Hints From Heloise

Dear Heloise: You did your readers a tremendous service by providing excellent advice in your response to a letter on carbon monoxide. We at the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission confront the tragedy of 250 children and adults dying needlessly each year because of carbon monoxide poisoning from household appliances. We are extremely concerned about this danger and we have a free brochure on this dangerous gas that anyone can get by calling our toll-free hotline at 1-800-638-2772.

Stoves, furnaces, vents and chimneys should be examined regularly by a professional. Never burn charcoal indoors or in a garage; never use a gas range or oven for heating; never use unvented gas-burning appliances in a closed room; and never leave a car running in a garage. For additional safety, consumers should install carbon monoxide detectors in their homes.

Carbon monoxide is a silent killer. Like many of the dangers faced by consumers, people often don’t know about it until it’s too late.

Thank you for spreading the word on the dangers of carbon monoxide, and for letting people know the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is here to help keep families safe in their homes. - Ann Brown, chairman, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission