Cold weather brings threat of carbon monoxide problems

I hope that everyone had a nice summer. It’s that time of year when we’ll start using our fireplaces and furnaces. These two necessities provide warmth and comfort to our homes during the winter months. However, if used incorrectly, or not properly maintained, these two heat sources can bring carbon monoxide, or CO, into our homes. This article will help you understand what CO is, how it comes into our homes, and how to protect yourself and your family from suffering CO poisoning.  

Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas that is toxic to humans and animals at high levels. It poisons us when we unknowingly inhale it in an enclosed area, such as in our homes when our windows and doors are closed. After we unknowingly inhale CO, the gas removes the oxygen from our blood. The severity of poisoning will depend on how much we’re exposed to and for how long. Carbon monoxide poisoning will mimic flu symptoms, such as headache, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, and fatigue.  

Carbon monoxide is a naturally occurring byproduct of incomplete combustion. It is produced by the incomplete burning of various fuels, including coal, wood, charcoal, oil, kerosene, propane, and natural gas. Any appliance that uses one of the fuels mentioned above can cause a CO problem. Furnaces are the most widely used appliance during the winter months. Nearly all furnaces in Euclid operate on natural gas. If a furnace isn’t clean or operating properly, carbon monoxide can be brought into your home. This is why it’s very important to have your furnace cleaned every year. We recommend having a professional heating and cooling company service your furnace to ensure its proper operation. It’s also very important to make sure your chimney is cleaned every year and that you only burn dry, seasoned wood. As wood is continuously burned in a fireplace, the smoke and soot attaches itself to the lining of your chimney. Over time, this builds up to make creosote. If a heavy build up of creosote exists, the result can even be a chimney fire. An annual inspection of your chimney is important to make sure nothing is blocking the top of the opening of your chimney. If a blockage exists, carbon monoxide and smoke cannot escape up and out into the outside air and will come back down the chimney and into your home. It’s been our experience that birds can build nests in chimneys, other animals can take up residence in chimneys, and the lining of the chimney can break and cause a blockage. All these things can cause big trouble for those who use a chimney or fireplace. Again, have a professional chimney cleaning company service your chimney. It’s a small fee that will provide you with the peace of mind knowing that your family is not endangered.

The best way to protect your family is to purchase a carbon monoxide detector. We recommend purchasing a detector that plugs into an electrical outlet, provides a digital display, and also is made to accommodate a battery in the event of a power outage. These can be purchased at stores that sell household items. Since CO will distribute evenly throughout the home, we also recommend placing the CO detector near sleeping areas. In the event the detector sounds an alarm, sleeping occupants should hear its loud warning alarm.

A malfunctioning CO detector sounds an intermittent chirp, usually every 30 seconds. Refer to your user’s manual for troubleshooting problems. The average life span of a carbon monoxide detector is about five years. After this time is when one will most likely experience a malfunction. This is when it’s time to purchase another one. There typically isn’t a need to call the fire department for a malfunctioning CO detector.  

An actual build-up of CO will sound a continuous alarm. If a continuous alarm is heard, call us! We will come investigate to find the source of the CO problem. After you call us, remove all occupants from the home and wait outside for us to respond.  

Another important piece of information that can endanger you and your occupants is using a stove to heat your home. In addition to being a fire hazard, a gas stove used to help heat your home is a major source of carbon monoxide within a structure. NEVER use your stove to heat your home!  

The Euclid Fire Department wants you to be safe within your residence. Use the information contained in this article to help protect yourself and your family. Please don’t be a statistic! Thanks for reading and stay safe!