Housing Association (HA) tenants are likely to be aware of the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning from faulty gas fires, but there is also a risk with solid fuel fires if they are not maintained regularly and used correctly. Zurich looks at how HAs and their tenants should manage this risk.
In June 2011 a case was heard where a HA was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) after an elderly tenant was found dead in his home due to carbon monoxide poisoning in 2007. Following this case, Bruno Porter, HSE principal inspector, said: “The risk of dying from carbon monoxide exposure caused by a faulty solid fuel appliance is estimated to be up to ten times higher than that from a gas appliance but the risks are generally not as well known.”
Solid fuel fires that are correctly installed and looked after should be perfectly safe; however, HAs and their tenants need to be aware of the potential dangers. A solid fuel appliance can be an open fire, wood burner or cooker that uses coal, wood or any fossil fuel. The inspector added: “Landlords and providers of social housing must make sure that solid fuel appliances are regularly maintained, chimneys must be swept regularly and they must make sure the tenant is capable of, and is actually carrying out, any safety-critical cleaning.”
When the engineer had visited to check the fire in question, it was functioning safely; the fire had been lit and there was no system in place for him to return and check the fire again when it was cold. Although the check established that the appliance was functioning safely, three and half weeks later the tenant died and HSE investigations revealed one, possibly two, blockages in the flue that caused fumes to be discharged back into the property.
Clive Speed, Claims Service Manager, Zurich Municipal, says: “It is a huge issue for HAs, as you can never guarantee that this is being done. Just because the HA has informed the tenant this is their responsibility, this does not mean they are discharging the responsibility. There could be a risk to life and it can’t be brushed aside. There are also inherent dangers for HAs if the cleaning and maintenance of these fires is not managed consistently throughout the country.” This issue is particularly relevant to mining, or former mining, communities in the north-east, Wales, Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire, where there are still a lot of solid fuel appliances.
Rod Searl of Crutes law firm, which represented the HA, says: “The case shows that the risks cannot be removed altogether but can be substantially reduced by a proactive system.” Although the HSE inspector recommended that tenants should carry out the necessary cleaning, the challenge for the social housing industry is that it cannot, in practice, place the obligation on a tenant to look after a solid fuel fire. It therefore needs to have a more robust system of maintenance, rather than relying on the tenant. The HA has now taken on the responsibility for sweeping chimneys at six month intervals and started a programme of monthly cleaning of the throat plates. It is also in consultation with tenants with solid fuel appliances with the view to replacing with a gas central heating system.
Best practice
- Find out what is appropriate fuel from local approved coal merchant
- Make sure there is an adequate supply of air for the fuel to burn correctly
- Make sure there is an air brick or grille installed if the property has double glazing or draught proofing
- Never seal up air bricks or grilles.
- Flues and throat plates should be swept clean every month
- Chimneys must be swept once a year, maybe more frequently if used continuously
- Remove ash before filling up with new fuel, as appliances will not burn properly and may be damaged if there is a build-up of ash
- Since October 2010, it has been a legal requirement to fit a carbon monoxide detector if a new solid fuel appliance is installed.
Useful information
HSE: www.hse.gov.uk
For further information on solid fuel appliances, go to http://guide.hetas.co.uk/guide.html
