Safety

Gas leak warning signs Calgary homeowners should never ignore

Gas leak warning signs Calgary homeowners should never ignore

Natural gas is safe when the system is sound. The risk comes from leaks that go unnoticed, and most of them announce themselves well before they become dangerous — if you know what to look for.

If you smell gas right now

  1. Don’t touch any switch, plug or phone inside the building. A spark is all it takes.
  2. Leave, and take everyone with you. Open a door on the way out if it’s on your path; don’t go looking for windows to open.
  3. From outside, call ATCO’s 24-hour emergency line at 1-800-511-3447. They come out free of charge and will make the site safe.
  4. Then call a licensed gasfitter to locate the fault, repair it and pressure-test the system.

The warning signs

Smell

Natural gas has no odour of its own. Utilities add mercaptan, which smells like rotten eggs or sulphur, specifically so leaks are detectable. Trust it.

Sound

Hissing or whistling near a line, meter or appliance connection means gas escaping under pressure.

Sight

Bubbling in standing water, dust or dirt blowing from a spot in the ground, or a patch of dead vegetation in an otherwise healthy lawn can all indicate an underground leak.

How you feel

Headaches, dizziness, nausea or fatigue that improve when you leave the house are worth taking seriously — particularly if more than one person in the household has them, or a pet seems unwell.

Appliance behaviour

A gas flame should burn crisp blue. Yellow or orange flames, soot around an appliance, or a furnace that keeps dropping out point to incomplete combustion, which carries a carbon monoxide risk as well as a gas one.

Preventing problems

  • Have gas appliances serviced annually, and the furnace before winter.
  • Fit CO detectors on every level, and test them.
  • Never let unlicensed work be done on a gas line. In Alberta it is illegal, and it is uninsurable.
  • Have any new line permitted, pressure-tested and inspected.

We’re licensed gasfitters and we detect, repair and certify gas work across Calgary. If something doesn’t seem right, get it checked.

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