All About Carbon Monoxide
You won’t know it’s there until it strikes! Avoid CO poisoning through proper chimney care and maintenance.
When you are using your fireplace, you probably give little thought to the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning; however, the Chimney Safety Institute of America states that every year over 200 people in the United States die from carbon monoxide poisoning due to the toxic gas entering their homes due to venting problems or leaks in their heating or chimney system. Additionally, 10,000 cases of illnesses due to carbon monoxide poisoning are reported every year. Fortunately, proper maintenance of your chimney, including an annual chimney sweep and inspection from a CSIA-certified chimney sweeping company like Weststar Chimney Sweeps, can prevent any possible carbon monoxide poisoning incidents from occurring in your home.
What does carbon monoxide do to you?
Quite simply, too much carbon monoxide in your bloodstream will kill you, and low levels of exposure to carbon monoxide over a period of time can cause many health problems. Unfortunately, when carbon monoxide is in the air, the protein hemoglobin in your blood would rather latch on to carbon monoxide and ignore life-giving oxygen. Because of this, your body will replace oxygen with carbon monoxide, and this causes greater or lesser levels of your cells suffocating, depending on the duration and intensity of the exposure to carbon monoxide. Low-level exposure to carbon dioxide includes serious side effects like permanent organ and brain damage. The elderly, infants, and people with breathing issues are in more danger to carbon monoxide exposure as their immune systems are compromised. Symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning are similar to the common cold and flu, so it can take some time to diagnose the true problem. If you continue to suffer from headaches, fatigue, or even depression, ask your doctor to check your blood levels of carbon monoxide.
How does carbon monoxide form in my chimney?
A by-product of combustion, carbon monoxide can be found in both gas and wood-burning fireplaces, stoves, and furnaces. If the combustion process is incomplete, more carbon dioxide is formed. Restricted air flow (closed fireplace doors and an unopened damper) is a cause of incomplete combustion as not enough oxygen is able to get in to burn the fuel completely.
How does carbon monoxide get into my house from my chimney?
Several factors lead to the toxic gas leaking into your home. A damaged or deteriorated flue liner allows carbon monoxide to seep through its cracks. Weststar Chimney Sweeps can easily take care of this problem by restoring a damaged flue liner with HeatShield or even replace your old liner with a new stainless steel liner. Other factors that cause carbon monoxide to enter your home are debris clogs, soot build-up, and animal or birds nests obstructing the chimney flue.
How do I prevent carbon monoxide from entering my house?
The best prevention against carbon monoxide leaks is an annual chimney sweeping and inspection from a CSIA-certified company like Weststar Chimney Sweeps. We will ensure your venting system and flue liner are in good shape, and if not, we provide chimney repair services to fine-tune your chimney so that it works efficiently and safely.
If you have any more questions about the dangers of carbon monoxide, contact Weststar Chimney Sweeps, and our staff will be happy to answer them as well as schedule a chimney sweeping and inspection to ensure your home is carbon monoxide-free.