firegirl
Registered: 03/16/09
Posts: 1
|
Good Morning,
I have quite a lengthy question that I was unable to get a complete answer from out local Fire Department or the NH poison control.
To make a long story short, on Friday night, the piping from my Ashley Indoor Wood/Coal Burning Furnace fell off. The FD was called, and helped me get the situation under control. The FD told me that I needed to replace the piping. That following morning, I went to our local hardware store, and the salesperson there sold me some 26 gauge 8” Galvanized Steel piping. After I installed the new piping and lit the fire in the furnace, the pipe started smoking and turning white/yellow. I called my husband who is out of town, and he told me that galvanized steel is coated in zinc, and the zinc was burning off. He told me to open the windows, and extinguish the fire immediately.
I then called the hardware store that I bought the pipe from. The hardware manager assured me that Galvanized Steel was OK to use on the wood furnace. I asked him again, “Are you sure? What is the steel rated at? I’m sure the heat from the stove surpasses 800 degrees.” He assured me again, there was no problem, and the smell/smoke/coloring was normal coming from the pipe the first time you install it. I was unsatisfied with this answer. I called a local stove shop, and they told me exactly what my husband said – you are not supposed to use galvanized steel for a wood furnace/stove.
I then called the NH poison control, because I was worried about burning heavy metal in my home, and the risks to me and my animals (by this time I was feeling light headed and had a headache). The woman told me that zinc is zinc, and there are no ill effects from burning it. I called my local fire department again, to ask about the zinc burning from the pipe, and whether or not I should be using Galvanized Steel. The fireman who came to my house said “they but zinc in vitamins, it couldn’t be bad for you”.
I am so confused, and I am getting conflicting reports on the dangers of using Galvanized Steel for an indoor wood/coal burning furnace. Can you please shed some insight on the dangers of burning zinc? And tell me if the 26 gauge gal steel is safe to burn inside my house?
Thank you so much for your time! I appreciate any help you can give!
|
