While you may not give thought to your home-heating devices, it’s actually best to inspect them annually, according to Jimmie Cho, vice president of services for SoCalGas.
“Now is the time to perform maintenance on your home-heating appliances to check that they can be operated safely and efficiently,” says Jimmie Cho.
Why should you check your furnace now? Failure to perform annual maintenance on gas appliances may result in exposure to carbon monoxide, which can cause nausea, drowsiness, flu-like symptoms, and even death.
Since home heating typically accounts for more than half of the monthly winter gas bill, the best way to keep bills lower is to get gas appliances serviced, Cho says.
Cho offers these tips for a safe, warm, and energy-efficient winter:

• Have natural gas furnaces checked at least once a year by a licensed heating contractor.
• Vacuum and clean regularly in and around the furnace, particularly around the burner compartment to prevent a build-up of dust and lint.
• Never store items in, on or around the appliance that can obstruct airflow.
• Most forced-air units have a filter that cleans the air before heating and circulating it throughout the home. Check furnace filters every month during the heating season and clean or replace the filter when necessary.
• When installing a new or cleaned furnace filter, be sure to re-install the front panel door of the furnace properly so it fits snugly; never operate the furnace without the front-panel door properly in place because doing so may create the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.
• Check the appearance of the flame. If the flame is yellow, large and unsteady, the furnace needs to be inspected immediately by a licensed heating contractor or SoCalGas to have the condition corrected.
• Using an unvented gas heater in your home is dangerous and a violation of the California Health and Safety Code.
• Never use your oven, range or outdoor barbecue to heat your home because these appliances are not designed for this purpose.

Source: http://www.socalgas.com