Annually, over 20,000 people go to the emergency room due to carbon monoxide poisoning. The odorless, colorless gas is called the silent killer because it’s virtually undetectable without a carbon monoxide detector.
Carbon monoxide, as specified by the CDC, is produced by fireplaces, boilers, furnaces, stoves, and gas ranges 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, Peitz Service Experts is here with a couple tips to safety warm your home.
- Place a CO detector on each floor of your home and swap out the batteries annually.
- Keep all potential sources of combustion, such as bedding, paper, or clothing, a distance over three feet away from fireplaces, furnaces, stoves, or space heaters.
- Before igniting a fire in the fireplace, always check to confirm the chimney damper is open and unobstructed.
- Do not leave portable heaters or fireplaces alone. Turn off space heaters and ensure all embers in the fireplace are totally extinguished before going to bed or leaving home.
- Space heaters should always be situated on the floor, and on a hard, nonflammable surface, like ceramic tile. Keep kids and furbabies away from space heaters.
- When purchasing a new space heater, purchase a model that turns off automatically if the heater tumbles over.
- Don’t use a stove to warm your home.
- Have fireplaces, chimneys, gas or oil furnaces, and coal and wood stoves professionally checked and cleaned every year.
The ideal thing you can do for your heating system is to ensure it’s not only up to the task of keeping you warm all winter but also safe, is to call for your furnace tune-up. During your furnace tune-up, Peitz will check to make sure your heating system is operating safely with a full multi-point inspection and cleaning. Call 605-223-0307 today and learn how you can save on a heating tune-up through November 25th.