Gas Heaters and Carbon Monoxide
Older gas heaters can leak carbon monoxide without any smell. What to watch for and when to service.
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The risk
Carbon monoxide is a colourless, odourless gas produced when gas burns poorly. A dirty burner, blocked flue, cracked heat exchanger or poor ventilation can let it spill into the room. Symptoms include headaches, dizziness, nausea and tiredness, often mistaken for the flu.
Higher risk situations
- open-flued space heaters and wall furnaces more than ten years old
- heaters that have not been serviced in years
- rooms that have been sealed up with new windows and draught proofing
- exhaust fans running in the same room, pulling flue gases back in
Servicing
Energy Safe Victoria recommends servicing gas heaters at least every two years. A service cleans the heater, checks the flue and ventilation, and tests for spillage and carbon monoxide.
Warning signs
- yellow or orange flames instead of blue
- soot around the heater
- a pilot that keeps going out
- condensation on windows near the heater
- people feeling unwell when the heater is on
If you notice these, turn the heater off, ventilate the room and get it checked.
Never do this
Never use outdoor heaters, barbecues or portable gas cookers indoors or in closed garages. Never block heater vents.
Carbon monoxide alarms
A CO alarm near gas heaters adds an extra layer of protection, but it does not replace servicing.
Landlords
Victorian landlords must arrange gas safety checks every two years.
Older heaters in rentals and family homes
Many Springvale homes still run the gas space heater or wall furnace installed decades ago. If you do not know when yours was last serviced, assume it is overdue. Book a service before winter, when everyone is busy and the heater is about to run every day.
What a service includes
Cleaning the burner and pilot, checking the flue and ventilation, testing for spillage and carbon monoxide, and checking gas pressure and connections.
Springvale ground and pipes
Springvale sits on a mix of sandy loam and heavier clay, and much of the suburb was built in the 1950s and 1960s with earthenware sewer pipes and galvanised or early copper water pipe. Clay joints shift over time and let roots in, rusting galvanised pipe slowly narrows and leaks, and drains under subdivided blocks are often shared between homes. We use drain cameras, locators and pressure tests to see exactly what is going on before anyone digs.
Related services
- Emergency plumbing
- Blocked drains
- Hot water
- Gas fitting
- Hot water replacement
- Heat pumps
- Leaking taps
- Burst pipes
- Toilets
- Leak detection
- Pipe relining
- Stormwater
- Bathrooms and kitchens
- Commercial plumbing
- Grease traps
- Backflow testing
More guides
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