Annually, over 20,000 people go to the ER due to carbon monoxide poisoning. The odorless, colorless gas is known as the silent killer because it’s practically undetectable without a carbon monoxide detector.
Carbon monoxide, as confirmed by the CDC, is given off by stoves, gas ranges, boilers, furnaces, and fireplaces so it only makes sense that carbon monoxide poisoning increases during the winter months when people are trying to warm their homes. To help keep your home safe, Golden Seal Service Experts is here with a few tips to safety warm your home.
- Place a CO detector on each floor of your home and change the batteries yearly.
- Keep all likely sources of combustion, such as paper, clothing, bedding, or rugs, at least three feet away from fireplaces, furnaces, stoves, or space heaters.
- Before igniting a fire in the fireplace, make sure you check to ensure the chimney damper is open and unblocked.
- Do not leave portable heaters or fireplaces neglected. Power off space heaters and make sure all embers in the fireplace are completely extinguished before going to bed or leaving home.
- Space heaters should always be situated on the floor, and on a hard, incombustible surface, like concrete or tile. Keep kids and animals away from space heaters.
- When investing in a new space heater, purchase a model that powers off automatically if the heater tumbles over.
- Never use a stove to increase the temperature in your home.
- Have fireplaces, chimneys, gas or oil furnaces, and coal and wood stoves professionally examined and cleaned every year.
The best thing you can do for your furnace is to be sure it’s not only all set to keep you warm all winter but also safe, is to schedule your furnace tune-up. During your heating tune-up, Golden Seal will check to be sure your heating equipment is operating safely with a complete multi-point inspection and cleaning. Call 630-246-2698 today and learn how you can save on a heating tune-up through November 25th.