Posted by chemist on October 10, 2004, at 4:00:32
In reply to HELP! carbon monoxide, self-cleaning oven chemist?, posted by AMD on October 10, 2004, at 3:12:58
> Folks,
>
> I was feeling fine yesterday, but got home to find my stepmom had turned on the self-cleaning oven feature of her new electric GE profile. It reeked. Anyhow, I didn't think much of it, and worked on my laptop in the living room for an hour or so before leaving to get some food.
>
> Our kitchen is adjacent to the living room, and the patio door was open during the self-cleaning cycle. (It's about 15 feel from the kitchen.) That was the only ventalation.
>
> What was that smell and is it dangerous?
>
> Also, today I go online and find that CO is produced by electric ovens in self-cleaning cycle, and now I'm freaked out I was exposed yesterday -- some pages say exposure can be as high as 200 ppm, which is extremely toxic. I've had a headache today and my eyes have been bothering me. Is this related? Is it in my head?
>
> HELP! I'm freaking out :( :( :(
>
> I HATE chemicals, pollution in the house, and I'm pissed off that my stepmom put us in "danger," but not properly using the self-cleaning feature.
>
>
> ahello there, chemist here. it wouldn't be the same without you. please do not worry yourself about the carbon monoxide produced during a self-cleaning phase of an electric oven, especially a new-model one that is likely to be of relatively high-quality. what you smell when the temperature is increased are the remnants of food items that have remained inside the oven proper. increasing the temperature in an oxygen atmosphere results in the combustion of the carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and hydrogen-rich (and lesser amounts of sulfur and other elements in various states of oxidation) molecules to be converted larely to products heavy in carbon dioxide and water concentrations. the smells are indicative of what foods were dripping opon the racks in the oven and the lower surface in the oven. you have nothing to worry about. if you want to worry, consider the food items themselves and what natural or added products lie therein and under thermal stress are transformed into things that might be dangerous. however, the food-consuming populace of the world partaking in cooking foodstuffs before eating has not been in decline due to heath effects directly linked to compounds other than fats, oils, and cholesterol, to name a few usual suspects. finally, an electric oven poses less threat of poisoning from partially-combusted gases than does a natural gas-fired stove/oven, and although methane is oderless, the suppliers of natural gas do add a trace of hydrogen sulfide that indicates a leak. the design of the burners themselves are implicated in the degree of combustion of the natural gas, and adequate ventilation is recommended for numerous reasons unrelated to toxic gas buildup. In short, worry not and good to see you back on-line, AMD. be well, and i wish you all the best, chemist
poster:chemist
thread:401073
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20041007/msgs/401079.html