Each year over 20,000 people visit the emergency room due to carbon monoxide poisoning. This odorless and colorless gas is known as the silent killer because it’s virtually undetectable without a carbon monoxide detector.
Carbon monoxide, according to the CDC, is produced by gas ranges, furnaces, fireplaces, stoves, and boilers so it only makes sense that carbon monoxide poisoning climbs during the heating months when people are trying to keep their homes heated. To help keep your family safe, Fras-Air/General Service Experts is here with a couple tips to safety heat your home.
- Place a CO detector on each floor of your home and replace the batteries annually.
- Keep all potential sources of combustion, such as clothing, rugs, or bedding, a minimum of three feet away from space heaters, stoves, furnaces or fireplaces.
- Before igniting a fire in the fireplace, always check to confirm the chimney damper is open and unobstructed.
- Never leave portable heaters or fireplaces neglected. Turn off space heaters and be sure all embers in the fireplace are completely extinguished before going to bed or leaving home.
- Space heaters should always be positioned on the floor, and on a hard, incombustible surface, like concrete or tile. Keep children and furbabies away from space heaters.
- When investing in a new space heater, buy a model that shuts off automatically if the heater tips over.
- Never use a stove to increase the temperature in your home.
- Have wood and coal stoves, fireplaces, chimneys and gas or oil furnaces professionally inspected and cleaned annually.
The ultimate thing you can do for your heating system is to make sure it’s not only ready to keep you warm all winter but also safe, is to call for your heating tune-up. During your furnace tune-up, Fras-Air/General will check to be sure your heating equipment is operating safely with a full multi-point inspection and cleaning. Call 908-448-2154 today and learn how you can save on a fall tune-up through November 25th.