The Importance Of Having Carbon Monoxide Detectors In Your Home

With the cold weather just around the corner our homes will soon be tightly sealed and our furnaces working to keep to keep us warm. With today's tightly sealed and well insulated homes, carbon monoxide can accumulate to hazardous levels in a short period of time. Therefore, it's critical to have working carbon monoxide detectors in your home. Carbon Monoxide is the leading cause of accidental poisoning deaths in America, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). 1,500 people die annually due to accidental carbon monoxide poisoning, and additional 10,000 seek medical attention. Because CO poisoning can resemble other common ailments, it's important to recognize the symptoms and seek medical attention if you think you or a family member has been sickened by carbon monoxide. Symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning may include:

• Dull headache
• Weakness
• Dizziness
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Shortness of breath
• Confusion
• Blurred vision
• Loss of consciousness

Installing Carbon Monoxide Detectors

Proper placement of a CO detector is important. If you only have one carbon monoxide detector, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) recommends that it be near the sleeping area, where it will wake you if you are asleep. We recommend having a CO detector on every level of your home directly above or beside fuel-burning appliances to alert you as soon as possible of a CO leak.

How Can You Prevent Carbon Monoxide From Accumulating In Your Home?

An annual heating system tune-up is essential to maintaining the safety and reliability of your gas furnace. Your technician will clean and check the furnace burners and test for the presence of carbon monoxide. Other fuel burning appliances such as gas water heaters, dryers and other appliances should be checked to ensure they are properly vented to the outside of the house.