If you have a gas furnace and do NOT have a carbon monoxide detector please stop whatever you are doing and get one immediately. With furnaces working overtime, it is essential to have a smoke detector in case of a heat exchanger failure. In mild weather, when furnaces cycle a lot, there is less exposure to carbon monoxide if there is a crack.
Do you run a gas furnace? Do you have a carbon monoxide detector? During these cold winter month, gas furnaces are working overtime and it is absolutely vital you have a carbon monoxide detector. A malfunctioning gas furnace runs the potential of a back draft harmful carbon monoxide into your home.
In addition carbon monoxide poisoning could occur from other unvented combustion appliances, such as portable space heaters and gas stoves. A carbon monoxide is just as important to the safety of your family as a fire alarm.
The scary thing about carbon monoxide is that you can’t see or smell it and at high levels it can kill a person in minutes. Carbon monoxide is produced whenever any fuel such as gas, oil, kerodene, wood, or charcoal is burned. If appliances that burn fuel are maintained and used properly, the mount of CO produced is usually not hazardous. However, if appliances are not working properly or are used incorrectly, dangerous levels of CO can result. Hundreds of people die accidentally every year from CO poisoning caused by malfunctioning or improperly used fuel-burning appliances
Know the Symptoms of CO Poisoning
At moderate levels, you or your family can get severe headaches, become dizzy, mentally confused, nauseated, or faint. You can even die if these levels persist for a long time. Low levels can cause shortness of breath, mild nausea, and mild headaches, and may have longer-term effects on your health. Since many of these symptoms are similar to those of the flu, food poisoning, or other illnesses, you may not think that CO poisoning could be the cause.
