Be careful with generators

Pnichols,

Good point. Positive pressure is also used to keep stairwells (in apartment and commercial buildings) free from smoke during a fire. That's why there is a woosh of air when one opens the door.

In certain cases, cracking a window and running a roof exhaust may actually draw fumes into the rv.

Caveman Charlie wrote:
Ummmm,,,, I don't have the time to research it but, I thought I heard of something similar. Except what I heard was the people would drown because you did not shut the boat engine off while they were swimming behind the boat.

You are on the right track - - ref.:
- meganscause.org - poisoning from boat engine emissions.
- Lake Powell Chronicles 7/7/2007. 21 people experienced carbon monoxide poisoning from generator exhuast on a houseboat.

So, it appears boat engines and generators need to be used with caution.

Or .... you can keep fumes out of your RV from it's generator(s) by maintaining a slight amount of clean air pressure in it's interior so that no fumes from the generator can enter.

When running our RV's large built-in, or small portable, generator ... we close all openings in the RV except for one roof vent with it's ventilation fan set to AIR IN and on it's lowest speed setting. This maintains a slight positive clean air pressure in the RV so that no fumes - from down low where the generators and their exhausts are located - can enter.

We use the same technique when driving off-highway in our RV to help keep the interior free of dust and dirt.

A very sad story with a tragic outcome for two people.

I think pasusan nailed it with this post and comment:

pasusan wrote:
There are apparently a lot of folks who don't know that the products of combustion are deadly. ...........

There are a lot of people that are not aware of the CO dangers and closed spaces. This is purely a guess on my part but I would guess that this father was not an RVer but someone trying to provide a living space for himself and his children. He was perhaps too busy trying to earn enough to put food on the table and clothes on his kids backs and keep them warm. He did not understand RVs, only hunger and cold. He tried, as best as he knew, to keep his kids warm and fed and provide a place to sleep. I believe he did the best he could with what he had and his apparently limited knowledge.

Yes, a truly sad story.

Please be thankfull for what you have and try to help those that need help.

captnjack wrote:

run100 wrote:
There have been incidents reported involving generators on houseboats, where people were swimming near the gen exhaust, suffered carbon-monoxide poisoning, lost consciousness and drowned. If I recall correctly, in one instance, there were two or three victims.

This is about as likely as someone dying from CO poisoning while mowing their lawn.

Ummmm,,,, I don't have the time to research it but, I thought I heard of something similar. Except what I heard was the people would drown because you did not shut the boat engine off while they were swimming behind the boat.

I think that one is actually true. I seem to remember reading it in a safety manual when I first got my boat.

run100 wrote:
There have been incidents reported involving generators on houseboats, where people were swimming near the gen exhaust, suffered carbon-monoxide poisoning, lost consciousness and drowned. If I recall correctly, in one instance, there were two or three victims.

This is about as likely as someone dying from CO poisoning while mowing their lawn.

There are apparently a lot of folks who don't know that the products of combustion are deadly. There have actually been posts here on RV.net where people talked about enjoying sitting outside by their RV with the furnace exhaust blowing on them to keep warm. And others who asked if they couldn't redirect that same exhaust into their enclosed undercarriage to keep their tanks and plumbing from freezing.

Maybe this is another thing that should be taught in school. :R

noe-place wrote:

Tvov wrote:
Generators are perfectly fine to use, but just keep in mind basic safety precautions.

I've never owned a portable gen and I probably never will.

Do bear in mind that small engines in generators aren't really different from small engines in lawn mowers, pressure washers, rototillers, log splitters, or other such gizmos. Generators are a little more likely to be used in a single somewhat enclosed area than most other power equipment, so probably contribute more frequently to CO poisoning.

(My lawn mower, as a matter of fact, has an engine made by Onan in it. It's a nice little engine and runs well despite having a lot of use and occasionally indifferent maintenance; my only complaint is that parts when needed are frightfully expensive.)

There have been incidents reported involving generators on houseboats, where people were swimming near the gen exhaust, suffered carbon-monoxide poisoning, lost consciousness and drowned. If I recall correctly, in one instance, there were two or three victims.

noe-place wrote:
I too am suspicious of the gen being the cause based on the report saying it was nearby....

Read the update link (in the thread somewhere). The generator was under the camper overhang (5th wheel), with the exhaust pointed to go under the camper. The exhaust could easily find its way into the camper from underneath, and add that the camper was (from the picture) pretty well "sealed up" on the outside.

I'm a member of my town's vol fire dept, and have responded to a CO alarm call where the generator was outside the house, but under the deck (to keep it partly out of the rain). Even with breezy conditions, the exhaust found its way into the house. Nobody was hurt at the call I went to, but the CO level in the basement of the house set off our portable gas alarms.

Generators are perfectly fine to use, but just keep in mind basic safety precautions.