Go to Forum Home Building Services Are Gas Cookers advisable in a Gold standard home?

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    • #30620
      Mark Siddall
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        Part F Appendix A concerns controlling the levels of nitrogen dioxide from cooking, especially on gas. Building Control Officers can accept ’innovative solutions’ but have they been given any national guidance on the acceptability of the Gold standards?

        Part F is interpreted in the context of “BRE Ventilation, air tightness and indoor air quality in new homes (BR477)”

        In this study most houses had an air change rate below 0.5/hr (below BRE recommended level, see Report 162). In this context the study raises concerns about NO2 levels in kitchens. Stating “cooking activity affected NO2 concentrations in kitchens and living rooms and these levels often exceeded the WHO 1-h guideline of 105 ppb.” The report also notes that Mech vent and trickle vents had marginal impact upon NO2 levels.

        Concerns about NO2 are also raised in “The New Autonomous House” where the Vales' note that they avoided using a gas cooker due to concerns about NO2 levels. They also noted that whilst NO2 levels from boilers are regulated, those from cookers are not.

        Also I think they made mention that some Canadian gas cookers have balanced flues thereby avoiding concerns about the effects of combustion upon indoor air quality. A post by David O on this forum notes that these (or at least some similar) prototypes and have not been mass produced due to some problems that arose.

        My conclusion is that gas may be OK, but only if you have a balanced flue, otherwise use induction. It may have an impact upon CO2 emissions but at least you don't gas the occupants. Anyone disagree? If so, why and how does one overcome the issues raised by the BRE's/Vales' findings?

        Mark

      • #33577

        Plenty of Passive Houses in Germany have gas cooking.
        One exhausts air from the kitchen above the cooker.
        One filters the air at that point before it enters the ductwork.
        End of story!

        Of course I'd like a balanced flue gas cooker, but to date these are also unknown in Germany. The MVHR system makes more of a positive difference than the reduced air leakage rate makes in the opposite direction.

        David.

      • #33578

        Mark

        Yes, I agree re. the need to make this clear if AECB gets outside support to write a more detailed/watertight version.

        Those involved in the R2000 standard agreed that any combustion appliance with a conventional flue (this would include all wood-fired boilers) is at risk of backdraughting if a building is tight and uses exhaust ventilation. As usual, balanced flue gas/LPG/oil boilers (or possibly in future the same burning biofuels) give less cause for concern as they don't depressurise the house and interact with a MEV system.

        It's possible that some ordinary UK homes are airtight enough (by accident) to cause health problems if they have an unflued appliance. A CO detector next to the woodstove or fireplace might be a good idea. Spillage is most likely when the fire is dying down, not when it's at full throttle.

        David.

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