Any fuel-burning appliance can release carbon monoxide (CO) into your home, potentially making you sick. CO is an odorless and colorless gas and can be very dangerous and sometimes deadly. Some symptoms of CO poisoning are:
- Vomiting
- Headaches
- Dizziness
- Weakness
- Upset stomach
Symptoms are commonly described as flu-like. Breathing in too much CO can make you pass out or kill you. Click here to learn more about CO poisoning symptoms.
In this post, I’ll go through a few things I’ve personally seen as an HVAC expert when it comes to heaters making people sick. I’ll also cover a few different ways you can prevent your heater from making you sick.
Loose or Broken Vent Pipe
Throughout my years on the job, I’ve seen many gas furnaces with loose or broken vent pipes. A broken or loose vent pipe can fill the room the furnace is in with CO. This is especially dangerous if the furnace is in an enclosed space, like a closet or garage.
Never attempt DIY repairs on a vent pipe. They need to be attached appropriately and by a professional. If you need us to fix your furnace vent pipe, call us or book an appointment online.
Vents in the Garage
People often add vents to their garage when they want to use it as a gym or hobby space. However, it can be dangerous to have a return vent in your garage. If you have a running car in your garage, and your HVAC system is running, this will allow carbon monoxide into the home.
If you want to keep your vent in your garage, one thing you can do is to add a zone board to your system. Essentially, this means you’ll have two thermostats. One will control the temperature in your home, and the other the temperature in the garage.
It will have motorized dampers, so when you are running a car in the garage, you can set the garage thermostat to the off position so the dampers will close. This means no CO will be transferred into the house through the ducts.
Cracked Heat Exchanger
A cracked heat exchanger is one of the most common reasons for CO in the home. Unfortunately, this issue is also difficult for homeowners to diagnose. Inside your furnace is a heat exchanger, and as the furnace gets older or has not been properly maintained, it will eventually begin to crack. Most of the time, it is not visible and can only be found with proper tools and testing from a qualified HVAC technician.
When your heat exchanger cracks, you’ll have no idea. There is no fault code, safety switch, or any kind of indication. Running your heater with a cracked heat exchanger will send CO into your home without you even knowing.
That’s why we recommend regular heater inspections. This will ensure it’s safe to run your heater when you need it. These visits will also help you find small problems or symptoms that could lead to larger problems that become costly, and find ways to avoid them from happening.
Want To Keep Your Heater From Making You Sick? Install a Carbon Monoxide Detector
Carbon monoxide detectors are one of the easiest and least expensive ways to keep you and your family safe from CO. There are many different types available on the market. Some are battery-powered, while others need to be plugged in. Either way, when the CO levels get too high, the detector will go off as a warning. You can purchase a CO detector at most hardware stores.
