The municipal inspector who issues Certificates of Occupancy when
ownership changes or apartments get new tenants, failed me because he
saw a "vent" in the garage ceiling. The potential problem is that any
carbon monoxide in the garage can be sucked up by the vent when the heat
or a/c is running and be distributed throughout the house. He wants me
to cover it with metal or sheetrock and caulk around the edges.

Problem is, that it is really a supply register. When I looked in the
attic, I could clearly see that the duct supplying it came directly from
the plenum (just above the evaporator) that feeds the other ducts to the
rest of the house.

I removed the register and found that someone had taped its openings
shut, so air couldn't flow either way through it. I sent photos to the
inspector of the register showing how it was taped shut. I also taped a
small piece of facial tissue to the ceiling and turned on the a/c. It
fluttered in the incoming airstream, and was not sucked upwards as it
would be if this were a return.

I wanted to just return the taped-shut housing the way it was. But the
inspector is being hard-assed. He doesn't want to see anything - supply
or return - in the ceiling. I do NOT think he's looking for me to slip
him a few bucks.

Rebel1 wrote:
The municipal inspector who issues Certificates of Occupancy when
ownership changes or apartments get new tenants, failed me because he
saw a "vent" in the garage ceiling. The potential problem is that any
carbon monoxide in the garage can be sucked up by the vent when the heat
or a/c is running and be distributed throughout the house. He wants me
to cover it with metal or sheetrock and caulk around the edges.

Problem is, that it is really a supply register. When I looked in the
attic, I could clearly see that the duct supplying it came directly from
the plenum (just above the evaporator) that feeds the other ducts to the
rest of the house.

I removed the register and found that someone had taped its openings
shut, so air couldn't flow either way through it. I sent photos to the
inspector of the register showing how it was taped shut. I also taped a
small piece of facial tissue to the ceiling and turned on the a/c. It
fluttered in the incoming airstream, and was not sucked upwards as it
would be if this were a return.

I wanted to just return the taped-shut housing the way it was. But the
inspector is being hard-assed. He doesn't want to see anything - supply
or return - in the ceiling. I do NOT think he's looking for me to slip
him Not a big deal.a few bucks.

Hi.
To me it is not only CO risk, it is fire hazard as well. His demand has
valid reason. Piece of sheet metal and some screws will satisfy him.
Tape is not fire proof. Not a big deal.

Is that a question? Why not just do what he says?
If you look at it from his point of view, he doesn't want
to go by your say-so. He wants to see it clearly covered.
So just cover it. It's an easy job. Just go to HD and get
one of those broken drywall scrap pieces.
(If you want to use it for heat later you can always
uncover it again. It does seem like a rather extreme,
letter-of-the-law attitude on his part. But he could be
held responsible for a letter-of-the-law infraction.)


"Rebel1" wrote in message
...
| The municipal inspector who issues Certificates of Occupancy when
| ownership changes or apartments get new tenants, failed me because he
| saw a "vent" in the garage ceiling. The potential problem is that any
| carbon monoxide in the garage can be sucked up by the vent when the heat
| or a/c is running and be distributed throughout the house. He wants me
| to cover it with metal or sheetrock and caulk around the edges.
|
| Problem is, that it is really a supply register. When I looked in the
| attic, I could clearly see that the duct supplying it came directly from
| the plenum (just above the evaporator) that feeds the other ducts to the
| rest of the house.
|
| I removed the register and found that someone had taped its openings
| shut, so air couldn't flow either way through it. I sent photos to the
| inspector of the register showing how it was taped shut. I also taped a
| small piece of facial tissue to the ceiling and turned on the a/c. It
| fluttered in the incoming airstream, and was not sucked upwards as it
| would be if this were a return.
|
| I wanted to just return the taped-shut housing the way it was. But the
| inspector is being hard-assed. He doesn't want to see anything - supply
| or return - in the ceiling. I do NOT think he's looking for me to slip
| him a few bucks.
|

On Thursday, August 7, 2014 1:14:37 PM UTC-4, Mayayana wrote:
Is that a question? Why not just do what he says?

If you look at it from his point of view, he doesn't want

to go by your say-so. He wants to see it clearly covered.

So just cover it. It's an easy job. Just go to HD and get

one of those broken drywall scrap pieces.

(If you want to use it for heat later you can always

uncover it again. It does seem like a rather extreme,

letter-of-the-law attitude on his part. But he could be

held responsible for a letter-of-the-law infraction.)




I don't think the inspector is being hard-assed, he's just following
the code. AFAIK, neither a supply nor a return is allowed into a
garage space. Think about what happens when the system is off. You
have an easy path for CO into the house. Depending on which way the
wind is blowing, pressures, etc, CO could go into the house.

On Thursday, August 7, 2014 1:15:33 PM UTC-4, trader_4 wrote:
On Thursday, August 7, 2014 1:14:37 PM UTC-4, Mayayana wrote:

Is that a question? Why not just do what he says?



If you look at it from his point of view, he doesn't want



to go by your say-so. He wants to see it clearly covered.



So just cover it. It's an easy job. Just go to HD and get



one of those broken drywall scrap pieces.



(If you want to use it for heat later you can always



uncover it again. It does seem like a rather extreme,



letter-of-the-law attitude on his part. But he could be



held responsible for a letter-of-the-law infraction.)









I don't think the inspector is being hard-assed, he's just following

the code. AFAIK, neither a supply nor a return is allowed into a

garage space. Think about what happens when the system is off. You

have an easy path for CO into the house. Depending on which way the

wind is blowing, pressures, etc, CO could go into the house.

Forgot to add, if you're buying this place, for me, this would be a big
red flag and an indication that you need to do a careful inspection for
other problems. How it got built and inspected to begin with, who knows.
Could be that some owner added it after.

trader_4 wrote:
On Thursday, August 7, 2014 1:14:37 PM UTC-4, Mayayana wrote:
Is that a question? Why not just do what he says?

If you look at it from his point of view, he doesn't want

to go by your say-so. He wants to see it clearly covered.

So just cover it. It's an easy job. Just go to HD and get

one of those broken drywall scrap pieces.

(If you want to use it for heat later you can always

uncover it again. It does seem like a rather extreme,

letter-of-the-law attitude on his part. But he could be

held responsible for a letter-of-the-law infraction.)




I don't think the inspector is being hard-assed, he's just following
the code. AFAIK, neither a supply nor a return is allowed into a
garage space. Think about what happens when the system is off. You
have an easy path for CO into the house. Depending on which way the
wind is blowing, pressures, etc, CO could go into the house.

Hi,
Also it can act like a chimney if ever there was fire breaking out in
the garage(who can say it'll never happen?) Maybe OP is harda*!ed?

On 08/07/2014 12:15 PM, trader_4 wrote:
....

I don't think the inspector is being hard-assed, he's just following
the code. AFAIK, neither a supply nor a return is allowed into a
garage space. Think about what happens when the system is off. You
have an easy path for CO into the house. Depending on which way the
wind is blowing, pressures, etc, CO could go into the house.

Suppose is possible; hadn't heard it was code. The TN house had an
outlet from the furnace supply a little heat into the garage and I never
thought anything of it...only attached garage ever had.

--

On 8/7/2014 1:41 PM, trader_4 wrote:
On Thursday, August 7, 2014 1:15:33 PM UTC-4, trader_4 wrote:

I don't think the inspector is being hard-assed, he's just following

the code. AFAIK, neither a supply nor a return is allowed into a

garage space. Think about what happens when the system is off. You

have an easy path for CO into the house. Depending on which way the

wind is blowing, pressures, etc, CO could go into the house.

Forgot to add, if you're buying this place, for me, this would be a big
red flag and an indication that you need to do a careful inspection for
other problems. How it got built and inspected to begin with, who knows.
Could be that some owner added it after.

Last week the inspector hired by the guy buying my house gave a very
thorough inspection, and said nothing about this. I mentioned to the
municipal inspector that this house has changes ownership seven times
since being built in 1967 and was never cited for this reason. He
replied that this became a item to check only since 1996. I bought the
house in 2000, so it should have been flagged at least once before.

The concern about CO seems rather theoretical. How many cars are left
running in garages for extended periods? When the heat/AC is running?
With today's stringent emissions, I don't think very much CO is
generated to begin with. Besides, the house has two CO/smoke detectors.

Thanks to all for raising other possible concerns that I hadn't
considered that were not mentioned by the inspector.

R1

dpb wrote:
On 08/07/2014 12:15 PM, trader_4 wrote:
...

I don't think the inspector is being hard-assed, he's just following
the code. AFAIK, neither a supply nor a return is allowed into a
garage space. Think about what happens when the system is off. You
have an easy path for CO into the house. Depending on which way the
wind is blowing, pressures, etc, CO could go into the house.

Suppose is possible; hadn't heard it was code. The TN house had an
outlet from the furnace supply a little heat into the garage and I never
thought anything of it...only attached garage ever had.

--

Hi,
In our city, garage supposes to have separate heater within properly
installed. Not allowed to be tied into house HVAC system.

"Rebel1" wrote in message
...
On 8/7/2014 1:41 PM, trader_4 wrote:
On Thursday, August 7, 2014 1:15:33 PM UTC-4, trader_4 wrote:

I don't think the inspector is being hard-assed, he's just following

the code. AFAIK, neither a supply nor a return is allowed into a

garage space. Think about what happens when the system is off. You

have an easy path for CO into the house. Depending on which way the

wind is blowing, pressures, etc, CO could go into the house.

Forgot to add, if you're buying this place, for me, this would be a big
red flag and an indication that you need to do a careful inspection for
other problems. How it got built and inspected to begin with, who knows.
Could be that some owner added it after.

Last week the inspector hired by the guy buying my house gave a very
thorough inspection, and said nothing about this. I mentioned to the
municipal inspector that this house has changes ownership seven times
since being built in 1967 and was never cited for this reason. He replied
that this became a item to check only since 1996. I bought the house in
2000, so it should have been flagged at least once before.

The concern about CO seems rather theoretical. How many cars are left
running in garages for extended periods? When the heat/AC is running? With
today's stringent emissions, I don't think very much CO is generated to
begin with. Besides, the house has two CO/smoke detectors.

Thanks to all for raising other possible concerns that I hadn't considered
that were not mentioned by the inspector.


yet another example of a code being written without a cost/benefit analysis.

In snow country, our friend's house has a furnace outlet into the basement
garage. Without it I bet pipes would freeze.

Pico Rico wrote:
"Rebel1" wrote in message
...
On 8/7/2014 1:41 PM, trader_4 wrote:
On Thursday, August 7, 2014 1:15:33 PM UTC-4, trader_4 wrote:

I don't think the inspector is being hard-assed, he's just following

the code. AFAIK, neither a supply nor a return is allowed into a

garage space. Think about what happens when the system is off. You

have an easy path for CO into the house. Depending on which way the

wind is blowing, pressures, etc, CO could go into the house.

Forgot to add, if you're buying this place, for me, this would be a big
red flag and an indication that you need to do a careful inspection for
other problems. How it got built and inspected to begin with, who knows.
Could be that some owner added it after.

Last week the inspector hired by the guy buying my house gave a very
thorough inspection, and said nothing about this. I mentioned to the
municipal inspector that this house has changes ownership seven times
since being built in 1967 and was never cited for this reason. He replied
that this became a item to check only since 1996. I bought the house in
2000, so it should have been flagged at least once before.

The concern about CO seems rather theoretical. How many cars are left
running in garages for extended periods? When the heat/AC is running? With
today's stringent emissions, I don't think very much CO is generated to
begin with. Besides, the house has two CO/smoke detectors.

Thanks to all for raising other possible concerns that I hadn't considered
that were not mentioned by the inspector.


yet another example of a code being written without a cost/benefit analysis.

In snow country, our friend's house has a furnace outlet into the basement
garage. Without it I bet pipes would freeze.


Still it is not proper and they could put a direct vent heater in garage
area. Would you want a basement with bedrooms without any windows to
exit in case of a fire? Same difference and a lot of homes have them but
is not a good situation. Just cover it and let the new owner uncover if
he wants and understands the risks.
JAS

"JAS" wrote in message
...
Pico Rico wrote:
"Rebel1" wrote in message
...
On 8/7/2014 1:41 PM, trader_4 wrote:
On Thursday, August 7, 2014 1:15:33 PM UTC-4, trader_4 wrote:

I don't think the inspector is being hard-assed, he's just following

the code. AFAIK, neither a supply nor a return is allowed into a

garage space. Think about what happens when the system is off. You

have an easy path for CO into the house. Depending on which way the

wind is blowing, pressures, etc, CO could go into the house.

Forgot to add, if you're buying this place, for me, this would be a big
red flag and an indication that you need to do a careful inspection for
other problems. How it got built and inspected to begin with, who
knows.
Could be that some owner added it after.

Last week the inspector hired by the guy buying my house gave a very
thorough inspection, and said nothing about this. I mentioned to the
municipal inspector that this house has changes ownership seven times
since being built in 1967 and was never cited for this reason. He
replied
that this became a item to check only since 1996. I bought the house in
2000, so it should have been flagged at least once before.

The concern about CO seems rather theoretical. How many cars are left
running in garages for extended periods? When the heat/AC is running?
With
today's stringent emissions, I don't think very much CO is generated to
begin with. Besides, the house has two CO/smoke detectors.

Thanks to all for raising other possible concerns that I hadn't
considered
that were not mentioned by the inspector.


yet another example of a code being written without a cost/benefit
analysis.

In snow country, our friend's house has a furnace outlet into the
basement
garage. Without it I bet pipes would freeze.


Still it is not proper and they could put a direct vent heater in garage
area. Would you want a basement with bedrooms without any windows to
exit in case of a fire? Same difference

not at all the "same difference".

Pico Rico wrote:
"JAS" wrote in message
...
Pico Rico wrote:
"Rebel1" wrote in message
...
On 8/7/2014 1:41 PM, trader_4 wrote:
On Thursday, August 7, 2014 1:15:33 PM UTC-4, trader_4 wrote:

I don't think the inspector is being hard-assed, he's just following

the code. AFAIK, neither a supply nor a return is allowed into a

garage space. Think about what happens when the system is off. You

have an easy path for CO into the house. Depending on which way the

wind is blowing, pressures, etc, CO could go into the house.

Forgot to add, if you're buying this place, for me, this would be a big
red flag and an indication that you need to do a careful inspection for
other problems. How it got built and inspected to begin with, who
knows.
Could be that some owner added it after.

Last week the inspector hired by the guy buying my house gave a very
thorough inspection, and said nothing about this. I mentioned to the
municipal inspector that this house has changes ownership seven times
since being built in 1967 and was never cited for this reason. He
replied
that this became a item to check only since 1996. I bought the house in
2000, so it should have been flagged at least once before.

The concern about CO seems rather theoretical. How many cars are left
running in garages for extended periods? When the heat/AC is running?
With
today's stringent emissions, I don't think very much CO is generated to
begin with. Besides, the house has two CO/smoke detectors.

Thanks to all for raising other possible concerns that I hadn't
considered
that were not mentioned by the inspector.


yet another example of a code being written without a cost/benefit
analysis.

In snow country, our friend's house has a furnace outlet into the
basement
garage. Without it I bet pipes would freeze.


Still it is not proper and they could put a direct vent heater in garage
area. Would you want a basement with bedrooms without any windows to
exit in case of a fire? Same difference

not at all the "same difference".


Yes--We are talking about the safety of the occupants of the home.

I know of a home where the car parked in the garage caught on fire and destroyed the homre.

baierl automotive group was run by bill baierl, he left his car running in the garage, he and his wife died from CO2 poisioning.

We got co2 poisioning from a blocked water heater flue. we could of died.

just so happened a buddy stopped by, a volunteer fireman...

he recognized the symptoms, when he got ill too.

On 08/07/2014 1:17 PM, Tony Hwang wrote:
dpb wrote:
....

Suppose is possible; hadn't heard it was code. The TN house had an
outlet from the furnace supply a little heat into the garage and I never
thought anything of it...only attached garage ever had.
....

In our city, garage supposes to have separate heater within properly
installed. Not allowed to be tied into house HVAC system.

Probably wasn't "legal" there at the time, either, it was in a County
area outside zoning and the builder was a renegade heavy-equipment
operator who thought he'd make "the big bucks" as a contractor during a
boom in Oak Ridge hiring when we moved there in '78.

--

In ,
Rebel1 typed:
The municipal inspector who issues Certificates of Occupancy when
ownership changes or apartments get new tenants, failed me because he
saw a "vent" in the garage ceiling. The potential problem is that any
carbon monoxide in the garage can be sucked up by the vent when the
heat or a/c is running and be distributed throughout the house. He
wants me to cover it with metal or sheetrock and caulk around the
edges.
Problem is, that it is really a supply register. When I looked in the
attic, I could clearly see that the duct supplying it came directly
from the plenum (just above the evaporator) that feeds the other
ducts to the rest of the house.

I removed the register and found that someone had taped its openings
shut, so air couldn't flow either way through it. I sent photos to the
inspector of the register showing how it was taped shut. I also taped
a small piece of facial tissue to the ceiling and turned on the a/c.
It fluttered in the incoming airstream, and was not sucked upwards as
it would be if this were a return.

I wanted to just return the taped-shut housing the way it was. But the
inspector is being hard-assed. He doesn't want to see anything -
supply or return - in the ceiling. I do NOT think he's looking for me
to slip him a few bucks.

Since you posted later that you are selling the property, and just need the
C of O to sell it, it seems like a no-brainer to just do what the inspector
said that he is requiring. And, as someone wrote, if the new owners want to
change it back later, that's on them.

You showing the inspector that the duct is taped closed, and also showing
him that with the a/c on the tissue flutters (which means that the duct is
not completely taped closed), seems like contradictory information -- it is
either sealed off or it isn't. He wants it properly sealed off and that's
exactly what I would do.

I did not think of the reasoning that others posted here about how even a
supply duct in a garage could result in car exhaust fumes back-flowing into
the whole HVAC system -- especially when the system fan is not on. That
makes sense and obviously that is why the inspector does not want to see an
open HVAC vent in the garage.

I bought a home that has an attached garage that was partially unfinished --
the exterior walls were open walls with no insulation. I finished the
garage by adding insulation to the exterior walls and closing the walls with
new sheetrock. One thing that I noticed was that even though there is a
closed soffit in the garage that contains a supply duct to and room on the
interior of the home, there was no supply duct or vent to allow the garage
to be heated. I have been thinking of adding supply vent to the garage from
that supply duct, but now I know that would be improper and could cause a
serious problem. So, your experience and the citation form the inspector
taught me something that I did not know before.

On Thursday, August 7, 2014 2:16:24 PM UTC-4, Rebel1 wrote:
On 8/7/2014 1:41 PM, trader_4 wrote:

On Thursday, August 7, 2014 1:15:33 PM UTC-4, trader_4 wrote:



I don't think the inspector is being hard-assed, he's just following



the code. AFAIK, neither a supply nor a return is allowed into a



garage space. Think about what happens when the system is off. You



have an easy path for CO into the house. Depending on which way the



wind is blowing, pressures, etc, CO could go into the house.



Forgot to add, if you're buying this place, for me, this would be a big

red flag and an indication that you need to do a careful inspection for

other problems. How it got built and inspected to begin with, who knows.

Could be that some owner added it after.



Last week the inspector hired by the guy buying my house gave a very

thorough inspection, and said nothing about this.

Not unusual. Many of the "home inspectors" miss a lot more than that
because they don't know what they are doing.



I mentioned to the

municipal inspector that this house has changes ownership seven times

since being built in 1967 and was never cited for this reason. He

replied that this became a item to check only since 1996.

That sounds about right.



I bought the

house in 2000, so it should have been flagged at least once before.



The concern about CO seems rather theoretical. How many cars are left

running in garages for extended periods? When the heat/AC is running?

The HVAC doesn't have to be running for fumes to go from the
garage to the living space via the duct. It also would be highly
dependent on the layout of the house. If a bedroom were close by on
the duct layout, it would get there a lot easier and be worse than
if the bedrooms were on the opposite end.



With today's stringent emissions, I don't think very much CO is

generated to begin with. Besides, the house has two CO/smoke detectors.



I agree it's questionable as to how big of a threat it is. If you ever
watch the Mike Holmes TV show from Canada, he finds this and goes
ballistic. CO! CO! I agree, cars typically are only started up with
the doors open and then they quickly leave. And, as you point out, cars
today emit a tiny fraction of the CO they once did, assuming they are
working properly. Another aspect is that unless the area around the duct opening is properly sealed with fire resistant caulk, it's a potential
path for fire into the house. Code requires a fire rated door between
the house and garage for the same reason. Overall, it's probably made
out to be much worse of a threat than it really is.

On another note, what is one register going into the garage suppose to
do exactly? I would think it's pretty much a waste, not enough heat to
make a big difference anyway?

On Thu, 7 Aug 2014 16:50:29 -0400, "TomR" wrote:

In ,
Rebel1 typed:
The municipal inspector who issues Certificates of Occupancy when
ownership changes or apartments get new tenants, failed me because he
saw a "vent" in the garage ceiling. The potential problem is that any
carbon monoxide in the garage can be sucked up by the vent when the
heat or a/c is running and be distributed throughout the house. He
wants me to cover it with metal or sheetrock and caulk around the
edges.
Problem is, that it is really a supply register. When I looked in the
attic, I could clearly see that the duct supplying it came directly
from the plenum (just above the evaporator) that feeds the other
ducts to the rest of the house.

I removed the register and found that someone had taped its openings
shut, so air couldn't flow either way through it. I sent photos to the
inspector of the register showing how it was taped shut. I also taped
a small piece of facial tissue to the ceiling and turned on the a/c.
It fluttered in the incoming airstream, and was not sucked upwards as
it would be if this were a return.

I wanted to just return the taped-shut housing the way it was. But the
inspector is being hard-assed. He doesn't want to see anything -
supply or return - in the ceiling. I do NOT think he's looking for me
to slip him a few bucks.

Since you posted later that you are selling the property, and just need the
C of O to sell it, it seems like a no-brainer to just do what the inspector
said that he is requiring. And, as someone wrote, if the new owners want to
change it back later, that's on them.

You showing the inspector that the duct is taped closed, and also showing
him that with the a/c on the tissue flutters (which means that the duct is
not completely taped closed), seems like contradictory information -- it is
either sealed off or it isn't. He wants it properly sealed off and that's
exactly what I would do.

I did not think of the reasoning that others posted here about how even a
supply duct in a garage could result in car exhaust fumes back-flowing into
the whole HVAC system -- especially when the system fan is not on. That
makes sense and obviously that is why the inspector does not want to see an
open HVAC vent in the garage.

I bought a home that has an attached garage that was partially unfinished --
the exterior walls were open walls with no insulation. I finished the
garage by adding insulation to the exterior walls and closing the walls with
new sheetrock. One thing that I noticed was that even though there is a
closed soffit in the garage that contains a supply duct to and room on the
interior of the home, there was no supply duct or vent to allow the garage
to be heated. I have been thinking of adding supply vent to the garage from
that supply duct, but now I know that would be improper and could cause a
serious problem. So, your experience and the citation form the inspector
taught me something that I did not know before.

If you want to heat or condition garage space the garage space MUST be
heated or conditioned with it's own unit, with no air exchange between
the two spaces. Some places go so far as to prohibit a door between
the garage and living space. I think THAT is going too far - why have
an "attached" garage if you have to go outside to access it?

My dream house is a small 2 bedroom bungalow with a double garage, 1
1/2 cars deep minimum, with basement under the garage as well as the
house - walk out under the house, and single garage door under the
garage - with the garage high enough to handle a 2 post hoist on one
side. Yes, the garage would be as big as the house!!!

On Thu, 7 Aug 2014 12:56:09 -0700 (PDT), bob haller
wrote:

I know of a home where the car parked in the garage caught on fire and destroyed the homre.

baierl automotive group was run by bill baierl, he left his car running in the garage, he and his wife died from CO2 poisioning.

We got co2 poisioning from a blocked water heater flue. we could of died.

just so happened a buddy stopped by, a volunteer fireman...

he recognized the symptoms, when he got ill too.

Exactly. "When he got ill too."

That's the advantage of this duct in the garage. When the people in the
house start feeling CO sick, they'll know someone is in the garage
trying to kill himself, and they can stop him.


Okay, just kidding.

Where I live, there cannot be any connection between the garage and house except for a fireproof door and 5/8 inch sheetrock on the walls and ceiling of the garage.

On Friday, August 8, 2014 11:17:02 PM UTC-4, wrote:
Where I live, there cannot be any connection between the garage and house except for a fireproof door and 5/8 inch sheetrock on the walls and ceiling of the garage.

That's pretty much std code today in the USA, AFAIK.

TomR wrote:
In ,
Rebel1 typed:
The municipal inspector who issues Certificates of Occupancy when
ownership changes or apartments get new tenants, failed me because he
saw a "vent" in the garage ceiling. The potential problem is that any
carbon monoxide in the garage can be sucked up by the vent when the
heat or a/c is running and be distributed throughout the house. He
wants me to cover it with metal or sheetrock and caulk around the
edges.
Problem is, that it is really a supply register. When I looked in the
attic, I could clearly see that the duct supplying it came directly
from the plenum (just above the evaporator) that feeds the other
ducts to the rest of the house.

I removed the register and found that someone had taped its openings
shut, so air couldn't flow either way through it. I sent photos to the
inspector of the register showing how it was taped shut. I also taped
a small piece of facial tissue to the ceiling and turned on the a/c.
It fluttered in the incoming airstream, and was not sucked upwards as
it would be if this were a return.

I wanted to just return the taped-shut housing the way it was. But the
inspector is being hard-assed. He doesn't want to see anything -
supply or return - in the ceiling. I do NOT think he's looking for me
to slip him a few bucks.

Since you posted later that you are selling the property, and just need the
C of O to sell it, it seems like a no-brainer to just do what the inspector
said that he is requiring. And, as someone wrote, if the new owners want to
change it back later, that's on them.

You showing the inspector that the duct is taped closed, and also showing
him that with the a/c on the tissue flutters (which means that the duct is
not completely taped closed), seems like contradictory information -- it is
either sealed off or it isn't. He wants it properly sealed off and that's
exactly what I would do.

I did not think of the reasoning that others posted here about how even a
supply duct in a garage could result in car exhaust fumes back-flowing into
the whole HVAC system -- especially when the system fan is not on. That
makes sense and obviously that is why the inspector does not want to see an
open HVAC vent in the garage.

I bought a home that has an attached garage that was partially unfinished --
the exterior walls were open walls with no insulation. I finished the
garage by adding insulation to the exterior walls and closing the walls with
new sheetrock. One thing that I noticed was that even though there is a
closed soffit in the garage that contains a supply duct to and room on the
interior of the home, there was no supply duct or vent to allow the garage
to be heated. I have been thinking of adding supply vent to the garage from
that supply duct, but now I know that would be improper and could cause a
serious problem. So, your experience and the citation form the inspector
taught me something that I did not know before.


Hi,
Where I am(Calgary AB) it is cold in winter with Chinook blowing often.
Most houses have attached garage. Our garage is insulated same as main
building. I didn't have heater installed(usually ceiling mounted).
Too warm garage can prompt rust on car body covered with road dirt
during winter months.

wrote:
On Thu, 7 Aug 2014 16:50:29 -0400, "TomR" wrote:

In ,
Rebel1 typed:
The municipal inspector who issues Certificates of Occupancy when
ownership changes or apartments get new tenants, failed me because he
saw a "vent" in the garage ceiling. The potential problem is that any
carbon monoxide in the garage can be sucked up by the vent when the
heat or a/c is running and be distributed throughout the house. He
wants me to cover it with metal or sheetrock and caulk around the
edges.
Problem is, that it is really a supply register. When I looked in the
attic, I could clearly see that the duct supplying it came directly
from the plenum (just above the evaporator) that feeds the other
ducts to the rest of the house.

I removed the register and found that someone had taped its openings
shut, so air couldn't flow either way through it. I sent photos to the
inspector of the register showing how it was taped shut. I also taped
a small piece of facial tissue to the ceiling and turned on the a/c.
It fluttered in the incoming airstream, and was not sucked upwards as
it would be if this were a return.

I wanted to just return the taped-shut housing the way it was. But the
inspector is being hard-assed. He doesn't want to see anything -
supply or return - in the ceiling. I do NOT think he's looking for me
to slip him a few bucks.

Since you posted later that you are selling the property, and just need the
C of O to sell it, it seems like a no-brainer to just do what the inspector
said that he is requiring. And, as someone wrote, if the new owners want to
change it back later, that's on them.

You showing the inspector that the duct is taped closed, and also showing
him that with the a/c on the tissue flutters (which means that the duct is
not completely taped closed), seems like contradictory information -- it is
either sealed off or it isn't. He wants it properly sealed off and that's
exactly what I would do.

I did not think of the reasoning that others posted here about how even a
supply duct in a garage could result in car exhaust fumes back-flowing into
the whole HVAC system -- especially when the system fan is not on. That
makes sense and obviously that is why the inspector does not want to see an
open HVAC vent in the garage.

I bought a home that has an attached garage that was partially unfinished --
the exterior walls were open walls with no insulation. I finished the
garage by adding insulation to the exterior walls and closing the walls with
new sheetrock. One thing that I noticed was that even though there is a
closed soffit in the garage that contains a supply duct to and room on the
interior of the home, there was no supply duct or vent to allow the garage
to be heated. I have been thinking of adding supply vent to the garage from
that supply duct, but now I know that would be improper and could cause a
serious problem. So, your experience and the citation form the inspector
taught me something that I did not know before.

If you want to heat or condition garage space the garage space MUST be
heated or conditioned with it's own unit, with no air exchange between
the two spaces. Some places go so far as to prohibit a door between
the garage and living space. I think THAT is going too far - why have
an "attached" garage if you have to go outside to access it?

My dream house is a small 2 bedroom bungalow with a double garage, 1
1/2 cars deep minimum, with basement under the garage as well as the
house - walk out under the house, and single garage door under the
garage - with the garage high enough to handle a 2 post hoist on one
side. Yes, the garage would be as big as the house!!!

Hi,
Our code specifies door between garage and living space should be steel
clad fire proof rated and self closing type. One thing I wish is dug out
pit in my garage but it is not allowed. It'd be nice to have one to
work under the car.

In news typed:
On Thu, 7 Aug 2014 16:50:29 -0400, "TomR" wrote:

In ,
Rebel1 typed:
The municipal inspector who issues Certificates of Occupancy when
ownership changes or apartments get new tenants, failed me because
he saw a "vent" in the garage ceiling. . . . .

I did not think of the reasoning that others posted here about how
even a supply duct in a garage could result in car exhaust fumes
back-flowing into the whole HVAC system -- especially when the
system fan is not on. That makes sense . . . .

I bought a home that has an attached garage that was partially
unfinished -- the exterior walls were open walls with no insulation.
I finished the garage by adding insulation to the exterior walls and
closing the walls with new sheetrock. One thing that I noticed was
that even though there is a closed soffit in the garage that
contains a supply duct to and room on the interior of the home,
there was no supply duct or vent to allow the garage to be heated.
I have been thinking of adding supply vent to the garage from that
supply duct, but now I know that would be improper and could cause a
serious problem. So, your experience and the citation form the
inspector taught me something that I did not know before.

If you want to heat or condition garage space the garage space MUST be
heated or conditioned with it's own unit, with no air exchange between
the two spaces. . . . . ,

I never knew about that before, and that's just another thing that I have
learned by reading and participating here.

And, ... duh ..., I guess that all that I need to do if I want to add heat
to the attached garage is just add an electric baseboard heating unit
(probably hydronic since I like them better than the non-hydronic baseboard
heating units). Then there would be no issue of the house HVAC system being
interconnected with the garage in any way.

On Sat, 09 Aug 2014 10:22:10 -0600, Tony Hwang
wrote:

wrote:
On Thu, 7 Aug 2014 16:50:29 -0400, "TomR" wrote:

In ,
Rebel1 typed:
The municipal inspector who issues Certificates of Occupancy when
ownership changes or apartments get new tenants, failed me because he
saw a "vent" in the garage ceiling. The potential problem is that any
carbon monoxide in the garage can be sucked up by the vent when the
heat or a/c is running and be distributed throughout the house. He
wants me to cover it with metal or sheetrock and caulk around the
edges.
Problem is, that it is really a supply register. When I looked in the
attic, I could clearly see that the duct supplying it came directly
from the plenum (just above the evaporator) that feeds the other
ducts to the rest of the house.

I removed the register and found that someone had taped its openings
shut, so air couldn't flow either way through it. I sent photos to the
inspector of the register showing how it was taped shut. I also taped
a small piece of facial tissue to the ceiling and turned on the a/c.
It fluttered in the incoming airstream, and was not sucked upwards as
it would be if this were a return.

I wanted to just return the taped-shut housing the way it was. But the
inspector is being hard-assed. He doesn't want to see anything -
supply or return - in the ceiling. I do NOT think he's looking for me
to slip him a few bucks.

Since you posted later that you are selling the property, and just need the
C of O to sell it, it seems like a no-brainer to just do what the inspector
said that he is requiring. And, as someone wrote, if the new owners want to
change it back later, that's on them.

You showing the inspector that the duct is taped closed, and also showing
him that with the a/c on the tissue flutters (which means that the duct is
not completely taped closed), seems like contradictory information -- it is
either sealed off or it isn't. He wants it properly sealed off and that's
exactly what I would do.

I did not think of the reasoning that others posted here about how even a
supply duct in a garage could result in car exhaust fumes back-flowing into
the whole HVAC system -- especially when the system fan is not on. That
makes sense and obviously that is why the inspector does not want to see an
open HVAC vent in the garage.

I bought a home that has an attached garage that was partially unfinished --
the exterior walls were open walls with no insulation. I finished the
garage by adding insulation to the exterior walls and closing the walls with
new sheetrock. One thing that I noticed was that even though there is a
closed soffit in the garage that contains a supply duct to and room on the
interior of the home, there was no supply duct or vent to allow the garage
to be heated. I have been thinking of adding supply vent to the garage from
that supply duct, but now I know that would be improper and could cause a
serious problem. So, your experience and the citation form the inspector
taught me something that I did not know before.

If you want to heat or condition garage space the garage space MUST be
heated or conditioned with it's own unit, with no air exchange between
the two spaces. Some places go so far as to prohibit a door between
the garage and living space. I think THAT is going too far - why have
an "attached" garage if you have to go outside to access it?

My dream house is a small 2 bedroom bungalow with a double garage, 1
1/2 cars deep minimum, with basement under the garage as well as the
house - walk out under the house, and single garage door under the
garage - with the garage high enough to handle a 2 post hoist on one
side. Yes, the garage would be as big as the house!!!

Hi,
Our code specifies door between garage and living space should be steel
clad fire proof rated and self closing type. One thing I wish is dug out
pit in my garage but it is not allowed. It'd be nice to have one to
work under the car.
Which is why I'd have the
basement" under the garage - with the one bay separated from the rest
of the basement and a single garage door in that section. No
ventilation issues - built in "pit" - hoist on the other side.(to
allow "double parking" as well as wheels up servicing.

On 8/9/2014 12:26 PM, TomR wrote:

If you want to heat or condition garage space the garage space MUST be
heated or conditioned with it's own unit, with no air exchange between
the two spaces. . . . . ,

I never knew about that before, and that's just another thing that I have
learned by reading and participating here.

Adding to that. solid fuel stoves (wood, coal, etc) are not permitted
either. Embers can linger for hours, even days and can ignite fumes.

In ,
Ed Pawlowski typed:
On 8/9/2014 12:26 PM, TomR wrote:

If you want to heat or condition garage space the garage space MUST
be heated or conditioned with it's own unit, with no air exchange
between the two spaces. . . . . ,

I never knew about that before, and that's just another thing that I
have learned by reading and participating here.

Adding to that. solid fuel stoves (wood, coal, etc) are not permitted
either. Embers can linger for hours, even days and can ignite fumes.

I didn't know that one either. Good to know. Thanks.