Tips to Safely Heat Your Home This Winter

Every year over 20,000 people visit the emergency room as a result of carbon monoxide poisoning. This odorless and colorless gas is referred to as the silent killer because it’s essentially undetectable without a carbon monoxide detector

Carbon monoxide, according to 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 colder months when people are trying to heat their homes. To help keep your family safe, Stevenson Service Experts is here with some tips to safety heat your home. 

  • Put in a CO detector on every floor of your home and replace the batteries annually. 
  • Keep all likely sources of combustion, such as bedding, paper, or clothing, at least three feet away from furnaces, space heaters, fire places, or stoves. 
  • Before igniting a fire in the fireplace, be sure to check to ensure the chimney damper is open and unblocked. 
  • Don’t leave portable heaters or fireplaces unwatched. Shut off space heaters and confirm all embers in the fireplace are fully extinguished before going to bed or leaving home. 
  • Space heaters should always be placed on the floor, and on a hard, incombustible surface, like concrete or tile. Keep kids and pets away from space heaters. 
  • When buying a new space heater, purchase a model that turns off automatically if the heater falls over. 
  • Don’t use a cooking range to increase the temperature in your home. 
  • Have wood and coal stoves, fireplaces, chimneys and gas or oil furnaces professionally inspected and cleaned annually. 

The ultimate thing you can do for your heating system is to make sure it’s not only all set to keep your family warm all winter but also safe, is to call for your heating tune-up. During your furnace tune-up, Stevenson Service Experts will check to ensure your heating equipment is operating safely with a total multi-point inspection and cleaning. Call 614-334-3192 today and ask how you can save on a fall tune-up through November 25th.