'Turning on heating is not without danger', warns IRM

Now that autumn has arrived across Belgium, more people are again turning on the heating in their homes after a long summer season. That brings with it a risk of carbon monoxide intoxication, warns the Royal Meteorological Institute of Belgium (IRM). "Please pay close attention to symptoms such as headache or nausea, as they may be a result of CO poisoning,” says the Institute, which stresses the importance of being extra vigilant during the first use after summer.

The current wet, mild weather conditions are not favourable for the use of heaters, generators, gas furnaces, stoves and fireplaces, according to IRM, especially those that have not yet been cleaned or checked by a certified technician.

CO poisoning is the main form of lethal intoxication in Belgium. The colourless, odourless gas is produced by the incomplete combustion of gas (natural gas or propane and butane), coal, fuel oil, kerosene, gasoline or wood. Heating boilers and gas-powered water heaters are also potential sources of CO.

CO detectors are effective in preventing intoxication by sounding an alarm before dangerous levels of CO accumulate in a space.