Hydrogen Sulfide Gas

[SternWake]

Obviously a very unusual event, but they are suspecting that a Lead acid battery internal to a Porsche Cayenne ( under driver's seat) caused the death of two people in Florida.

Having smelled many a battery charging at absorption or equalization voltages, it is hard for me to imagine that they would not have rolled down the windows.
Perhaps the vehicles Hvac system has a carbon filter and played a part, if this is actually what occurred.

Perhaps the toxicology reports are wrong.

This is the only case ever suspected where a battery inside a vehicle caused such a tragic event.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news...oln-dead-hydrogen-sulfide-20161004-story.html

They do say the battery was NOT original to the vehicle and it was not the right battery for the vehicle.

The Original battery would have been an AGM.  Hopefully someone who could afford a Cayenne would not cheap out and replace it with a flooded battery.

Readers on this site with batteries internal to passenger compartment, I recommend putting a voltmeter on dashboard highly visible to driver, with voltage sense wire to any internal battery, AGM or flooded.  It would be hard to ignore 15.5+ volts indicating overcharging, or sub 12.6 volts indicating no charging.

https://www.amazon.com/bayite-wires...d=1475634654&sr=8-1&keywords=3+wire+voltmeter

This model voltmeter can be calibrated and has a third voltage sense wire to attach directly to battery (+)

 

[ArtW]

Volkwagen beetles had internal batteries, too, so do some Mercedes, flooded batteries, hard to feature this happening on a Cayenne and never on a Beetle or those Mercedes models, but there's a first time for everything

 

[romeosierrabravo2]

I doubt it was from the battery. H2S is common near sewers, swamps, oil production, mining, or landfills. It's naturally occurring and is extremely hazardous. It puts off a strong rotten egg smell. I'm guessing they would have left messages, text, something about the smell prior to suffering actual poisoning. Airplanes have lead acid batteries and must be vented and routinely checked. Could be?

I don't think the acid in a battery produces this particular chemical. If they tested and found that particular element , it seems suspicious. I'm guessing after the incident they inhaled the gas from a nearby sewer or swamp source. Crazy either way. I've never felt too good having either batteries or propane sources inside a van/r.v. Not a good idea.

 

[ccbreder]

I have been a Wastewater Plant Operator. I know how H2S smells. I have been around many lead acid batteries charging. While I didn't smell H2S there, the gas can be generated if the battery is over charged. The gas quickly numbs the sense of smell at higher concentrations. But I would suspect CO gas in a running vehicle before H2S from one battery. Here is a battery safety page. http://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/health_concerns

 

[drysailor]

Volkwagen beetles had internal batteries, too, so do some Mercedes, flooded batteries, hard to feature this happening on a Cayenne and never on a Beetle or those Mercedes models, but there's a first time for everything

Bought a VW Bug new in 1974. Had a conventional flooded battery with vented caps under the rear pass seat. Ran it dry several times due to neglect. (lived in a warm climate, drove it every day) It finally failed after 8 years. Looked for corrosion /other mess under the seat, but it still looked new. Guess I did have a window cracked most of the time, but there was no sign of acid vapor or it's effects in the battery area.

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

We had a thread on this about a year ago:

https://vanlivingforum.com/Thread-How-much-of-an-issue-is-battery-off-gassing?pid=144708#pid144708

 

[SternWake]

Offgassing threads will pop up every so often with strong opinions on both sides.

I brought this up as battery offgassing rarely makes headlines.

But we can't be sure what really happened to the two deceased in the article, and I apologize for the clickbait.

perhaps the Mods should delete this thread