Do you enjoy the comfort of your heater on a cold winter day? Unfortunately, that comfort can come at a risk. If you don’t take care of your heater, you could be in danger of carbon monoxide exposure. Find out how working with a company for heating and air repair near me can keep you safe, and learn what other steps you can take to protect your family this holiday season.
What Causes Carbon Dioxide Build-Up?
Before you learn how to keep your family safe from carbon dioxide, you need to learn more about the danger posed by the gas. Carbon dioxide is a deadly poison that comes from combustion. If there is a combustion reaction, you can bet that there will be carbon dioxide expenditure. The gas won’t do much to you in small concentrations but has fatal results in large concentrations.
So what sort of appliances result in carbon dioxide gas? If you have a gas stove, a fireplace, or a generator, you should have concerns about the deadly gas. Similarly, your propane or gas heater could also cause carbon dioxide to build up. Most homeowners don’t realize they have the gas in their homes until it’s too late. They assume their heater is working fine but then experience symptoms of carbon monoxide exposure.
What is Carbon Monoxide?
To sum it up, carbon monoxide is a colorless and odorless gas. It results in the sudden illness and deaths of individuals, so it’s a silent killer. Anytime a fossil fuel burns, you can expect carbon dioxide to be a problem.
Every campfire, car exhaust, and cigarette exudes carbon dioxide. However, the amount from those events isn’t enough to cause problems. If you are exposed to carbon monoxide for an extended period of time or in large quantities, you could experience an array of health issues. Drowsiness, fatigue, and nausea are common symptoms of carbon monoxide exposure.
Because your furnace produces carbon monoxide, there are fans in your system that push the gas out of your home. The fan motors in your furnace keep you safe, and you rely on them more than you think. If you don’t take measures to care for your furnace, you could end up with a carbon monoxide problem.
Tips for Staying Safe
If you don’t want to be at risk for carbon monoxide poisoning, you should take a few measures to keep your system working well. This means working with an air conditioner maintenance service, as well as doing the following:
Use Carbon Monoxide Detectors
Perhaps the most important step you can take is to install carbon monoxide detectors in your home. The equipment detects the gas before it can cause damage to you. As long as you use the detectors as intended and replace the batteries when needed, you can identify the gas early on. While humans can’t detect carbon monoxide, a machine can.
You should have a minimum of one carbon monoxide detector in your home. For the most safety, keep detectors in your bedrooms and on every floor of your home. If that’s not possible, you should at least keep the detector outside your main sleeping area.
If you have questions about the placement of your carbon monoxide detector, consult with your local fire station. They should be able to advise you on the number of detectors and the appropriate placement.
Tune Up Your Furnace
Another way to prevent carbon monoxide from being a danger is to maintain your furnace. Generally, your furnace is a safe piece of equipment. It only becomes a danger when it doesn’t work the way it should. If you don’t provide proper maintenance to your furnace, it could emit carbon monoxide and pose a threat to you.
When your HVAC technician performs a tune-up, they look for trouble with your furnace. In addition to checking for gas leaks, your technician also ensures that the fan works the way it should. You can count on them to keep you and your family safe.
Check Your Chimney and Vents
No matter how moderate the climate may be, you probably rely on your fireplace to keep you warm. You should check your fireplace before you light it, or there’s a risk of carbon monoxide exposure. Although you don’t need to hire a chimney sweep each year, you need to at least hire someone to perform an inspection.
Just as you inspect your chimney, you should inspect your gas furnace vents. Are they clear and free of debris? If you notice any obstructions, remove them. Obstructions can result in a build-up of carbon monoxide fumes.
Work with a Reputable Company for Heating and Air Repair Near Me
On your own, there’s only so much you can do to keep your furnace working well. After all, you can’t make sure there is no carbon monoxide entering your home. You also can’t rely on your detectors to tell you about the presence of the gas. Technology can fail you, and it’s best to protect yourself as much as possible.
For your own safety and peace of mind, you should work with a heating and air company you can trust. They perform annual maintenance, during which time they check for all sorts of issues with your furnace. If you have a problem with your blower fan or with carbon monoxide build-up, you can trust the technician to inform you of the issue.
It all comes down to working with a company you trust. If you use the first person you find on Google, you may not get the best results. It’s in your own interest to research the company and pick someone with a great reputation. Don’t take the decision too lightly.
Call Us for Help
Do you have anyone you can count on to deal with your furnace? If not, give us a call at Reliability Home Services. We’re ready to help you with heating and air repair near me. We understand the importance of keeping you and your furnace safe, and we’re here for you. Call us now to learn more.
