With December comes the desire to shut the windows and doors, seal all the cracks from the threat of cold drafts and crank up the heater to keep warm during the long Routt County winter.

But be careful not to shut up the house too tight, warns Bob Major, vice president of Major Heating. Proper ventilation can save lives from carbon monoxide poisoning.

On Friday, a family of four from Denver was found dead in an Aspen home, the victims of apparent carbon monoxide poisoning. Friends discovered the Lofgren family, with father Parker, mother Caroline, and children Owen, 10, and Sophie, 8, after they spent the night in a house with no carbon monoxide detector.

Initial reports from the scene showed high levels of the gas coming from a malfunctioning gas heater and snowmelt system, according to The Aspen Times.

Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless and non-irritating gas that causes fatigue and nausea. It is created when a fuel source – propane, kerosene, wood or gas, among others – does not fully burn. The carbon monoxide then replaces oxygen in the air, leading to sickness and suffocation.

Major said poorly installed and maintained equipment, along with blocked exhaust routes, are the biggest risk factors he sees in Steamboat homes.

“What happens a lot in the mountains is the snow will rip the flues off,” he said. “The flue gas naturally wants to vent up and out the flue pipe, so if the snow or an ice dam comes down and crushes the flue, it pinches it so it can’t vent.”

That means the gas escapes by other means – through the house.

Propane tanks that almost are empty also cause an excess of carbon monoxide, Major said. If the flame becomes yellow or soot begins to build up near the exhaust pipes, the flue can become blocked.

Even more than these concerns, however, Major said it’s important to ensure all equipment is installed properly and that air vents remain open.

Major and his team were inspecting a new $5 million house in Aspen two weeks ago when they noticed the exhaust vent wasn’t hooked up on a heating unit, dumping the gas back into the house.

Homeowners also can be tempted to stop up vents that allow cold air into the house, but those are used to allow airflow through the house, keeping the carbon monoxide levels low.

“It’s more having the qualified people take care of your system, who know what they’re doing,” Major said.

Steamboat’s response

Another key component is a carbon monoxide detector, said Steamboat Springs Fire Rescue public education coordinator Deb Funston.

Alarms can be purchased for $19.99 to $59.99 at Ace at the Curve and $19.97 to $46.17 at Wal-Mart. The more expensive versions feature digital readouts and often can detect smoke, as well. The most expensive version at Ace also includes an alarm for explosive gas.

Steamboat Springs Fire Rescue responds to about 50 carbon monoxide alarms a year, Funston said, but there have been no deaths blamed on carbon monoxide in several years.

“We don’t get a lot of poisonings here, or at least we haven’t, so that’s either a combination of not having a lot of alarms here or we’re not having a lot of problems,” she said.

Funston said the resort nature of Steamboat could help ensure safety because of the maintenance crews that service many mountainside condominiums and houses.

“The maintenance people at all these various resort communities are constantly checking that sort of stuff. I think that adds to the safety of our community,” she said.

In 2004, a group of hunters were treated for carbon monoxide poisoning after using a portable cooking stove inside a tent in Routt County. One man woke up sick in the night and dragged his companions outside the tent to safety.

In 2002, three coaches and 10 members of the Roaring Fork High School girls basketball team became sick from carbon monoxide poisoning in a rented duplex in Steamboat Springs. The team recovered quickly in Yampa Valley Medical Center.

According to the most recent figures provided by the Consumer Products Safety Commission, there were an estimated 167 deaths caused by unintentional carbon monoxide poisoning in the United States in 2004. Cars idling in garages that lacked ventilation caused most of the deaths.