Safe Luxury

Can an oil burner emit any carbon monoxide or other fumes?

It's new, installed 2003. We enclosed it in a small vented room in the basement. My home office is right next to it. Is it safe for me to spend a few hours each day working here, or should I use special air purifiers? There are no windows but there is an open indoor staircase.

Public Comments

1. as long as its vented yes it will emit C-monoxide
2. There are NO 'special air purifiers' that will remove carbon monoxide. It is odourless, colourless, and deadly dangerous. An oil heater that is properly vented and in good working order should present no problems. However - A cousin of mine was living in a household that tried to economize on maintenance costs. She came home to 3 dead bodies, including the father of her unborn child.
3. Any time there is combustion, carbon monoxide is formed. A properly vented and built unit will remove the fumes through the chimney. There are no "purifiers" for this.
4. Carbon monoxide detectors are available at the Home Depot. Pretty cheap - and pretty smart thing - to have one in the area as insurance instead of DEATH if the unit leaks CO
5. Yes, Carbon monoxide detectors! In the office and the bed room areas! Installed 2003 is NOT NEW, it's 6 years old! It needs serviced every heating season! Skimping on maintenance of oil heating equipment costs you more in the long run. Air purifiers won't help.
6. Carbon Monoxide is nothing to fool with, but there is a special air purifier that will neutralize carbon monoxide. The Sun Pure SP-20C at http://www.allergy-relief-air-purifier.com/air_purifiers_for_asthma.html. The testing data is on this site too, to show how effective it is on CO. I would check for proper ventilation and get a CO detector for your office, but you can be confident that your air pollution is cleared with the Sun Pure SP-20C. I hope this helps.