I know you think that is too personal a problem to share on line, but your probably thinking about the wrong kind of gas.
Testing for a gas leak is sometimes a tricky business. (Are you thinking about a different kind of gas now?) Some gases found in the home can be hard to find and give you different readings depending on what your testing for and where your testing. Why you ask? Well some gases are lighter than air and some are heavier than air.
For example, natural gas is a compound of gases that are combustible. It is made up of, normally depending on the area of the U.S. your in, mostly methane(95%), but it also contains elements of ethane, propane, and carbon dioxide. Methane is lighter than air, so if there isn't much of the other gases (all heavier than air) natural gases (at room temperature) will rise. Therefore, a natural gas leak should be tested for at the pipe or appliance that it services.
Air is light, so there are very few gases that are lighter than air. Here is a list of all but the most obscure:
Methane Ammonia Hydrogen Helium Hafnium Diborane Acetylene Ethylene Hydrogen cyanide Nitrogen Carbon monoxide
Combustion gases contain many elements that are normally lighter than air after being heated. After cooling these gases are heavier than air at room temperature. High efficiency combustion of natural gas produces nitrogen (basically non-flammable), carbon dioxide (basically non-flammable), water vapor and nitrogen oxides and sulfer dioxide (giving that familiar smell). These gases are carried away by the flue (hopefully) which vents to the outside air. If there is a leak in the flue gases could escape into the environment where they stay until vented in someway to the outside. Since carbon dioxide is relatively easy to test for this is the combustion bi-product that is the most indicative of a problem with gases in the home. If there is an abundance of carbon dioxide in your home then there are most likely other combustion by-products (even more dangerous than carbon dioxide) in evidence too.
Luckily, correcting this problem is rather simple. First, get an expert to find where the problem is and correct it and second, air out your home. The EPA says that indoor air is, on the average, much more polluted than outside air. Todays houses are built tight to save energy and ventilation is sometimes ignored in favor of energy and money savings.
Jack Gilleland
Clayton, Ohio
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