Each year over 20,000 people end up in the hospital as a result of carbon monoxide poisoning. This colorless, odorless gas is referred to as the silent killer because it’s essentially undetectable without a carbon monoxide detector.
Carbon monoxide, as specified by the CDC, is put off by gas ranges, furnaces, fireplaces, stoves, and boilers so it only makes sense that carbon monoxide poisoning climbs during the winter months when people are trying to keep their homes heated. To help keep your home safe, Sunbeam Service Experts is here with a few tips to safety heat your home.
- Put in a CO detector on each floor of your home and replace the batteries annually.
- Keep all possible sources of combustion, such as clothing, rugs, or bedding, a distance over three feet away from space heaters, stoves, furnaces or fireplaces.
- Before lighting a fire in the fireplace, be sure to check to confirm the chimney damper is open and unblocked.
- Never leave portable heaters or fireplaces unattended. Shut off space heaters and make sure all embers in the fireplace are totally extinguished before leaving either heating source unattended.
- Space heaters should always be situated on the floor, and on a hard, fire-resistant surface, like porcelain tile. Keep children and pets away from space heaters.
- When purchasing a new space heater, invest in a model that powers off automatically if the heater falls over.
- Never use a cooking range to increase the temperature in your home.
- Have fireplaces, chimneys, gas or oil furnaces, and coal and wood stoves professionally checked and cleaned annually.
The ideal thing you can do for your heating equipment is to be sure it’s not only all set to keep you warm all winter but also safe, is to call for your furnace tune-up. During your furnace tune-up, Sunbeam will check to make sure your heating system is operating safely with a complete multi-point inspection and cleaning. Call 716-427-6807 today and find out how you can save on a fall tune-up through November 25th.