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Be Aware Of Carbon Monoxide Build Up

When you think about burning a fire in your fireplace, your thoughts usually turn to a warm, crackling fire. One that brings comfort to your living room. Maybe to you it means a cozy night playing games and eating popcorn with your family. Perhaps, it means a romantic candlelit dinner for two. It’s fair to say that a fire can evoke great memories. However, it’s important to be aware that the proper precautions must be taken. This is so that you aren’t surprised by an unwelcome concern – carbon monoxide poisoning!

Carbon Monoxide Explained

Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless gas that is produced when you burn fuel. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website states that this can be any type of fuel. Whether it be your car, furnace, or even your fireplace. If carbon monoxide is allowed to build up in your house, it can cause illness. Consequently, in the worst case scenario, even death.

Carbon Monoxide Symptoms

According to the Mayo Clinic website, if you do have a high level of carbon monoxide in your home, certain symptoms may appear. Some of these are shortness of breath, confusion, nausea and/or vomiting. Also, a dull headache, blurred vision, or in extreme cases, loss of consciousness.

How Does Carbon Monoxide Invade Your Home?

Modern homes are built to be energy efficient, and that is definitely a plus on the heating bill. They are built especially tight, and that means cold air can’t get in. However, the carbon monoxide that is produced needs a place to escape. In the older homes, those cracks that let the air in also let the carbon dioxide out. So, if you have a new home that’s too airtight, you may want to consider something as simple as having a window cracked slightly when you have a fire burning.

What To Do

Do you want to be sure that you won’t have a carbon monoxide build up? If so, the best thing to do is to make sure that your chimney system is cleaned and inspected on an annual basis. The Chimney Safety Institute of America, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the National Fire Protection Agency, and the American Lung Association are just a few of the agencies that emphasize the importance of annual inspection and cleaning. Also mentioning having it done by a CSIA certified professional, like those at Chim Cheroo Chimney Service! Also, make sure that you have a working carbon monoxide detector. In addition, that you also check and change the batteries on a regular basis.

Who to Call

If you don’t remember when your last chimney cleaning happened, or if you’re worried about the possibility of carbon monoxide build up, you want to call the best in the business. That means the expert technicians at Chim Cheroo Chimney Service. They stay up to date on all the latest regulations and chimney cleaning/inspecting techniques. Your safety is their highest concern, and they will take special care to make sure that your chimney is cleaned and in the best state of repair!

Looking for Quality Chimney Care in the Mansfield, Ohio Area

Fireplaces add warmth, beauty, and comfort to many homes. A well-maintained, attractive fireplace can also increase the value of a home. But those who own homes with fireplaces know that, without proper maintenance, dangers exist. Chim-Cheroo Chimney Service, Inc. offers quality services which work to prevent these dangers.

Carbon Monoxide Poisoning:

According to the CSIA (Chimney Safety Institute of America) carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless gas that can build up in homes with fireplaces that are improperly vented. Symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning can include headache, shortness of breath, lightheadedness, and, if these symptoms are ignored or if concentrations of carbon monoxide get too high, loss of consciousness or death. Thorough inspection and cleaning of your chimney can prevent a build-up of this potentially deadly chemical.

Chimney Fires:

Burning wood in your fireplace can cause a buildup of creosote, a tar-like, sticky substance that coats the inside of your chimney. Creosote is highly flammable, and as it builds up in your chimney, the heat from additional fires in your fireplace can cause it to ignite and cause a fire in the chimney itself. Although there are products sold which claim to prevent creosote build-up, Washington Public Fire Educators, as well as CSIA, have not embraced these claims. Yearly fireplace inspections and cleaning help with early detection of creosote build-up, thus working to prevent chimney fires.

Chimney Failure:

Inspectopedia reports some of the following causes of chimney failure. Chimney movement due to improper chimney construction can cause leaning, cracks in the masonry, or defective footing. Water leaks at the top of the chimney can cause water to seep down into the masonry, and in climates with freezing temperatures, this water can freeze, causing cracks in the chimney to occur. If, during construction, not enough space for movement was left as the interior of the chimney heats up, thermal expansion cracks can occur.

Chim Cheroo Chimney Service, Inc. offers inspections, cleanings, and other services that will keep your fireplace looking great and running great. Annual inspections are performed by chimney sweeps who have met a high set of standards: they have undergone thorough background checks, are fully educated in the latest chimney sweeping techniques, and are certified through CSIA. Chim Cheroo Chimney Service also offers many other services, including chimney cleaning, relining, leak and flashing repair, waterproofing, tuckpointing, crown repair, firebox rebuilds, and chimney rebuilds and restoration.

Anyone looking for quality chimney care in the Mansfield, Ohio area need look no further. Chim Cheroo Chimney Service, Inc. offers superior care and service for chimneys and fireplaces, and as an added bonus, their masonry services come with a two-year warranty. If anything happens to your fireplace or chimney that was caused by something Chim Cheroo Chimney Service did or did not do, the needed repairs will be made free of charge (as long as no other company has worked on the problem area since the repairs were made.)