From July 1, a service for maintenance and repair of ventilation and chimneys will appear in Kazan

(KZN.RU, January 28, Alena Miroshnichenko). From July 1, Kazan will establish a separate tariff for maintenance of ventilation and chimneys in the amount of 30 and 55 kopecks per square meter, respectively. Today, Iskander Giniyatullin, the deputy head of Executive Committee in charge of housing and communal services, said at the Business Monday that earlier maintenance and repair of ventilation and chimneys was carried out to the detriment of the repair of basic building elements.

Ilsur Metshin, the Mayor of Kazan, noted that residents' questions about the operation of geyser began to come to the Internet reception. He asked the deputy head of the Executive Committee in charge of housing and communal services how the control system works in this area. I. Giniyatullin said that it is necessary to diagnose the state of smoke removal and ventilation systems of apartment buildings. In total, it is necessary to check 2238 houses equipped with geysers and contour boilers with open combustion chambers. According to the results of the inspections, it will be decided either the channels will be repaired, or the geysers need to be replaced with individual heat points for water boiling. Kazan has examples of the implementation of both decisions, said the deputy head of the Executive Committee.

In confirmation of the importance of this work, the speaker gave the following figures. 4 cases of carbon dioxide poisoning of residents of apartment buildings in Kazan were recorded in 2018, 18 people were injured. In the incomplete first month of this year, 3 cases of poisoning have already occurred, 12 people have suffered. There were no casualties. All these incidents occurred in the apartments equipped with a geyser with an open combustion chamber, noticed I. Giniyatullin. He said that all the apartments have plastic windows installed, the test showed the efficiency of ventilation, but subject to the availability of fresh air. “The main cause of carbon monoxide poisoning was the lack of proper air circulation during the work of gas equipment”, said the speaker.

“Apartment houses equipped with geysers were designed taking into account the air permeability of windows and entrance doors. Installation of plastic windows with several crests of seals, as well as entrance doors with seals blocked the air access necessary for normal operation of the ventilation and for the safe operation of gas appliances”, explained the deputy head of the Executive Committee. “The work of kitchen hoods, ventilation in bathrooms in the absence of fresh air can contribute to the intake of combustion products from the chimneys and geyser to the apartment”.

He cited the case of last year's New Year holidays as an example. Then, with the simultaneous operation of the geyser and the stove with closed windows, the included kitchen extractor began to draw smoke gases from the chimney into the kitchen. The lack of oxygen led to incomplete gas combustion in gas appliances, which exacerbated the harmful effects of combustion products. As a result, five people, including three children, got poisoned by carbon monoxide.

I.Giniyatullin noted that the solution to this problem has been known for a long time - special valves with a micro-ventilation system on the windows, providing sufficient fresh air intake and preventing heat loss. Usually, they are already available on modern models of plastic windows. “However, in the old houses, there are the most inexpensive designs or outdated models that do not have these devices. This can lead to the ingress of combustion products from the chimney of one apartment to the chimneys of neighboring apartments. The risk of poisoning with carbon monoxide gas in the absence of fresh air inflows increases”, said the speaker.

Ilsur Metshin, the Mayor of Kazan, instructed Iskander Giniyatullin, the deputy head of the Executive Committee, and the heads of districts to explain to Kazan citizens the methods of checking geysers. “I ask you to promptly convey to the residents how and where they can check the geysers themselves. In case of doubts, invite the experts of “Gorgaz” or the management company. We need to pay special attention to this, because it concerns the safety of people”, said the Mayor.