Gas Leaks

  Whether you have natural gas or propane gas you need make sure your fittings have not become damaged over the course of the year. Many things can happen over the summer to fittings on gas lines that you don’t use in the summer like the fireplaces.  Or, perhaps your stackable washer/dryer is not perfectly level and when the washer spins it moves against the wall, damaging your flexible hose or the fitting itself.

Since it had been getting colder at night here I decided to close up the house.  I keep at least half of the windows open all summer long, so there is good ventilation in the house.  Two days ago, after closing up the house, I slept straight through my alarm.  I was very groggy and had a hard time waking up. We were all having headaches.  I chalked it up to over work. 

When it happened the next day too, I began to suspect there might be another issue.  Last year we had a problem with a carbon monoxide leak from our gas water heater and we installed detectors so I checked those first and they were registering zero so that was not the problem. 

We went out and bought a combustible gas detector.   We used it to check our gas fittings and its bells went off like crazy!

Both fireplaces and my gas dryer had problems with the gas line. The propane did not build up in the house until I closed it up.   The first one had a small score on the inner metal tubing.  That prevented a tight seal.   When we checked the fittings at installation with a soap mixture they showed no leaks.  The others were tight as could be but the inner metal tube was not making a good seal.  They really need copper washers inside to make a tight seal.

Propane is a colorless and odorless flammable gas. Breathing in or swallowing propane can be harmful. Propane takes the place of oxygen in the lungs. This makes breathing difficult or impossible.   The gas company puts a nasty smell in there to warn you but if the leak is small, windows are open or it's in the wall you may not smell it.  If you have unexplained coughing, dizziness, weakness, heavy sleep, you are unusually hard to waken or sick pets it is something you might want to consider when getting to the bottom of the problem.

If you have gas lines in your home I would highly recommend purchasing a gas detector like the Bacharach Leakator Jr Combustion Gas Leak Detector.  It was $175 and well worth every penny. It is battery operated and can detect all sorts of combustible gasses.  There are cheaper ones and more expensive ones.  Find one that suits your budget and have it on hand.  If you have neighbors that also have gas perhaps get a few of them together and buy one to share.   Another option is to call your gas company for a check of your system every fall.  This is a service that many gas companies perform (usually for a charge).  Again, for the health and safety of your family it would be well worth it.