Natural Gas Shut-off Valve – Blog 5 – Babysitter Series

Each house is unique in the placement of some key plumbing and heating items that you, (spouse too), your children, and your babysitter, should know.  Here is what your family should know about natural gas.

What about natural gas? We have all (hopefully) heard the ads from FortisBC on what natural gas smells like and what to do about it.  It takes an extraordinarily small amount of gas to produce a very large smell.  So if you are just getting the odd whiff of it when your furnace or water heater ignites, and you are standing beside them, that’s probably not dangerous – although you must remember to get your appliances serviced each year.

If it’s a lot, or you can hear gas hissing, that’s a problem.  As an adult and homeowner you should know where the gas line shut offs are for the house and the appliances – each will have its own.  Your older children and baby sitter should know it too.  Isolating the appliance that is emitting the smell makes good sense.  If they can’t find the source, the main shut-off would be your next option.  It is important to know that once you shut-off your natural gas, by law, only a certified licensed professional can turn it on again, and relight the appliances.   And once it is shut-off, you will probably be without heat or hot water.   You would save that measure for a dire emergency, but you do need to know where they are.

If there are any of these safety shut-off items that you can’t locate, call R&B.  In one appointment we can locate your incoming waterline shut-off and test that it actually works, install a carbon monoxide detector and show you how it works, and show you how to turn off and isolate gas lines for the appliances and the main one for the house.

Then when you are showing your babysitter where the emergency numbers are, show him or her the one for R&B as well.  With 24-hour emergency service, we can respond to your safety needs when they arise.