Every year over 20,000 people visit the emergency room because of carbon monoxide poisoning. The odorless, colorless gas is referred to as the silent killer because it’s virtually undetectable without a carbon monoxide detector.
Carbon monoxide, as specified by the CDC, is given off by gas ranges, furnaces, fireplaces, stoves, and boilers so it only makes sense that carbon monoxide poisoning rises during the heating months when people are trying to keep their homes heated. To help keep your family safe, Service Experts Heating & Air Conditioning is here with a couple tips to safety heat your home.
- Install a CO detector on every floor of your home and replace the batteries annually.
- Keep all possible sources of combustion, such as clothing, rugs, or bedding, at least three feet away from furnaces, space heaters, fire places, or stoves.
- Before starting a fire in the fireplace, be sure to check to verify the chimney damper is open and unclogged.
- Do not leave portable heaters or fireplaces alone. Power off space heaters and ensure all embers in the fireplace are totally extinguished before leaving either heating source unattended.
- Space heaters should always be positioned on the floor, and on a hard, nonflammable surface, like ceramic tile. Keep young ones and pets away from space heaters.
- When investing in a new space heater, buy a model that shuts off automatically if the heater tumbles over.
- Do not use a cooking range to increase the temperature in your home.
- Have all stoves, fireplaces, chimneys, and all types of furnaces professionally inspected and cleaned yearly.
The best thing you can do for your heating system is to make sure it’s not only ready to keep your family warm all winter but also safe, is to call for your heating tune-up. During your heating tune-up, Service Experts will check to make sure your furnace is operating safely with a complete multi-point inspection and cleaning. Call (713) 352-7887 today and learn how you can save on a furnace tune-up through November 25th.