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IV. Safety and Safety Features
A) Carbon Monoxide Safety
Stay out of gasifier gas at all times.
Gasifiers intentionally generate carbon monoxide and other volatile organic gases as an interim
step before combustion of the gas in a flare or engine. While these gasses are produced in a closed
system under vacuum on-demand, use caution in using the equipment correctly so as not to be exposed
these harmful gasses. Always use a gasifier outdoors, and with extensive ventilation. Always stay out
of the smoke and/or produced gas before it is combusted. This is NOT typical campfire smoke, even
though it may smell similar. The carbon monoxide concentrations in gasifier gas are higher than in
other "smokes". If you do not stay out of the smoke, you can get in trouble quickly, usually before you
realize it, please be aware.
Even though the gasifier system may be turned off, the gasses will still be inside the system.
Please take note that when you are doing maintenance (especially opening the hopper or the gas
filter) that the system still contains large amounts of producer gas.
Always have a carbon monoxide meter in the area where you are working.
Carbon monoxide
meters are included with the GEK Gasifier Kit and are also available at hardware stores in the
smoke detector section.
Review the health guidelines of carbon monoxide:
http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/healthguidelines/carbonmonoxide/
B) Safety with Combustible Gases
Please pressure test the system before operation if a leak is suspected.
While we do perform pressure tests on the system to detect for leaks before all of our
shipments, seals may become compromised during shipping or over many hours of running. Because
the system operates under a vacuum, gaps in the system will allow air to leak into the system (instead
of producer gas/CO leaking out of the system). If enough air is allowed into into the system (typically a
larger leak instead of a very tiny pinhole), there is a potential for stoichiometric mixtures of
air/producer gas to occur inside the system. This leaves a potential for a lighting event to occur inside
the system causing a quick pressure expansion event. The pressure release valves are intended to
release this pressure safely if this does occur.
Do not operate the GEK Gasifier Kit or PowerPallet with an empty hopper or gas filter.
If the reactor becomes empty of feedstock, the air allowed into the gasifier will no longer be
consumed in combustion. Air into the system that includes the hopper volume of wood gas has the
potential to rapidly expand. While a release valve is located on the hopper, this can potentially damage
the hopper lid. An alarm will sound and the LCD screen will display a warning when the auger detects
that the system is close to running out of feedstock.
On start up, air may be in the system, but will be purged out in time before combustible gases are
formed. However, an empty gas filter has the potential to contain a large volume air and gas mixture in
the system. Please never run without filter media in the gas filter.
C) System Safety
Caution, hot surfaces.
The gas cowling of the GEK Gasifier tends to get very hot during operation. The flare stack also
ALL Power Labs, Inc
Berkeley, CA
