I was wondering what effects brief, but repeated exposure to carbon monoxide could have on a human. Say, a pretty large human- for purposes of discussion, let’s use 6’8", 250lbs.
Let us observe that this individual’s daily routine includes the remote starting of a 3/4 ton diesel pick-‘em-up truck parked in a detached 2-car garage with its (the garage) doors closed and is allowed to idle for 15 minutes (sometimes 30 if it’s frappin’ cold) in that space. Since the idea is to warm up the vehicle, the heater is also running during this time, ostensibly filling an extended cab with the same concentration of gasses present in the garage. SO, the questions, I suppose, would be:
What concentration of CO is achieved in the cab?
How long does it take for the ventilation system to turn over the volume of air in the cab? (I’m aware that this would be affected by the fan speed selected.)
What is the cumulative physiological effect of repeated daily exposure to CO in this scenario? Does the body eliminate CO fast enough that there would be no effect, or slowly enough that the individual would eventually exerience shortness of breath, rapid heartbeat, or other symptoms associated with CO poisoning?
It would take a lot of data to provide quantative answers.
Sufficeth it to say: Start the engine and go back to the house.
DO NOT sit it the cab.
After the appropriate time lapse, depending of temperature, open garage doors, get in the cab and drive the vehicle out of the garage.
Get out of the truck, leaving cab door open to change the CO laden air to fresh. Close the garage doors.
Get back in the cab and drive off into the cold cold morning.
A SHORT exposue to CO is not harmful. It is long exposure that causes drowsieness and ultimate death.
Victims of CO inhalation, if they can be removed to fresh air can be revived if the exposure is not extended.
IANA doctor, but my understanding of the mechanism of CO poisoning is that it binds to the hemoglobin in blood far better than does oxygen, thus depriving your body (and especially your brain) of what it needs for proper functioning. This suggests that there should not be much in the way of cumulative effects: if you have recovered from a small dose received one day, another small dose the next day should not pose a bigger problem. But there may well be some subtle effects I’m not aware of.
Fifteen minutes of warp-up idling seems excessive; 30 minutes has to be far more than makes sense. What is the temperature that calls for this? (For calibration, I’ve spent several winters in northern NH, where minus-15 F was common in Jan - Feb.)
Evidently, the person in question is under the impression that it’s pert’ near absolute zero. I don’t warm mine for thiry seconds, let alone thirty minutes. Also, the individual featured in the question does in fact climb into a cab full 'o exhaust fumes on a daily basis, and has been undergoing inconclusive testing for both an accelerated heart rate, and shortness of breath. Just found out, too, that raw fuel fumes occassionally find their way into the cab as well. I’ve recommended that he start wearing a scuba get-up, complete with mask, and, for effect, swim fins.
I figure that if he wears the fins, maybe the cop won’t ask about the mask…
bp
Either this garage is the world’s biggest 2 car garage, or it is the least weather tight structure on the face of the earth or I call bullshit. Thirty minutes of idling would exhaust the oxygen available in a two car garage.
Look: I live in a place where -40 or colder for weeks even months on end is considered ‘normal’. 30 minutes of idling is nothing more than a waste of fuel. Heck, 15 minutes is a long time. I warm mine up just enough so that the transmission won’t be destroyed by frozen-thick gear oil, which is 5 minutes. That’s all you need!
