Sweet smell coming off of baseboard heaters

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yarrow

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I might be taking your words out of context, but I totally disagree with that statement.

i agree with what you're saying. what i meant to say is that cat piss/ammonia is a very distinct odor - and it is not a sweet smell by any means.

the apartment is very clean/no odors. i have cleaned the registers so that they look like new (well, except for all the dings and bashed in flanges). they do not smell whatsoever (if there was cat urine - or territorial markings - there, you'd smell it).
 

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Actually, houses can make you sick. Three years ago, I came down with pneumonia. I got it twice. We couldn't figure it out. We, meaning the doctors and I. Then, I found my bath was loaded with mold inside the walls and under the floor. So, here is me~~with my love for long soaks in the tub breathing it in. I had the mold tested and found it to be the kind of mold/germ whatever, you want to call it, which can and will cause the kind of pnuemonia I had. Now~~with air scrubbers, machines to dry it up, walls removed, floor removed, the entire bath removed and replaced, Racina, I have been not only cancer free so far and I thank God for, but, also, pneumonia free. Now, I can do the math. I can't say getting rid of the mold put my cancer in remission but, I can claim getting rid of it, did stop my bouts of pneumonia.
 

Dunbar Plumbing

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yarrow,


I was right then about taking your words out of context then, you was mentioning the difference.

Also get a few dozen chickens to run free - those eggs are far better than any gallonage of green tea.


I've been eating 3 fried eggs every morning on buttered toast now for the past 2 months; got away from McDonald's once and for all. Got sick of spending $6.66 every morning and wasting my fuel waiting in line looking at unattractive female restaurant workers with no chance for proper dental hygiene in their lifetime. Don't smile, grin, please. I gotta be able to eat my biscuit without seeing what looks like a pinto drove through a picket fence.

The eggs I eat are from a local farmer. The egg whites are so much better than the store bought, cooks up in the frying pan so much better and has a more full taste. I don't even salt or add pepper, they're that good. The ones from the store stating "cage-free" are no different than the el-cheapo grade A large white eggs.

I switched to brown as well, I've been told the color of the egg has no bearing on flavor or looks.

I have a full glass of orange juice and one banana. I don't care if fried eggs on buttered toast will kill me.....I've come a long way from McFat's knowing how many years I've employed those low entry workers with my willingness to spend.



Actually, houses can make you sick. Three years ago, I came down with pneumonia. I got it twice. We couldn't figure it out. We, meaning the doctors and I. Then, I found my bath was loaded with mold inside the walls and under the floor. So, here is me~~with my love for long soaks in the tub breathing it in. I had the mold tested and found it to be the kind of mold/germ whatever, you want to call it, which can and will cause the kind of pnuemonia I had. Now~~with air scrubbers, machines to dry it up, walls removed, floor removed, the entire bath removed and replaced, Racina, I have been not only cancer free so far and I thank God for, but, also, pneumonia free. Now, I can do the math. I can't say getting rid of the mold put my cancer in remission but, I can claim getting rid of it, did stop my bouts of pneumonia.


Tis true, houses with non-maintained HVAC systems or plumbing systems in disrepair can be the pathway for the heating/cooling system to circulate what is a bad bad situation of airborn bacteria.

Pneumonia can be the end-all for those with compromised immune systems.....hear of death all the time for those who do battle with this, had other issues beforehand.
 
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The banana and the OJ is good for you. Now, here is a trick that can make your breakfast even better. Rugged instead of using the butter, use Coconut oil to fry your egg in. And, buy brown organic eggs, they taste the same but, are healthier. I guess you know that. Or use only the whites. Then, cut down to one egg instead of 2 or 3. Also, instead of the white bread, use a whole grain bread. So far as the women I have no advice other than, don't be too picky and remember if you really fall in love with someone you and her can fix any problems. My husband used to always tell me he never had a girlfriend before me, because he had flaming red hair, was too tall and too skinny. And, he was. lol. But, that is what I loved about him. I cook, so, once married he got to a proper weight instead of the 120 pounds on an over 6 feet frame. Also, buy Smart Balance butter instead of any other butter, and Olive Oil is good for you.

Yeah, I know about Pneumonia. It kills off most of us with immune system problems. But, my homeowners was great and paid for most of the repairs and brought the heavy-duty machines at their expense. They are life-savers. Liberty Mutual folks.

I don't have air-conditioning, only small portables in my boys rooms, in mine I use only a fan. The mold in my bath came from a roofing problem. ( I had a sneaky leak) It is crazy. But, that is life, it is always interesting.

Rugged, your breakfast you are eating now, is still far better than Mickey D's. You know, one or 2 changes and it would be a good breakfast. Very important note here: **My friends read this site, lol, and, think I can't cook because I love to eat out, so let's not tell them.
 
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It is a fact brown eggs are healthier, egg whites are lower in calories and cholesterol, coconut oil tends to increase the metabolism and has so many other benefits it would be easier just for you to do a search. My husband and I raised chickens years ago, and they required a good amount of care. I enjoyed them and was sad when they got a disease and died but, I didn't want anymore. Most of the stuff I do in my life is from a perspective of trying to be healthier. I have a 19 year old cat who is my best buddy. Sometimes, Raucina, you are just as happy as you want to be.

(these are the only eggs I will buy)
http://www.organicvalley.coop/faq/eggs/brown-eggs/
 
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Dunbar Plumbing

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yum

eggs

I eatem all up! :D


For some reason I've had this unknown energy eating these organic homegrown eggs. Makes me want to start a farm and grow my own. oink!

oh wait that's a pig.

I don't eat bacon with my eggs, too much work. Skillet sausage is good but it's addictive like goetta. Goetta is a fat man's paradise on a plate. Pound of goetta with 4 scrambled eggs with pancake syrup, who cares if I die, it's worth a bypass to do it!
 

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Yeah, read about coconut oil. I wouldn't worry so much about its origin like you do on things. So far as tasting difference in eggs, it is very possible. But, I guess maybe, you need to eat better first of all to do so, to notice the difference.

I hope you never need a by pass Rugged. They are not fun. I am sure, my husband would had loved having the chance but, that is life. He didn't. Honestly, I can't laugh at it yet. I can try...
do you want me to?
 

Leejosepho

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I hope you never need a by pass Rugged ...

Grapefruit pectin can help avoid that kind of trouble. It works like a roto-rooter for arteries. I had a heart attack while digging for a few potatoes back in 1999, and today (at 58) I can shovel half-yard loads of limestone or sand without even taking a break. My blockages were cleared via angioplasty, and I keep them that way with the pectin (and *none* of the usual prescriptions).
 

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That is really great Lee, I love to hear good news like, I really do. Good information, too.
 
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yarrow

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hi guys -- i realized i never came back to give an update, so thought i'd at least drop you a line (ok, well more like 30+ lines). ;-)

at first the management company to property insisted that there were no additives -- glycol or otherwise -- in the boiler system. after much emailing back and forth and my talking directly with their hvac service, they admitted they did put glycol in the system (non-toxic -- but of course still caustic if it vaporizes out of the pipes/radiators), but they still didn't want to discuss removing it/flushing out the system -- even tho everyone admitted it wasn't necessary since all pipes were in protected heated space.

i spoke with the city, who also talked with the management company. the city agreed with the thread here -- why put glycol in the system at all? totally unnecessary in this case. they also saw no reason why the management company wouldn't just drain the system and refill with plain water just in case it was the cause of the two tenants' health problems (mine and the rn). but... the city has no jurisdiction in this regard -- if it was co or gas leak or electrical, etc. they can step in, but in this case they can only try to talk to the landlord. the management company still refused to flush the system after admitting that glycol was in the system -- and getting the material specs on vaporized glycol symptoms.

bottom line, i moved out. when i was packing/loading up, 5 of the 6 other tenants came by to ask why i was moving out. turns out they all have had the same symptoms as the rn and me since they'd moved into the building (excema, bleeding gums, itchy eyes and throat, wheezing, nosebleeds). they kept thinking it was an on-going cold or something. i haven't checked back but hopefully, they were able to lean on the landlords to recognize it is a sick building/environmental issue that needs to be corrected.

anyway -- no further problems like this before or since moving from the property. all symptoms (cat's and mine) resolved within a couple of days - yay. :)

thanks for all of your help/input. it is interesting in how pinhole leaks in a home radiator system is not that different in concept than pinhole leaks/vaporized glycol in vehicle systems.

bottom line: if you smell a sweet odor coming from a "closed" water heating system -- and you're experiencing respiratory, excema, eye irritation -- doesn't hurt to rule out the possibility of pinhole leaks/vaporized glycol being the culprit. you owe it to yourself to check it out -- before heading off to the doc's office for "allergy" meds or cortisone cream for your "excema". ;-)
 

BadgerBoilerMN

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It is very unlikely that you have any anti-freeze in your fin-tube baseboard and even less likely that you would smell it unless you have an active leak. If you had anti-freeze it would most likely be propylene glycol which is generally non-toxic even food grade- and if by chance you had ethylene glycol (common in automobile anti-freeze and commercial boiler systems) in your baseboard fin-tube, you would have to drink it to be get sick and yes it would be fatal for a cat or dog.

I would suggest that the smell comes when fin his hot and therefore is coming from the outside of the fin. Something on or near the fin is off-gassing, say the carpet below.
 

Jadnashua

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It is very unlikely that you have any anti-freeze in your fin-tube baseboard and even less likely that you would smell it unless you have an active leak. If you had anti-freeze it would most likely be propylene glycol which is generally non-toxic even food grade- and if by chance you had ethylene glycol (common in automobile anti-freeze and commercial boiler systems) in your baseboard fin-tube, you would have to drink it to be get sick and yes it would be fatal for a cat or dog.

I would suggest that the smell comes when fin his hot and therefore is coming from the outside of the fin. Something on or near the fin is off-gassing, say the carpet below.
If you read the entire thread, the company (landlord) admitted that there was antifreeze in the system, and yes, it was leaking, and yes, the vapors can make you sick.
 

Ballvalve

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Now get some chickens, feed them on compost, and get your health back from great eggs from that sick building syndrome.
 

sjson

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I'm sure it's ethylene glycol heat-transfer fluid. It's commonly used in heating applications where the temperature in the heat transfer can be below 32F. It's the most common antifreeze solution for standard heating and cooling applications. However, it should be avoided if there is any change of leakage into food processing systems or portable water. If that's the case, it's strongly recommended to resort to propylene glycol.
 

jebris

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Actually, houses can make you sick. Three years ago, I came down with bacterial pneumonia. I got it twice. We couldn't figure it out. We, meaning the doctors and I. Then, I found my bath was loaded with mold inside the walls and under the floor. So, here is me~~with my love for long soaks in the tub breathing it in. I had the mold tested and found it to be the kind of mold/germ whatever, you want to call it, which can and will cause the kind of pnuemonia I had. Now~~with air scrubbers, machines to dry it up, walls removed, floor removed, the entire bath removed and replaced, Racina, I have been not only cancer free so far and I thank God for, but, also, pneumonia free. Now, I can do the math. I can't say getting rid of the mold put my cancer in remission but, I can claim getting rid of it, did stop my bouts of pneumonia.

Tnx man for helpful information....
 

KatyKat

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Strange. I have Verano climaconvectors (something like trench heaters but they also cool the air during hot days) and have never had such problems... Can't you just call a technician or the guys from the store you bought the heaters?
 
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