of natural rhythm i can think of better things to be doing late on a Friday night.

Right Billy, i went out to the van in my under garments and i can now tell you it's Eikon gas detector: http://www.crowcon.com/pages/products-amp-services/personal-amp-portable-gas-monitors/eikon.php

Billy Bunting

Thanks for that Gary, will get that sorted now.

Bet your glad of the fresh air with that dirty bloody dog beside ya

JohnnieK

anuprising wrote: »

what was the co2 readings and the O2 readings , they should have been way off .

Never commissioned so. A put it up on the wall and walk away installer.

JohnnieK

JohnnieK wrote: »

Never commissioned so. A put it up on the wall and walk away installer.

The thing about this story is the home owner probably thinks Gary71 is a W****R now for capping it off, instead of being grateful that they got a good gas fitter to identify it.

anuprising

gary71 wrote: »

NO


It was his first job after doing his 18 day course, i spent a hour on the phone with him explianing the error of his ways and how close he came to spending time in a cell with a fella called Bubba with a thing for bad gas fitters, he's one gas fitter who now has a better undertstanding of gas safety;) and how easy it is for a mistake that could kill .


i did it and with my lack of natural rhythm i can think of better things to be doing late on a Friday night.

18 months old was a warrenty call ? did you report the condition of the boiler to prisicision and did they cover the parts ? was the installer meant to be veissmann registered ?

anuprising

anuprising wrote: »

18 months old was a warrenty call ? did you report the condition of the boiler to prisicision and did they cover the parts ? was the installer meant to be veissmann registered ?

75 mbar working kind of kills the warranty;), I have no interest in if the installer is Viessmann Registered or not, as it was LPG the installer may not be RGI as it was fitted before the regs came into play.

Micky Dolenz

Same thing happened me Christmas eve last year. I was commissioning a LPG Baxi Megaflow for another RGI installer. It was firing fine but once I took readings it was off the scale. The box was still in the room and it had LPG stamped all over it, the N20 data badge told another story.

The worst part was,the reason the original installer couldn't commission was because he was at his father's bed side in hospital. He had a heart attack. How bad did I feel ringing him telling him I was shutting down his clients boiler....on Christmas eve

The megaflow can't be converted. It's a boiler change.....again.

DGOBS

G20 on the data badge you mean?

Gas safety regulations DO extend to the boating community since the change to LPG regulations last year

DGOBS

Gary, was nice of you to check the make/model of your personal alarm, but the image of you in your undies you put in my head was not required!

Charlie doesn't work for CSL anymore, he is now HES (Heating Engineer Supplies)

Billy Bunting

DGOBS wrote: »

Gas safety regulations DO extend to the boating community since the change to LPG regulations last year

A quote from IWAI forum........As a result of a submission from the IWAI the commission on energy regulation has wisely decided to omit boats from the forth coming LpG domestic installation regulations. This is to allow a further period of consultation and comtempation as there are significant issues around the RCD and requirements that's gas installations be subject to it's stipulations and certifications and as they apply to RGII.

http://www.iwai.ie/forum/read.php?1,31628,page=1

Micky Dolenz

DGOBS wrote: »

G20 on the data badge you mean?

Gas safety regulations DO extend to the boating community since the change to LPG regulations last year

Indeed. I must of been thinking of a road

DGOBS

Lol, sorry my mistake, bit of a DOH! moment
Still trying to get Gary in his undies outta my head

DGOBS

DGOBS wrote: »

Lol, sorry my mistake, bit of a DOH! moment
Still trying to get Gary in his undies outta my head

If it helps, they were Y-fronts, I go for the darker colours which i find are for more forgiving in the event of a accidental discharge;) also they could be mistaken for speedos, which is handy as I can tell the Guards I'm on my way to a late night sauna.

slavetothegrind

Aren't there rules about on thread flirting? :-)

slavetothegrind

slavetothegrind wrote: »

Aren't there rules about on thread flirting? :-)

:pac:

Micky Dolenz

Starting to doubt what RGI stands for now

DGOBS

I would usually wear my mankini instead, they really suit short fat hairy bald guys like myself.

slavetothegrind

OK i have to say this....

NO FCUKING PICTURES

especially you gary, DGOBS ffs man :eek: