I mentioned a few blogs back about being
called out to my son’s apartment for a potential fire.
Shane and his girlfriend had been out walking the dog and returned to find their apartment hazy with smoke and smelling of burned wire.
Being both his mom and his landlord I was called immediately and we did all the normal checklist things. Felt the walls and ceiling for heat, sniffed to locate a point of ignition. Nothing panned out. The smell continued to thicken the air and we needed answers to sleep peacefully, so we called the fire department. They arrived with lights flashing and sirens blaring at 11:30 pm so the neighbourhood probably wasn't impressed but most assuredly curious.
Shane and his girlfriend mentioned hearing a periodic buzzing sound in the one wall so they concentrated their investigation in that area. The fire department have this thermal heat reading thingy to detect hot spots between the studs. They found nothing but the smell persisted. They left after an hour of searching every square inch of that area and the electrical panel that resides on that particular wall, telling us to phone if the smell worsens or new signs of smoke.
After they left I started thinking that maybe we should test all the plugs so Shane got out the blow dryer and tried it in all the bedroom outlets. Everything seemed to work fine until we got to the lamp by the bed. He tried the switch and the light didn’t come on and when he lifted the lamp I could see the compact fluorescent bulb looked burned at the base. Culprit found! Sure enough it stunk to high heaven but because it was under a stained glass shade it pooled there and leaked the odor out through the shade vent holes slowly. We never even thought to look at bulbs, just concentrated our search in the wall with the panel that was close to the door. After the initial blast of smoke from the bulb giving up the ghost, everything in the room had been permeated with the stench so it seemed to come from everywhere and fooled us.
So we carefully disposed of the bulb and cleaned up the area. That made for an easier sleep, so much better than thinking there was a wire shorting in the wall.
So today, Shane said the buzzing sound occurred again last night and was even louder so I called an electrician to check it out. They couldn't find anything and of course the sound didn’t happen while they were there....like a ping in the engine that vanishes when the car reaches the garage. So the only recourse was to take a gyprock saw to the walls, open them up and have a good look inside. Well. There’s a gash about five feet long and a foot and a half high traveling across the wall. Every plug and switch was checked and the panel was closely examined. Nothing seemed to be out of place short of a hive of bees in the wall. They did notice one circuit was overloaded and they added a few new breakers to distribute the load evenly...since then no buzzing has been heard. Fingers crossed!
Thank goodness both Shane and I are skilled in the gyprock department. I’m a mudder from way back. Hubby and I have renovated two houses so I’m no stranger to spackle. I claim to have several inches of mud dust in my lungs, probably why I weigh so much! I can do a seam smoother than a baby’s bottom. That reminds me of a story of renovating and painting the dining room at our first house and the disaster of breaking the wedding gift my mother bought me. I should have packed it away but she had died a few months before and it was a comfort to have around. Big mistake and a story for another time.
So what we’ve learned is that the compact fluorescent bulbs end their lives in a bit of a meltdown. I looked it up and they are designed to go out with a burn and a bad smell. Of all the CFB’s in my house I’ve never known this to happen. They last a long time so I guess they’re all still in their prime. In the future if I smell something burning and detect an acrid smoky stench I’ll check the lamps and open the windows immediately. The smell of burning plastic gave me a headache and my glands were puffed for days from the toxins. I’m sharing this story in case you don’t know this. If you smell smoke or something burning, check your bulbs before calling in the fire brigade.
called out to my son’s apartment for a potential fire.
Shane and his girlfriend had been out walking the dog and returned to find their apartment hazy with smoke and smelling of burned wire.
Being both his mom and his landlord I was called immediately and we did all the normal checklist things. Felt the walls and ceiling for heat, sniffed to locate a point of ignition. Nothing panned out. The smell continued to thicken the air and we needed answers to sleep peacefully, so we called the fire department. They arrived with lights flashing and sirens blaring at 11:30 pm so the neighbourhood probably wasn't impressed but most assuredly curious.
Shane and his girlfriend mentioned hearing a periodic buzzing sound in the one wall so they concentrated their investigation in that area. The fire department have this thermal heat reading thingy to detect hot spots between the studs. They found nothing but the smell persisted. They left after an hour of searching every square inch of that area and the electrical panel that resides on that particular wall, telling us to phone if the smell worsens or new signs of smoke.
After they left I started thinking that maybe we should test all the plugs so Shane got out the blow dryer and tried it in all the bedroom outlets. Everything seemed to work fine until we got to the lamp by the bed. He tried the switch and the light didn’t come on and when he lifted the lamp I could see the compact fluorescent bulb looked burned at the base. Culprit found! Sure enough it stunk to high heaven but because it was under a stained glass shade it pooled there and leaked the odor out through the shade vent holes slowly. We never even thought to look at bulbs, just concentrated our search in the wall with the panel that was close to the door. After the initial blast of smoke from the bulb giving up the ghost, everything in the room had been permeated with the stench so it seemed to come from everywhere and fooled us.
So we carefully disposed of the bulb and cleaned up the area. That made for an easier sleep, so much better than thinking there was a wire shorting in the wall.
So today, Shane said the buzzing sound occurred again last night and was even louder so I called an electrician to check it out. They couldn't find anything and of course the sound didn’t happen while they were there....like a ping in the engine that vanishes when the car reaches the garage. So the only recourse was to take a gyprock saw to the walls, open them up and have a good look inside. Well. There’s a gash about five feet long and a foot and a half high traveling across the wall. Every plug and switch was checked and the panel was closely examined. Nothing seemed to be out of place short of a hive of bees in the wall. They did notice one circuit was overloaded and they added a few new breakers to distribute the load evenly...since then no buzzing has been heard. Fingers crossed!
Thank goodness both Shane and I are skilled in the gyprock department. I’m a mudder from way back. Hubby and I have renovated two houses so I’m no stranger to spackle. I claim to have several inches of mud dust in my lungs, probably why I weigh so much! I can do a seam smoother than a baby’s bottom. That reminds me of a story of renovating and painting the dining room at our first house and the disaster of breaking the wedding gift my mother bought me. I should have packed it away but she had died a few months before and it was a comfort to have around. Big mistake and a story for another time.
So what we’ve learned is that the compact fluorescent bulbs end their lives in a bit of a meltdown. I looked it up and they are designed to go out with a burn and a bad smell. Of all the CFB’s in my house I’ve never known this to happen. They last a long time so I guess they’re all still in their prime. In the future if I smell something burning and detect an acrid smoky stench I’ll check the lamps and open the windows immediately. The smell of burning plastic gave me a headache and my glands were puffed for days from the toxins. I’m sharing this story in case you don’t know this. If you smell smoke or something burning, check your bulbs before calling in the fire brigade.
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