December 12th, 2017
Often known as a silent killer, carbon monoxide (CO) is a colorless and odorless gas that poses a substantial risk to families using fuel-burning heating sources during the winter months. In fact, according to the Home Safety Council’s State of Home Safety inAmerica™ report, CO poisoning accounted for more than 100,000 medical visits in the year studied. The high number of poisonings documented by the Council’s research may be explained by the fact that sixty-seven percent (67 percent) of households studied use fuel-burning appliances as their primary heating sources during the winter months. Nearly a third had woodstoves or fireplaces. If fuel-burning heating sources are defective, improperly vented or poorly maintained, residents of the home are at increased risk for CO poisoning.