Carbon Monoxide Safety in the Winter

John: (00:02)
Alright, let’s go. One take all the way down. Don’t (quack) this up.

Richard: (00:07)
Got it? Yes sir.

Hey John, you look like you hardly got any sleep last night. What’s up?

Show Producer: (00:17)
Alright.

Richard: (00:20)
Whose fault was that?

John: (00:22)
Uh, mine. All right, let’s go. Alright.

Richard: (00:27)
Good to see you, John. Looks like you hardly got any sleep last night. What’s up?

John: (00:33)
Dude? It’s my damncarbon monoxide detector. It was beeping like crazy all night long.

Richard: (00:39)
Did you check it or at least test it?

John: (00:42)
Tests are for men who trust themselves and are prepared, Richard.

Richard: (00:46)
Uh, okay. You’re neither of those things. So what did you do about it?

John: (00:49)
I do what everybody else would do. I unplugged it and took the batteries out. I swear that beeping was making me dizzy and giving me a headache.

Richard: (00:56)
Folks, on today’s show, it’s all about keeping your family safe from carbon monoxide accidents this winter.

SHOW OPEN PLAYS (00:57 – 01:34)

Richard: (01:35)
Welcome to another episode of the Potty Mouth Guys. I’m Richard Saad.

John: (01:39)
And I’m John Eccles.

Richard: (01:41)
Alright, let’s get straight to it because today’s topic is actually extremely serious. Carbon monoxide safety. It’s one of those invisible dangers that most people don’t think about until it happens in their home.

John: (01:54)
Yeah. In Houston, people forget. Our furnaces generally sit untouched for eight or nine months outta the year, and the second that first cold front hits. Oh yeah. Everything’s been, that’s been waiting to go wrong for months. Usually does.

Richard: (02:07)
So today we’re covering what carbon monoxide is, where it comes from, what the warning signs of a leak are, how to spot possible CO poisoning, and most importantly, how do we keep your family safe this winter?

John: (02:20)
Yeah. And maybe a tip on how not to disable something you bought to keep you alive.

Richard: (02:24)
Carbon monoxide is a highly poisonous, colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas that is the byproduct of incompletely burnt natural gas.

John:   (02:34)
It’s dangerous because it takes the place of oxygen in your blood when breathed in, which, if it goes on long enough, will eventually result in carbon monoxide poisoning. CO poisoning mimics flu-like symptoms at low levels of exposure, headache, dizziness, and nausea with minor exposure, and at higher levels of exposure leads to unconsciousness, brain damage, coma, and even death.

Richard: (02:58)
Historic Houston homes are susceptible to CO poisoning in winter, primarily due to power outages that compel the use of unsafe heating methods such as grills or outdoor generators inside the house. Poorly ventilated sealed-up spaces lacking CO detectors are the perfect recipe for this deadly odorless gas to build up from fuel-burning appliances and makeshift heaters during extreme cold snaps.

John: (03:24)
Yeah, a lot of people hear warnings about carbon monoxide poisoning and think, well, I don’t use my grill indoors, so I should be good.

Richard: (03:31)
No, you’re definitely not good. Winter CO emergencies result from several issues, such as blocked vents, blocked flue pipes, or cracked heat exchangers. Blocked intake vents should be easy enough for the homeowner to find and correct, but they can easily be overlooked during an actual CO emergency.

John: (03:48)
Then there are vent pipes or flues that can become blocked by external first forces. Birds, squirrels, leaves. We’ve seen a lot of formerly living things inside of vent pipes. If that exhaust has nowhere to go, guess where it ends up?

Richard: (04:03)
Right back in your house.

What about cracked heat exchangers? What kind of problems can they cause?

John: (04:09)
Here’s how I can break it down and make it as simple as possible. Your furnace burns fuel. Usually natural gas. The heat exchanger’s job is to keep the flames on one side and the clean air on the other. If that exchanger cracks, it’s like poking holes in a submarine. Stuff that should stay separated, suddenly mixed together.

Richard: (04:27)
And the moment combustion gases get into your home’s air supply? Congratulations. You’ve got carbon monoxide blowing through your vents like it’s on a guided tour of your house.

Now let’s talk warning signs. When you check your furnace flame, it’s supposed to be blue. So if it looks yellow or flickers like a sad attempt at blowing out a candle, that’s a giant red flag.

John: (04:48)
And finding soot around your furnace or your water heater vent, think of that like your appliance scratching its cries of “Help Me” messages onto your walls. “Heeeeeeelp Me”.

Richard: (04:56)
If your vent pipes look rusty or if moisture is dripping from ’em, something is wrong. Moisture means improper venting. Improper venting means gases are not going where they’re supposed to go. Gases that don’t go where they’re supposed to go. Go into your home thanks to your aging heating system.

John: (05:14)
Yeah, and don’t forget about the symptoms in humans, right? The headaches, the dizziness, and nausea. If everyone feels like they’ve got a hangover, but no one has had even much of a sniff of a drink, that’s also a problem.

Richard: (05:26)
You know, your pets will actually show signs much earlier than the humans in the room. If your dog suddenly looks dizzy or lethargic or your cat is acting strangely quiet, they’re not taking the day off. That’s your “the call is coming from inside the house” alarm quietly going off.

Gather everyone up, including your sleepy alarm dog and get out of that house.

John: (05:47)
Call 9-1-1 from across the street or from a neighbor’s house, but do not reenter the home until the furnace is turned off and the house is completely ventilated.

Richard: (05:55)
Most CO dangers are completely preventable with routine maintenance, annual furnace inspections, working CO detectors, proper venting and safe use of generators and space heaters makes all the difference. If the alarm sounds, get out immediately, don’t troubleshoot.

John: (06:11)
Alright, let’s get into why carbon monoxide issues blow up every winter. It’s not random. It’s not cursed houses. It’s because winter is when we run all the stuff that makes carbon monoxide.

Richard: (06:22)
Exactly. Your furnace, your fireplace, your water heater, your garage heater, any appliance that burns fuel is a CO factory if it’s not venting correctly. Cold weather exposes those weaknesses.

John: (06:35)
Yeah. And half the time it’s because people seal up their houses like a Tupperware container with no airflow and no good ventilation that CO has nowhere to go.

Richard: (06:44)
Right. Older homes used to breathe because they weren’t sealed so tight. Now with modern insulation, new windows, and airtight construction, when your furnace starts spitting out CO, that stuff just hangs around like a deadbeat roommate.

John: (07:00)
So why does winter make CO more dangerous? Because your furnace is running longer. Your water heater’s working harder, your stove is cooking more. Everything that makes CO is on overtime

Richard: (07:10)
And people close vents they shouldn’t. They shut doors that shouldn’t be shut. They block returns with furniture. All of that messes with the airflow and bad airflow is a CO problem waiting to happen.

John: (07:24)
Plus, cold air makes metal contract that includes heat exchangers. Some cracks only open when the furnace gets hot. So you might have a clean inspection in October, and a CO leak in January.

Richard: (07:35)
And don’t forget about freezing temperatures. Ice buildup outside can block exhaust vents, especially for newer high-efficiency furnaces. When the vent is blocked, the furnace shuts down unless it’s malfunctioning. Then, CO.

Carbon monoxide is one of the few dangers in your home that gives you no warning signs unless you know exactly what you’re looking for. That’s why detectors matter. Yearly furnace inspections matter, and taking weird physical symptoms seriously matters.

John: (08:08)
Yeah. Look, keeping your home safe isn’t complicated. Just don’t ignore flames that change color. Vince, it looked like they survived a hurricane or alarms trying to get your attention.

Richard: (08:18)
And if anything feels off, call a pro. We’d rather check your system now than fix a much bigger problem later.

John: (08:25)
Hey guys, if you dug the show today, do the right thing and tap the like button, smash the subscribe button, and get alerts when we release a new show every two weeks. Alright folks, so stay warm, stay safe, and please check your CO detectors. Thanks for watching, and we’ll see you next time.

Richard: (08:44)
Smash the like button.

John: (08:47)
Perfect.