Fridges and CO2

[fossyant]

It's called a stuffy meeting room without fresh air. Get this loads at my works as it's super enviromentally friendly, but the meeting rooms get stuffy if full, as do classrooms. Outside the rooms the system works, close the door on a room, it soon gets stuffy.

 

[roubaixtuesday]

It came from an unhinged and unprincipled manager.

The manager is talking bollix.

 

[Drago]

Even now?

I don't think they wear out terribly quickly.

 

[Jameshow]

Very hard to think of any mechanism for this. Where did the suggestion come from?

There are fridges which are gas powered and do emit Co2

https://home.howstuffworks.com/refrigerator5.htm

3 way caravan fridges usually

 

[si_c]

No fridge will emit CO2 as part of normal operation unless something has gone horribly wrong. CO2 can be used as a refrigerant (R744) but is unlikely to be in a domestic or commercial fridge - you can check the specifications of the model you have to determine which one you have.

You'll know if there is a refrigerant leak as it'll stop working and in an enclosed space with no ventilation you'll find people starting to feel unwell whilst in the room.

 

[Nibor]

I don't think so either, but a rather demonic manager is suggesting that terrifying CO2 readings in a windowless meeting room when in use will be because there's a fridge running in the corner.

It is because you have several people breathing in a poorly ventillated room

 

[Electric_Andy]

It is because you have several people breathing in a poorly ventillated room

I say this with no exageration - the IT department at my local hospital had about 30 people working in it (and they had a fridge). It was underground, there were no windows, no A/C. They worked like that for over 20 years without anyone having any health issues. The OP's Manager I think needs to get some perspective

 

[ianbarton]

Does a standard domestic electric fridge or freezer emit CO2 when running?
Sure they have carbon footprints from their manufacture and generating the leccy to power them, but were I to turn on a CO2 monitor in my kitchen would they be contributing to the CO2 reading?
Thanks in advance boffins and nerds.

It's the humans in the presumably unventilated room. Either open a window (easiest solution) or shoot a few of the attendees starting with the manager.

 

[roubaixtuesday]

I say this with no exageration - the IT department at my local hospital had about 30 people working in it (and they had a fridge). It was underground, there were no windows, no A/C. They worked like that for over 20 years without anyone having any health issues. The OP's Manager I think needs to get some perspective

Co2 is used as a proxy measure for ventilation, which in turn is an approximation to the spread of airborne diseases like covid.

It's likely that the IT folk passed around flu and colds quickly between one another.