Healthy Houses can mean Healthy People
We can sometimes take our safe, heated homes for granted. That is, until the power goes out or something goes awry!
The last few weeks we’ve been singing the praises of heat pumps – ductless heat pumps, in particular. However if you are not currently planning to change your heat system, you need to know how to deal with what you have to safely heat your house this winter
Here is some maintenance and safety advice for several kinds of heat sources.
WOOD STOVES, FIREPLACES
Fireplaces are not intended or built to heat a home, but most folks like to use them none and then.
Those who use a woodstove to heat their home or partially heat it, also need to listen up: Make sure you have your chimney inspected and cleaned every year to prevent creosote buildup.
Burning dry wood keeps the creosote down and keeping that wood 25 feet from your living space, if possible, can help keep the insects out.
With the holiday season around the corner, be thinking ahead if you will have any young visitors (or perhaps unsteady older ones) who will be near your hot wood stove. Those stoves can get hot! You may want to position furniture differently or have a screen handy for safety’s sake.
OIL FURNACE NEEDS A PEAK
While not often installed in newer homes, plenty of homes on the Twin Harbors have oil furnaces. (And those folks are enjoying lowered fuel prices right now.)
If that applies to you, it’s important to have your furnace serviced, cleaned and inspected before the winter begins. Not only will the maintenance make your furnace more efficient – saving you money – it will also help prevent the hassle of having it break down when you least expect it.
Additionally, having your furnace serviced cleaned and inspected, can help prevent fire.
GAS INSERT OR HEATER
If you use natural gas in your home for cooking and/or heating, now is a good time to make sure you’ve got plenty in the tank before heading into our chilly season.
It’s also a great time to service and inspect your gas insert or heater.
Just like any other heating appliances, maintain distance between it and any type of combustibles including furniture, curtains and paper.
BASEBOARD, CADET HEATERS
Many people on the Twin Harbors have electric baseboard heaters or wall register (cadet) heaters. These also need some attention at the beginning of the heating season.
When we aren’t using the heaters during the summer months, we can become lax in keeping flammable items too near them.
Clean your wall register (cadet) or baseboard-type heaters of dust and foreign objects. Then maintain 3 feet of clearance from the heat source.
Likely you’ve already started them up for the season. If you haven’t dusted them off, take a warm day to turn them off and give them a thorough dusting.
REPLACE BATTERIES IN ALARMS
Fire can be ferocious and fast. So, while tending to your heating appliance, make sure you also check your smoke alarms. Getting out quickly is the best way to survive a fire, and an alarm gives you extra time to do that.
Many of us use the clock-changing “Fall Back” and Spring Forward days to check your alarms and change those batteries. If you missed doing so last weekend, do it today. And, make sure each of the bedrooms in your home has a working smoke alarm.
One little reminder: Sometimes an alarm, usually one close to the kitchen, goes off when someone burns toast and the quick way to silence it is to take out the battery. The problem with this, firefighters say, is that folks forget to put the battery back in. They’ve attended many a fire with smoke alarms present, but lacking their battery. Don’t let that be your house.
INSTALL CARBON MONOXIDE ALARM
While you’re thinking about safety, consider installing a carbon monoxide alarm in your home.
Carbon monoxide is an odorless gas that can cause sickness or even death. It is a natural result of burning fossil fuels – oil, wood, gas – and can become a hazard if the appliances aren’t used as intended or are used without proper ventilation.
Dave Murnen and Pat Beaty are construction specialists at NeighborWorks® of Grays Harbor County, where Murnen is the executive director. This is a non-profit organization committed to creating safe and affordable housing for all residents of Grays Harbor County.
Do you have questions about home repair, renting, remodeling or becoming a homeowner? Call us at 533-7828, write us or visit us at 710 E. Market St. in Aberdeen.
