Chainsaw, learned something

gtractorfan

Well-known Member
Been running chainsaws for a long time but never had this happen before. Today I was sawing in a spot mostly blocked from the wind. After a while I felt like I was about to pass out and wondered what was wrong with me! Never had any health issue like that before. It took a while to recover. Now that I thought about it I'm 99% sure I got an overdose of carbon monoxide from the saw. Anyone ever have something like that happen?
 
Had it happen years ago when I was plowing a thirty acre field that was in a low area. Diesel exhaust filled the whole area after about four hours. Finally figured out what was going on and shut down for the night.
 
No, never had that happen, instead if I inhale 2-cycle or diesel exhaust, within 15 seconds I have a throbbing headache. My brother-in-law has same issue. Same thing happens if I near someone smoking. Except for many black spots and a tumor in my lungs, I have no health issues, including a good heart.

Were you in an enclosed area?
 
No this was outdoors, I think it was a freak situation, working in kind of a void blocked from the wind. I used to work with a guy years ago that was shoveling snow next to his garage. He had the garage door up and the car running. He got a dose of carbon monoxide that got to him the same way. It's one more thing to keep in mind.
 
well, if it wasn't carbon monoxide, it was carbon dioxide or some other gas in the combustion byproducts displacing the normal air mix.
 
That's a pretty freaky thing to have happen. I've gassed myself in a garage before, but never outdoors.
 

I have gotten headaches that I thought may have been from CO - but never to the point of passing out. It is my understanding that your lungs absorb CO before O2. Therefore, one does not need to be in an enclosed area - if there is CO present your lungs will absorb it rather than O2.
 
I'm not a Dr. I think you are right. CO is absorbed
in the blood, where it wants to combine with oxygen
changing to CO2. Thus removing oxygen from the
blood.
 
I knew somebody once who had been welding inside an enclosed area, maybe a large pressure vessel, and the shielding gas, 75% argon, 25% CO2, accumulated from the floor up until he began to suffocate. He said it felt sort of like he had had the wind knocked out of him---he could draw a full breath, but it felt as if he hadn't. He said he felt fortunate that he figured out what was happening, and climbed out while he still could. If he had passed out, he would have fallen down into the highest concentration of the gases.
 
(quoted from post at 17:28:57 05/07/14) Been running chainsaws for a long time but never had this happen before. Today I was sawing in a spot mostly blocked from the wind. After a while I felt like I was about to pass out and wondered what was wrong with me! Never had any health issue like that before. It took a while to recover. Now that I thought about it I'm 99% sure I got an overdose of carbon monoxide from the saw. Anyone ever have something like that happen?
Could either be low blood glucose or orthostatic hypotension maybe from crouched down to standing position abruptly? Dehydration? Any other symptoms? If symptoms persist seek medical care. Take care. Richard
 
That confined space work is definitely no joke, I pulled a coworker out of a manhole that was low on oxygen, he was dealing with something similar, and this was a new force main, sewage, so the invert and outlets in the manhole structures had no circulation, say vs a gravity system like a storm drain. Most of the other manhole covers had hibernating mosquitoes on the underside of the cast iron cover, this one did not, did not click until later, big time flag should have popped up, no oxygen. Here I am on a huge project, 600 workers at peak, top of the line, state of the art kind of work, with top notch people on the construction management team I was working with, safety protocol in place everywhere, we even had a dedicated safety person on site, looking over every aspect of the work going on, a great gal she was with this too, and we were that close to a very serious incident because myself and the other guy were working alone in remote areas of the site.I knew there should have been a retrieval tripod set up over each hole, harness used, ventilation,something to test the air, whatever typical confined space safety protocol should be employed, but I was doing as I was told and or assigned, given the task of final inspection of almost 200 manholes, it was bitter cold winter temperatures sometimes 30 below. All the other project managers, superintendents, and most trades were inside at this point as all buildings were closed in, just the 2 of us outside. I found out the reason the task was given to me, someone up top did not like me on that project, I often thought it was intentional prior to that information, it almost cost this guy his life, if he dropped back down inside, I'd have not been able to save him. I will never forget that one, and later towards the end of that project I took this engineer in charge, (EIC) to task at a high level meeting, completely humiliated him in front of the NYS directors representatives, he literally got out of his chair and came at me, I would have loved it if he took a swing at me, they'd have removed him from the site immediately. It was his doing we were in those manholes like that, what comes around goes around. If you ever saw Mr Roberts, or the Caine Mutiny, this guy was a total match to the character portrayed by Cagney and Bogart respectively, and to the letter. I am sure is why I was able to get under his skin and agitate him to the point of a meltdown, revealing his true colors. He treated some of the women on the staff/team like a doormat, you get all kinds in this life that is for sure. The situation was so similar to the plots in those movies, I just knew something was going to boil over at some point, and the timing of that meltdown was impeccable, just like in the movies with the ice cream and or that potted plant/tree going over board was the spark that ignited an inferno!

I won't go into any confined space unless its properly done, when your hand is clenched to another's and its the difference between life and death.... you sure don't forget, that and the callous jerk who was behind it, thinking back I should have held out for safety equipment, but I was sure my job may have been in jeopardy, and I always completed my assignments without hesitation, with a high degree of accuracy and quality, often exceeding expectations, sure I was trying to make a name for myself, thinking back we sure do some stupid things when we are young LOL !
 

It appears to me that the Construction Industry gets the dregs of the Engeneers.
I have had some very good ones also. And I'm sure John T was/is, a good one.
So many times we installed as drawn and when it didn't work it was "it's your problem" don't bother me, I'm working on my next prodject.


Dusty
 
Remember hearing this story and car guys can add to this when the first freeways were built they started to find dead people apparantly the first fresh air vents in cars were under the hoods and in traffic jams they would bring the fumes inside the cars .vents now are on top of the hood allowing fresher air in
 
This guy was no engineer, he just assumed the title, as per how the job was set up and he replaced another guy who was the engineer in charge, neither had a professional engineers license.

The real engineers on that job worked for the state, very accomplished, and absolutely the best to work with, I enjoyed partnering with those guys as I worked directly in their offices for over a year before I went out on site, I still have one as a reference on my resume, and other architects from that state agency, I've worked with a lot of people over the years, these guys were an absolute pleasure to deal with and collaboratively, without their involvement, we would have never finished this large project one month ahead of the deadline and under the overall budget. I think the guy who had it in for me ended up as head of grounds or maintenance of some facility, camp or who knows, somewhere in the adirondack mountains, or near that area, a perfect place for someone like that, away from society LOL ! just like these places we were building for the worst inmates in the system. The other guy who was in this position, right at the end of the project, took some of the staff, prematurely, on some kind of local golf outing for an afternoon, but there was still work going on and if trades are on site, you better be too. He was relieved of his position by the State's E.I.C, who was a P.E., I remember meeting up with the right hand man of the commissioner of the dept of corrections, this was a new super max security facility, and he said, here's a guy making 200K, and when he did that with the staff it made some waves. This corrections dept was a real serious entity, and the man I mention, sure humbled me at one of the real high level meetings early on in the project, and at least I was smart enough to not engage him, I knew better. My father was involved in this prison expansion program in another area and dealt with this guy too and he got the same treatment, it took some doing to win him over, and the man was a hard@ss's hard@ss, mostly due to the commissioner above him, sh$t does roll down hill. Both of us did prove ourselves and that man had the utmost respect for us and what we do, but we had to earn that. That alone was an accomplishment.

Ironically, years after that job was done, I was helping a friend place concrete, he has a long time pool and pool repair business, and who do you think was his customer, the man under that commissioner and let me tell you he was the nicest person to work for at home, he had finally retired and we talked about that job, it was a pleasure for me, as I was at the weekly meetings for almost 2 years with this guy and corrections reps, what a contrast and he told me why the E.I.C. was removed from the job, I kinda wish it was the guy I had trouble with, but the golf outing guy got the boot, did not get the letter of recommendation/appreciation that we all received for our efforts and achieving the objective, he was a decent guy otherwise and well established in the business, I have him as a connection on linked in, I can't say I have not been tossed off a job either, we've all been there, but mine was not for some golf outing LOL. We all make mistakes, he was a great guy to work with, lot of fun and did his job too, unlike Captain Caine, still makes me cringe to think about that jerk LOL !

I've met some trash in the private sector in NYC while working construction, that had the audacity to call themselves engineers, just because they had a P.E. license, takes all kinds I suppose LOL !
 
We took the kids to Disneyland, and I was entertaining them by breathing helium from a balloon and talking like a chipmunk. Didn't take breaths in between shots of helium, and began to have the same sensation. Had to take a short hiatus and get my breath back. Goofy happened by, and asked me if I needed a medic. LOL

Several instances like your guy, in hog manure pits- toxic gas, somebody goes down, and the others who go to his aid go down, too. And the end comes quickly at the bottom, where the concentration is heaviest. Remember one where husband and 2 sons didn't come in for lunch, Mom finally went to investigate, and all 3 were dead in the manure pit. Pit had been pumped, and it appeared Dad had dropped a tool in it and went down to retrieve it- he went down, and the sons went down to pull him out.
 
(quoted from post at 10:41:14 05/10/14) We took the kids to Disneyland, and I was entertaining them by breathing helium from a balloon and talking like a chipmunk. Didn't take breaths in between shots of helium, and began to have the same sensation. Had to take a short hiatus and get my breath back. Goofy happened by, and asked me if I needed a medic. LOL

Several instances like your guy, in hog manure pits- toxic gas, somebody goes down, and the others who go to his aid go down, too. And the end comes quickly at the bottom, where the concentration is heaviest. Remember one where husband and 2 sons didn't come in for lunch, Mom finally went to investigate, and all 3 were dead in the manure pit. Pit had been pumped, and it appeared Dad had dropped a tool in it and went down to retrieve it- he went down, and the sons went down to pull him out.

Even if you know better, how do you NOT go in after a father or son? Or how do you live with yourself if you don't go in?
 
Couple years ago there was a truck ahead of me at the ethanol plant waiting to dump corn that was blowing black smoke sitting there at an idle. He pulled into the building, of course, when he was next in line, filling it with smoke. Woke up with a severe headache and feeling sick in the morning. Opened a couple windows and slept til almost noon and went to run the grain cart, there was no way I was going to drive a truck that day. CO is the best thing I could come up with. Half that winter every time the guy behind me pulled into that building waiting for me to get dumped I had them back out again, as the truck exhaust still got to me.
 
ISX Cummins in Volvo's seem to be real bad about putting out really acrid smoke. There's been times I couldn't follow them down the interstate it was so bad, the wind quartering in blew it right into my cab. Of course half them guys are the ones who see another truck coming up on them and have to prove they can be just a hair faster, once you start to pass them.
 
I have not had that happen. I would take precautions, and only saw on a windy day if your in a situation like that again.
 
Ken, George and Richard are correct. Bloods oxygen carrying hemoglobin has a far greater affinity for CO and once it sticks it doesn't want to let go. It typically takes time plus sometimes high percentages of inhaled oxygen (or even a hyperbaric chamber) to get the CO to release. Now while the CO is gumming up the hemoglobin, levels of CO2 increase and the victim experiences headaches, dizziness, nausea, vomiting and worse. If someone already has medical issues and can't get oxygen in and carbon dioxide out of the body, they have big problems. Blood carbon monoxide levels can be determined with a blood test called an "arterial blood gas"

As mentioned the symptoms described can have any number of medical causes and a trip to a physician would be in order. HTH Mike
 
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