We had a new GE Profile Performance gas water heater installed in
April 2000. It works perfectly. However, for the last few months
every time it comes on there is a putrid smell coming out of the
burner. It's only bad because it is right next to the living room.

I had the gas company come out and check it for carbon monoxide, etc.
The technician could find no evidence of CO or a clogged vent pipe.
He did point out some debris that looks like chunks of ash on the
bottom under the burner. He said that might be the source of the
smell. Before I crawl on my belly like a reptile to try to clean it
out, does this sound like the problem? Or could it be something else?

You need to call a qualified HVAC company. In my area, the gas company techs
are told to get in and get out as fast as possible.

"Dick" LeadWinger wrote in message
...
We had a new GE Profile Performance gas water heater installed in
April 2000. It works perfectly. However, for the last few months
every time it comes on there is a putrid smell coming out of the
burner. It's only bad because it is right next to the living room.

I had the gas company come out and check it for carbon monoxide, etc.
The technician could find no evidence of CO or a clogged vent pipe.
He did point out some debris that looks like chunks of ash on the
bottom under the burner. He said that might be the source of the
smell. Before I crawl on my belly like a reptile to try to clean it
out, does this sound like the problem? Or could it be something else?

Dick wrote:

We had a new GE Profile Performance gas water heater installed in
April 2000. It works perfectly. However, for the last few months
every time it comes on there is a putrid smell coming out of the
burner. It's only bad because it is right next to the living room.

I had the gas company come out and check it for carbon monoxide, etc.
The technician could find no evidence of CO or a clogged vent pipe.
He did point out some debris that looks like chunks of ash on the
bottom under the burner. He said that might be the source of the
smell. Before I crawl on my belly like a reptile to try to clean it
out, does this sound like the problem? Or could it be something else?

That "bad gas smell" can be a warning of a serious problem,
even though the tech didn't find anything that day.

5 years is kind of early in the heater life, but I wouldn't rule
out a heater failure.

Yes, get in there and try to find the source of the "ash".
Might be rust from the tank flue or..who knows?

One cause of the bad smell we used to see frequently in older tanks
was collapse of the tank flue. That's the center coaxial tube
running from the burner straight up thru the middle of the tank.
Near end of life, high water pressure can actually crush the
central flue and choke off the combustion gases. The result is
poor combustion and release of the gases into the room via the
air inlet at the bottom of the heater.

The best way to see if this has happened in your case is to
pull the flue pipe off the top of the heater. Look down the
central flue in the heater. There may be a steel spiral
strip inside the flue; ignore that and look at the round
flue wall condition.

Could be other things like blocked chimney (see if cigarette smoke
will be drawn up the chimney flue) or even that the
"ash" was closing off part of the burner. Check everything;
I think it's a dangerous condition.

Jim

I agree that it could be a dangerous situation, but I think he should call
someone ASAP. It would be terrible if something happened, especially if it
takes a few days for him to get around to doing it, and someone in his
family fails to wake up one morning.

"Speedy Jim" wrote in message
news
Dick wrote:

We had a new GE Profile Performance gas water heater installed in
April 2000. It works perfectly. However, for the last few months
every time it comes on there is a putrid smell coming out of the
burner. It's only bad because it is right next to the living room.

I had the gas company come out and check it for carbon monoxide, etc.
The technician could find no evidence of CO or a clogged vent pipe.
He did point out some debris that looks like chunks of ash on the
bottom under the burner. He said that might be the source of the
smell. Before I crawl on my belly like a reptile to try to clean it
out, does this sound like the problem? Or could it be something else?

That "bad gas smell" can be a warning of a serious problem,
even though the tech didn't find anything that day.

5 years is kind of early in the heater life, but I wouldn't rule
out a heater failure.

Yes, get in there and try to find the source of the "ash".
Might be rust from the tank flue or..who knows?

One cause of the bad smell we used to see frequently in older tanks
was collapse of the tank flue. That's the center coaxial tube
running from the burner straight up thru the middle of the tank.
Near end of life, high water pressure can actually crush the
central flue and choke off the combustion gases. The result is
poor combustion and release of the gases into the room via the
air inlet at the bottom of the heater.

The best way to see if this has happened in your case is to
pull the flue pipe off the top of the heater. Look down the
central flue in the heater. There may be a steel spiral
strip inside the flue; ignore that and look at the round
flue wall condition.

Could be other things like blocked chimney (see if cigarette smoke
will be drawn up the chimney flue) or even that the
"ash" was closing off part of the burner. Check everything;
I think it's a dangerous condition.

Jim

Bob wrote:

I agree that it could be a dangerous situation, but I think he should call
someone ASAP. It would be terrible if something happened, especially if it
takes a few days for him to get around to doing it, and someone in his
family fails to wake up one morning.


SNIP


That's a fair point indeed.
I'll amend my advice to: "Shut off the gas line to the heater ... now.
Jim

On Sat, 31 Dec 2005 16:23:40 GMT, Speedy Jim wrote:

Bob wrote:

I agree that it could be a dangerous situation, but I think he should call
someone ASAP. It would be terrible if something happened, especially if it
takes a few days for him to get around to doing it, and someone in his
family fails to wake up one morning.


SNIP


That's a fair point indeed.
I'll amend my advice to: "Shut off the gas line to the heater ... now.
Jim

I appreciate everyone's concern, but this has been going on for at
least six months. And we have CO detectors in the house which haven't
picked up anything. One thing the technician and another person told
us was that, if you feel the collar at the bottom of the flue pipe,
and it isn't hot, the flue is not restricted. Ours does not get hot.

dead mouse?

"Dick" LeadWinger wrote in message
...
We had a new GE Profile Performance gas water heater installed in
April 2000. It works perfectly. However, for the last few months
every time it comes on there is a putrid smell coming out of the
burner. It's only bad because it is right next to the living room.

I had the gas company come out and check it for carbon monoxide, etc.
The technician could find no evidence of CO or a clogged vent pipe.
He did point out some debris that looks like chunks of ash on the
bottom under the burner. He said that might be the source of the
smell. Before I crawl on my belly like a reptile to try to clean it
out, does this sound like the problem? Or could it be something else?

Don't bet your life on a CO detector, some of them are crap. A cold flue
pipe tells me that the flue gases may not be going out your chimney. Has
anyone been having headaches?

"Dick" LeadWinger wrote in message
...
On Sat, 31 Dec 2005 16:23:40 GMT, Speedy Jim wrote:

Bob wrote:

I agree that it could be a dangerous situation, but I think he should
call
someone ASAP. It would be terrible if something happened, especially if
it
takes a few days for him to get around to doing it, and someone in his
family fails to wake up one morning.


SNIP


That's a fair point indeed.
I'll amend my advice to: "Shut off the gas line to the heater ... now.
Jim

I appreciate everyone's concern, but this has been going on for at
least six months. And we have CO detectors in the house which haven't
picked up anything. One thing the technician and another person told
us was that, if you feel the collar at the bottom of the flue pipe,
and it isn't hot, the flue is not restricted. Ours does not get hot.

Could it be a dead critter under there?

"Dick" LeadWinger wrote in message
...
: We had a new GE Profile Performance gas water heater installed
in
: April 2000. It works perfectly. However, for the last few
months
: every time it comes on there is a putrid smell coming out of
the
: burner. It's only bad because it is right next to the living
room.
:
: I had the gas company come out and check it for carbon
monoxide, etc.
: The technician could find no evidence of CO or a clogged vent
pipe.
: He did point out some debris that looks like chunks of ash on
the
: bottom under the burner. He said that might be the source of
the
: smell. Before I crawl on my belly like a reptile to try to
clean it
: out, does this sound like the problem? Or could it be
something else?

Dick wrote:
We had a new GE Profile Performance gas water heater installed in
April 2000. It works perfectly. However, for the last few months
every time it comes on there is a putrid smell coming out of the
burner. It's only bad because it is right next to the living room.

I had the gas company come out and check it for carbon monoxide, etc.
The technician could find no evidence of CO or a clogged vent pipe.
He did point out some debris that looks like chunks of ash on the
bottom under the burner. He said that might be the source of the
smell. Before I crawl on my belly like a reptile to try to clean it
out, does this sound like the problem? Or could it be something else?

How about a WAG-- the tank is leaking. How else
do you get putrid smells? Or maybe something came
down the chimney and fell into the burner.

Why would you have the furnace checked for CO?
you have a smell, CO doesn't smell.

And how would you feel if the person he calls
comes to the door and shoots him dead? or the
repairman answering his call has an auto accident
and dies? or the repairman leaves his wife at
alone to answer the call and she is raped? etc. etc.

All have about the same probability as someone in
his family failing to wake up one morning.

No one argues that he needs to do something, but
let not go nuts with scare tactics.

Bob wrote:
I agree that it could be a dangerous situation, but I think he should call
someone ASAP. It would be terrible if something happened, especially if it
takes a few days for him to get around to doing it, and someone in his
family fails to wake up one morning.

"Speedy Jim" wrote in message
news
Dick wrote:


We had a new GE Profile Performance gas water heater installed in
April 2000. It works perfectly. However, for the last few months
every time it comes on there is a putrid smell coming out of the
burner. It's only bad because it is right next to the living room.

I had the gas company come out and check it for carbon monoxide, etc.
The technician could find no evidence of CO or a clogged vent pipe.
He did point out some debris that looks like chunks of ash on the
bottom under the burner. He said that might be the source of the
smell. Before I crawl on my belly like a reptile to try to clean it
out, does this sound like the problem? Or could it be something else?

That "bad gas smell" can be a warning of a serious problem,
even though the tech didn't find anything that day.

5 years is kind of early in the heater life, but I wouldn't rule
out a heater failure.

Yes, get in there and try to find the source of the "ash".
Might be rust from the tank flue or..who knows?

One cause of the bad smell we used to see frequently in older tanks
was collapse of the tank flue. That's the center coaxial tube
running from the burner straight up thru the middle of the tank.
Near end of life, high water pressure can actually crush the
central flue and choke off the combustion gases. The result is
poor combustion and release of the gases into the room via the
air inlet at the bottom of the heater.

The best way to see if this has happened in your case is to
pull the flue pipe off the top of the heater. Look down the
central flue in the heater. There may be a steel spiral
strip inside the flue; ignore that and look at the round
flue wall condition.

Could be other things like blocked chimney (see if cigarette smoke
will be drawn up the chimney flue) or even that the
"ash" was closing off part of the burner. Check everything;
I think it's a dangerous condition.

Jim

Sorry, but I've never heard of the things you mention happening, but I have
seen someone die because he was too cheap to call a service company.

"George E. Cawthon" wrote in message
...
And how would you feel if the person he calls
comes to the door and shoots him dead? or the
repairman answering his call has an auto accident
and dies? or the repairman leaves his wife at
alone to answer the call and she is raped? etc. etc.

All have about the same probability as someone in
his family failing to wake up one morning.

No one argues that he needs to do something, but
let not go nuts with scare tactics.

Bob wrote:
I agree that it could be a dangerous situation, but I think he should
call
someone ASAP. It would be terrible if something happened, especially if
it
takes a few days for him to get around to doing it, and someone in his
family fails to wake up one morning.

"Speedy Jim" wrote in message
news
Dick wrote:


We had a new GE Profile Performance gas water heater installed in
April 2000. It works perfectly. However, for the last few months
every time it comes on there is a putrid smell coming out of the
burner. It's only bad because it is right next to the living room.

I had the gas company come out and check it for carbon monoxide, etc.
The technician could find no evidence of CO or a clogged vent pipe.
He did point out some debris that looks like chunks of ash on the
bottom under the burner. He said that might be the source of the
smell. Before I crawl on my belly like a reptile to try to clean it
out, does this sound like the problem? Or could it be something else?

That "bad gas smell" can be a warning of a serious problem,
even though the tech didn't find anything that day.

5 years is kind of early in the heater life, but I wouldn't rule
out a heater failure.

Yes, get in there and try to find the source of the "ash".
Might be rust from the tank flue or..who knows?

One cause of the bad smell we used to see frequently in older tanks
was collapse of the tank flue. That's the center coaxial tube
running from the burner straight up thru the middle of the tank.
Near end of life, high water pressure can actually crush the
central flue and choke off the combustion gases. The result is
poor combustion and release of the gases into the room via the
air inlet at the bottom of the heater.

The best way to see if this has happened in your case is to
pull the flue pipe off the top of the heater. Look down the
central flue in the heater. There may be a steel spiral
strip inside the flue; ignore that and look at the round
flue wall condition.

Could be other things like blocked chimney (see if cigarette smoke
will be drawn up the chimney flue) or even that the
"ash" was closing off part of the burner. Check everything;
I think it's a dangerous condition.

Jim

No, but other by-products of combustion do smell.

"George E. Cawthon" wrote in message
...
Dick wrote:
We had a new GE Profile Performance gas water heater installed in
April 2000. It works perfectly. However, for the last few months
every time it comes on there is a putrid smell coming out of the
burner. It's only bad because it is right next to the living room.

I had the gas company come out and check it for carbon monoxide, etc.
The technician could find no evidence of CO or a clogged vent pipe.
He did point out some debris that looks like chunks of ash on the
bottom under the burner. He said that might be the source of the
smell. Before I crawl on my belly like a reptile to try to clean it
out, does this sound like the problem? Or could it be something else?

How about a WAG-- the tank is leaking. How else
do you get putrid smells? Or maybe something came
down the chimney and fell into the burner.

Why would you have the furnace checked for CO?
you have a smell, CO doesn't smell.

"Dick" LeadWinger wrote in message
...
On Sat, 31 Dec 2005 16:23:40 GMT, Speedy Jim wrote:

Bob wrote:

I agree that it could be a dangerous situation, but I think he should
call
someone ASAP. It would be terrible if something happened, especially if
it
takes a few days for him to get around to doing it, and someone in his
family fails to wake up one morning.


SNIP


That's a fair point indeed.
I'll amend my advice to: "Shut off the gas line to the heater ... now.
Jim

I appreciate everyone's concern, but this has been going on for at
least six months. And we have CO detectors in the house which haven't
picked up anything. One thing the technician and another person told
us was that, if you feel the collar at the bottom of the flue pipe,
and it isn't hot, the flue is not restricted. Ours does not get hot.


The advice given about the flue is BS, and if you are using Lowes, or HD
boght CO detectors, they suck...I dont care what brand you got.
They do NOT go off until your levels of CO are, and HAVE BEEN at high levels
for a set period of time.

"George E. Cawthon" wrote in message
...
Dick wrote:
We had a new GE Profile Performance gas water heater installed in
April 2000. It works perfectly. However, for the last few months
every time it comes on there is a putrid smell coming out of the
burner. It's only bad because it is right next to the living room.

I had the gas company come out and check it for carbon monoxide, etc.
The technician could find no evidence of CO or a clogged vent pipe.
He did point out some debris that looks like chunks of ash on the
bottom under the burner. He said that might be the source of the
smell. Before I crawl on my belly like a reptile to try to clean it
out, does this sound like the problem? Or could it be something else?

How about a WAG-- the tank is leaking. How else do you get putrid smells?
Or maybe something came down the chimney and fell into the burner.

Why would you have the furnace checked for CO? you have a smell, CO
doesn't smell.

Sure it does not...but the exhaust from NG or LPG does.

Scare tactics? I havent seen any. You want scare tactics, you really should
have been with me in the Gas Code class a couple of days ago...
Lets see...nice pics of what to look for on a dead body to see if it was CO
posioning (why we needed that I dont know) and a few local stories about
people that went for months, had complained in the past about odors, and
lost a kid, or a husband..etc..
Or the one that got me...
The AC tech that got killed while working on a unit...the homeowner had
tried to fix his furnace, and at some point, unknown to the tech, broken the
bond to the gas line, and when he ran the new electrical to it, had a staple
that had hit the hot leg, and the staple was making contact with the gas
line...the tech reached for it and was electrocuted.

Nope..havent seen scare tactic one said in here...gas appliances CAN and DO
kill homeowners.

On Sat, 31 Dec 2005 21:59:46 -0500, "CBHVAC"
wrote:


"Dick" LeadWinger wrote in message
.. .
On Sat, 31 Dec 2005 16:23:40 GMT, Speedy Jim wrote:

Bob wrote:

I agree that it could be a dangerous situation, but I think he should
call
someone ASAP. It would be terrible if something happened, especially if
it
takes a few days for him to get around to doing it, and someone in his
family fails to wake up one morning.


SNIP


That's a fair point indeed.
I'll amend my advice to: "Shut off the gas line to the heater ... now.
Jim

I appreciate everyone's concern, but this has been going on for at
least six months. And we have CO detectors in the house which haven't
picked up anything. One thing the technician and another person told
us was that, if you feel the collar at the bottom of the flue pipe,
and it isn't hot, the flue is not restricted. Ours does not get hot.


The advice given about the flue is BS, and if you are using Lowes, or HD
boght CO detectors, they suck...I dont care what brand you got.
They do NOT go off until your levels of CO are, and HAVE BEEN at high levels
for a set period of time.


We are using Nighhawk detectors which were highly rated when we bought
them. I can only assume that the gas company technician was using
professionally calibrated equipment.

On Sun, 01 Jan 2006 00:54:54 GMT, "George E. Cawthon"
wrote:

Dick wrote:
We had a new GE Profile Performance gas water heater installed in
April 2000. It works perfectly. However, for the last few months
every time it comes on there is a putrid smell coming out of the
burner. It's only bad because it is right next to the living room.

I had the gas company come out and check it for carbon monoxide, etc.
The technician could find no evidence of CO or a clogged vent pipe.
He did point out some debris that looks like chunks of ash on the
bottom under the burner. He said that might be the source of the
smell. Before I crawl on my belly like a reptile to try to clean it
out, does this sound like the problem? Or could it be something else?

How about a WAG-- the tank is leaking. How else
do you get putrid smells? Or maybe something came
down the chimney and fell into the burner.

Why would you have the furnace checked for CO?
you have a smell, CO doesn't smell.

CO kills. Bad smells probably won't. I didn't ask to have the heater
checked for CO. The gas company decided that.

Not many die that way. Lots more die from being
too dumb or too lazy to buckle a seatbelt. Of
course lots die because they can't not drive when
they are drunk. And lots of kids die, because
their parents are too stupid or lazy to do the
proper things such as know where the children are
when they back out of the drive way, put the toxic
stuff where kids can't get them, watch what their
kids are doing, etc. Of course no one gets shot
and no one is raped either. How many die because
they are too cheap to call a service company? 1,
2, 3 a year? They may die of CO poisoning but it
is usually stupidity and has nothing to do with
calling a service company.


Bob wrote:
Sorry, but I've never heard of the things you mention happening, but I have
seen someone die because he was too cheap to call a service company.

"George E. Cawthon" wrote in message
...

And how would you feel if the person he calls
comes to the door and shoots him dead? or the
repairman answering his call has an auto accident
and dies? or the repairman leaves his wife at
alone to answer the call and she is raped? etc. etc.

All have about the same probability as someone in
his family failing to wake up one morning.

No one argues that he needs to do something, but
let not go nuts with scare tactics.

Bob wrote:

I agree that it could be a dangerous situation, but I think he should

call

someone ASAP. It would be terrible if something happened, especially if

it

takes a few days for him to get around to doing it, and someone in his
family fails to wake up one morning.

"Speedy Jim" wrote in message
news

Dick wrote:



We had a new GE Profile Performance gas water heater installed in
April 2000. It works perfectly. However, for the last few months
every time it comes on there is a putrid smell coming out of the
burner. It's only bad because it is right next to the living room.

I had the gas company come out and check it for carbon monoxide, etc.
The technician could find no evidence of CO or a clogged vent pipe.
He did point out some debris that looks like chunks of ash on the
bottom under the burner. He said that might be the source of the
smell. Before I crawl on my belly like a reptile to try to clean it
out, does this sound like the problem? Or could it be something else?

That "bad gas smell" can be a warning of a serious problem,
even though the tech didn't find anything that day.

5 years is kind of early in the heater life, but I wouldn't rule
out a heater failure.

Yes, get in there and try to find the source of the "ash".
Might be rust from the tank flue or..who knows?

One cause of the bad smell we used to see frequently in older tanks
was collapse of the tank flue. That's the center coaxial tube
running from the burner straight up thru the middle of the tank.
Near end of life, high water pressure can actually crush the
central flue and choke off the combustion gases. The result is
poor combustion and release of the gases into the room via the
air inlet at the bottom of the heater.

The best way to see if this has happened in your case is to
pull the flue pipe off the top of the heater. Look down the
central flue in the heater. There may be a steel spiral
strip inside the flue; ignore that and look at the round
flue wall condition.

Could be other things like blocked chimney (see if cigarette smoke
will be drawn up the chimney flue) or even that the
"ash" was closing off part of the burner. Check everything;
I think it's a dangerous condition.

Jim

Are they dangerous? Can you detect those with a CO
meter? Name one product of natural gas that
smells. Now be careful, you said product of
combustion.

Bob wrote:
No, but other by-products of combustion do smell.

"George E. Cawthon" wrote in message
...

Dick wrote:

We had a new GE Profile Performance gas water heater installed in
April 2000. It works perfectly. However, for the last few months
every time it comes on there is a putrid smell coming out of the
burner. It's only bad because it is right next to the living room.

I had the gas company come out and check it for carbon monoxide, etc.
The technician could find no evidence of CO or a clogged vent pipe.
He did point out some debris that looks like chunks of ash on the
bottom under the burner. He said that might be the source of the
smell. Before I crawl on my belly like a reptile to try to clean it
out, does this sound like the problem? Or could it be something else?

How about a WAG-- the tank is leaking. How else
do you get putrid smells? Or maybe something came
down the chimney and fell into the burner.

Why would you have the furnace checked for CO?
you have a smell, CO doesn't smell.

CBHVAC wrote:
"Dick" LeadWinger wrote in message
...

On Sat, 31 Dec 2005 16:23:40 GMT, Speedy Jim wrote:


Bob wrote:


I agree that it could be a dangerous situation, but I think he should
call
someone ASAP. It would be terrible if something happened, especially if
it
takes a few days for him to get around to doing it, and someone in his
family fails to wake up one morning.


SNIP


That's a fair point indeed.
I'll amend my advice to: "Shut off the gas line to the heater ... now.
Jim

I appreciate everyone's concern, but this has been going on for at
least six months. And we have CO detectors in the house which haven't
picked up anything. One thing the technician and another person told
us was that, if you feel the collar at the bottom of the flue pipe,
and it isn't hot, the flue is not restricted. Ours does not get hot.



The advice given about the flue is BS, and if you are using Lowes, or HD
boght CO detectors, they suck...I dont care what brand you got.
They do NOT go off until your levels of CO are, and HAVE BEEN at high levels
for a set period of time.



The collar getting hot depends on the heater.
Mine certainly gets hot when the burner is on, but
I don't have the highest efficiency water heater.

CBHVAC wrote:
"George E. Cawthon" wrote in message
...

Dick wrote:

We had a new GE Profile Performance gas water heater installed in
April 2000. It works perfectly. However, for the last few months
every time it comes on there is a putrid smell coming out of the
burner. It's only bad because it is right next to the living room.

I had the gas company come out and check it for carbon monoxide, etc.
The technician could find no evidence of CO or a clogged vent pipe.
He did point out some debris that looks like chunks of ash on the
bottom under the burner. He said that might be the source of the
smell. Before I crawl on my belly like a reptile to try to clean it
out, does this sound like the problem? Or could it be something else?

How about a WAG-- the tank is leaking. How else do you get putrid smells?
Or maybe something came down the chimney and fell into the burner.

Why would you have the furnace checked for CO? you have a smell, CO
doesn't smell.


Sure it does not...but the exhaust from NG or LPG does.

Scare tactics? I havent seen any. You want scare tactics, you really should
have been with me in the Gas Code class a couple of days ago...
Lets see...nice pics of what to look for on a dead body to see if it was CO
posioning (why we needed that I dont know) and a few local stories about
people that went for months, had complained in the past about odors, and
lost a kid, or a husband..etc..
Or the one that got me...
The AC tech that got killed while working on a unit...the homeowner had
tried to fix his furnace, and at some point, unknown to the tech, broken the
bond to the gas line, and when he ran the new electrical to it, had a staple
that had hit the hot leg, and the staple was making contact with the gas
line...the tech reached for it and was electrocuted.

Nope..havent seen scare tactic one said in here...gas appliances CAN and DO
kill homeowners.




First, you are replying to do different comments.
The op described the smell and it wasn't the
smell of gas combustion. Complete combustion
doesn't smell, most of the smell you get from
burning gas, is not a gas combustion product, it
is unburned gas and odors from the parts that get hot.

If you want to talk about meaningful numbers of
deaths and injuries try talking about falling down
in the bathroom. People die. However, accidents
cause relatively few deaths, and accidents where a
person did not do something really stupid such as
drive drunk, not look first, not put the draino
where the kid couldn't reach it, etc. result in
very few deaths statistically. Most people die of
heart disease. If they really cared, they
wouldn't smoke, they would stop eating 2000 more
calories per day than they burn, quit drinking 12
beers each night. The statistics say that CO
deaths are practically non existent. As an
individual precaution it makes sense, but as
advice to another it is a wasted of time. They
are going to die of something else.

Dick wrote:
On Sat, 31 Dec 2005 21:59:46 -0500, "CBHVAC"
wrote:


"Dick" LeadWinger wrote in message
. ..

On Sat, 31 Dec 2005 16:23:40 GMT, Speedy Jim wrote:


Bob wrote:


I agree that it could be a dangerous situation, but I think he should
call
someone ASAP. It would be terrible if something happened, especially if
it
takes a few days for him to get around to doing it, and someone in his
family fails to wake up one morning.


SNIP


That's a fair point indeed.
I'll amend my advice to: "Shut off the gas line to the heater ... now.
Jim

I appreciate everyone's concern, but this has been going on for at
least six months. And we have CO detectors in the house which haven't
picked up anything. One thing the technician and another person told
us was that, if you feel the collar at the bottom of the flue pipe,
and it isn't hot, the flue is not restricted. Ours does not get hot.


The advice given about the flue is BS, and if you are using Lowes, or HD
boght CO detectors, they suck...I dont care what brand you got.
They do NOT go off until your levels of CO are, and HAVE BEEN at high levels
for a set period of time.



We are using Nighhawk detectors which were highly rated when we bought
them. I can only assume that the gas company technician was using
professionally calibrated equipment.

I have a Nighthawk too, and it is a good product
compared to other CO detector. My wife insisted
on it when we got a gas water heater and furnace
about 5 years ago. It has never measured anything
but zero except when it when bonkers when the
power went off for a while and the battery ran
down. It is probably the most useless too in my
house. Way, way down the line from a blow torch
which I haven't used in 25 years.

Sorry, this isn't helping. If you really want to
know what is happening you will have to look at
and in the burner when it is off and if you see no
cause of the smell, you will need to look at it
when the burner is on.

If it was a reputable gas company, you can assume that he was using
something like the Bacharach CO detector, but don't assume that it was
working properly, or that the technician knew how to use it. You obviously
have something wrong, and that guy didn't find the problem. Call another
service company.

It's not hard to find a good company. If they return your calls in a timely
manner, that's a real good start. If the technician can explain things to
you in layman's terms that you understand, it's a good bet that he also
understands what the problem is. If he's thorough in both his checks and his
explanations, it's a good be that he wants a satisfied customer.


"Dick" LeadWinger wrote in message
...
On Sat, 31 Dec 2005 21:59:46 -0500, "CBHVAC"
wrote:


"Dick" LeadWinger wrote in message
.. .
On Sat, 31 Dec 2005 16:23:40 GMT, Speedy Jim wrote:

Bob wrote:

I agree that it could be a dangerous situation, but I think he should
call
someone ASAP. It would be terrible if something happened, especially
if
it
takes a few days for him to get around to doing it, and someone in
his
family fails to wake up one morning.


SNIP


That's a fair point indeed.
I'll amend my advice to: "Shut off the gas line to the heater ...
now.
Jim

I appreciate everyone's concern, but this has been going on for at
least six months. And we have CO detectors in the house which haven't
picked up anything. One thing the technician and another person told
us was that, if you feel the collar at the bottom of the flue pipe,
and it isn't hot, the flue is not restricted. Ours does not get hot.


The advice given about the flue is BS, and if you are using Lowes, or HD
boght CO detectors, they suck...I dont care what brand you got.
They do NOT go off until your levels of CO are, and HAVE BEEN at high
levels
for a set period of time.


We are using Nighhawk detectors which were highly rated when we bought
them. I can only assume that the gas company technician was using
professionally calibrated equipment.

On Sun, 1 Jan 2006 07:23:59 -0500, "Bob" wrote:

If it was a reputable gas company, you can assume that he was using
something like the Bacharach CO detector, but don't assume that it was
working properly, or that the technician knew how to use it. You obviously
have something wrong, and that guy didn't find the problem. Call another
service company.

It's not hard to find a good company. If they return your calls in a timely
manner, that's a real good start. If the technician can explain things to
you in layman's terms that you understand, it's a good bet that he also
understands what the problem is. If he's thorough in both his checks and his
explanations, it's a good be that he wants a satisfied customer.

Our town has a population of 35,000. The nearest city is 100 miles
away. We don't have the choice of service companies that someone in a
metropolitan area would have. Our gas company is the largest in the
state, and I trust them much more than I would Joe's fix it shop. If
I can't figure this out, I will just have another water heater
installed, although this one still seems like new and works perfectly.

The next thing I will try is to hire a plumber I trust to check out
the entire flue system.

Dick