While in use, heaters lower humidity levels in your home and force hot air through dusty, dirty vents, filters and ducts, if poorly maintained. Constantly breathing extremely warm, dry air that may contain fungi, mold and mildew from the vents can affect your skin, nose, throat and eyes.
Symptoms of Heater Sickness
Here are a few common symptoms to keep an eye out for: Coughing and sneezing. Sinus infections. Allergy symptoms.
If your furnace is not burning properly or if the exhaust vent is blocked or damaged, CO can leak into your home and build up to dangerous levels. CO can cause a range of symptoms, such as: Headache. Dizziness.
Carbon Monoxide: If you're using a gas heater, improper ventilation can lead to carbon monoxide buildup, which is dangerous and can cause symptoms like headaches, dizziness, and nausea.
Gas- and oil-burning furnaces produce carbon monoxide (CO). CO is an invisible, odorless, poison gas that kills without warning. Learn quick facts about carbon monoxide poisoning while using a furnace and how to prevent it.
Respiratory Issues
Did you know that an old or broken furnace can be linked to breathing problems among your household? If your heating system isn't working properly, it can pump dust, mold, and other pathogens into your home air supply. This can cause asthma to worsen, and other breathing related illnesses to pop up.
While in use, heaters lower humidity levels in your home and force hot air through dusty, dirty vents, filters and ducts, if poorly maintained. Constantly breathing extremely warm, dry air that may contain fungi, mold and mildew from the vents can affect your skin, nose, throat and eyes.
While carbon monoxide is a normal byproduct of the combustion heating process, furnaces are designed to keep this gas enclosed and vent it outside the home. A broken furnace can allow carbon monoxide to mix with the home's indoor air supply, creating a potentially deadly situation.
Carbon monoxide is invisible, odorless and tasteless. Inspection helps protect yourself and your family. Install a carbon monoxide detector in your house, and plan to check its battery every time you check your smoke detector batteries.
Fortunately, gas companies put mercaptan in gas, so you can smell it. This substance makes the gas smell like sulfur, or rotten eggs. This is usually a telltale sign that you have a gas leak in your home. Natural gas is odorless, so if you had a leak without this substance, you wouldn't be able to smell it.
At the same time, a furnace naturally produces carbon monoxide on occasion, so if you put the detector too close to the furnace, you will constantly get false alerts.
Signs of poor indoor air quality may include excessive amounts of dust or increased difficulty breathing in your home. People with allergies or other breathing problems will often be some of the first to experience the effects of poor indoor air quality. Sometimes you might even smell the problem before you can see it.
Signs of Carbon Monoxide Leaks
Soot: You may notice soot-like stains on your furnace. The soot stain can have a black, brown or even yellow color. Smell: While carbon monoxide doesn't emit odor, it may get accompanied by other exhaust gases that produce an odor.
A person may always feel nauseous due to a lack of sleep, poor diet, anxiety, or stress. These factors can make a person more susceptible to infection and illness. However, always feeling sick can also signify pregnancy or chronic illness. When sick, a person may experience stomach discomfort and vomiting.
But before you fire it up, be prepared that feeling nice and toasty may also come with a stuffy nose, dry throat, cough or even a headache. These cold-like symptoms are referred to as "heater sickness." “This happens because dust, pollen and other allergens accumulate in your ducts during the warmer months,” Dr.
Is your house making you sick? Don't be surprised if the answer is yes. Toxins, pesticides, gases, mites, and molds are everywhere, and the more you're exposed to them, the greater your risk for developing the health problems they can cause.
Over time, as your furnace operates, dust and debris accumulate within the system, including the burners, heat exchanger, and ductwork. If left unaddressed, these particles can circulate throughout your home, reducing air quality and potentially triggering allergies, asthma, and other respiratory conditions.
A gas furnace should have a vibrant or bright blue flame. When you see a weak and wavy or flickering flame, this indicates gas is not being completely burned. Pilot light color changes are another indicator that carbon monoxide is not venting away from the system safely.
“When you turn on your heater for the first time, dust, pollen and other indoor allergens may cause sinus congestion,” says Dr.
Coughing: You may experience coughing due to a dry throat and nasal passages. Allergies: Your allergies may act up due to allergens, such as dust and pollen, being blown into your air. Headaches: You can suffer from migraines and sinus headaches due to clogged sinuses and smells from mold, fungus, and dust.
Gas furnaces and other appliances can cause outdoor air pollution and harm health. Although venting gas appliances is the best way to reduce risk within the home, emissions don't simply disappear when they make it outdoors, but instead circulate within communities.
"The mucous membranes can dry out, crack a little, allowing viruses to seed and produce disease," said physician assistant Lou Melini. That is what can happen in a hot home. "To crank it up to 86 degrees, I think that's a bit excessive. It's drying and counterproductive," Melini said.