On Thu, 05 Jan 2006 15:07:57 GMT, Ecnerwal
wrote:

In article ,
(Roy) wrote:

There seems to be differences of opinions on the properties of carbon
monoxide gas. One source says its heavier than air another says its
lighter, so.......is it heavier or lighter than air?

To be honest I rather trust the info from this forum than various
websites and media types.

And you slept though Chemistry, saying "when will I ever use this boring
stuff..."

CO: 12+16=28, .vs. air, a mixture of 78% 14+14 (N2) and 21% 16+16 (O2),
plus 1% others. So, slightly lighter than air. But not much. And very,
very deadly in high concentrations - read a bit on the wood/biomass
gasification websites to be reminded - evidently the old "head in the
oven" method of suicide dated back to cooking gas that was mostly CO,
and 1 or two deep breaths would do the job...

Don't know what you are doing, but I suggest a CO meter/alarm with a
digital readout - $50 bucks or so, well spent.
The worst things about CO are that it sticks to hemoglobin better than
oxygen and that it accumulates in your blood. So even with very small
amounts present in the air you can be poisoned and die. This is also
why just removing someone from exposure to the gas won't guarantee
survival. I believe it also affects other organs besides the brain.
ERS