Each year over 20,000 people end up in the hospital as a result of carbon monoxide poisoning. This colorless, odorless gas is called the silent killer because it’s essentially undetectable without a carbon monoxide detector.
Carbon monoxide, as specified by the CDC, is put off by stoves, gas ranges, boilers, furnaces, and fireplaces so it only makes sense that carbon monoxide poisoning rises during the colder months when people are trying to warm their homes. To help keep your family safe, Service Experts Heating & Air Conditioning is here with a couple tips to safety heat your home.
- Put in a CO detector on all floors of your home and replace the batteries every year.
- Keep all potential sources of combustion, such as paper, clothing, bedding, or rugs, a distance over three feet away from fireplaces, furnaces, stoves, or space heaters.
- Before igniting a fire in the fireplace, be sure to check to verify the chimney damper is open and unblocked.
- Do not leave portable heaters or fireplaces alone. Turn off space heaters and make sure all embers in the fireplace are fully extinguished before leaving the area.
- Space heaters should always be situated on the floor, and on a hard, nonflammable surface, like ceramic tile. Keep children and animals away from space heaters.
- When buying a new space heater, invest in a model that shuts off automatically if the heater tumbles over.
- Do not use a cooking range to warm your home.
- Have all stoves, fireplaces, chimneys, and all types of furnaces professionally checked and cleaned yearly.
The ultimate thing you can do for your heating system is to be sure it’s not only up to the task of keeping your home warm all winter but also safe, is to schedule your heating tune-up. During your fall tune-up, Service Experts will check to be sure your heating equipment is operating safely with a total multi-point inspection and cleaning. Call 919-578-4329 today and find out how you can save on a fall tune-up through November 25th.