Safety tips to give to your customers

August is a good time to urge your customers to get a head start on winter by having their heating equipment inspected. That is the first in a list of safety tips recommended by AGA.

One focus of that inspection should be any corrugated metal tube connecting a gas supply line to the heating unit and all appliances.

Over time, pieces of these older brass connectors can separate, causing gas leaks. Although this type of connector is not believed to have been made for about 20 years, many may still be in use.

If any of these connectors are being used, they should be replaced by either a qualified plumber or a certified heating and air conditioning contractor.

The tips to use
AGA offers the following additional safety tips, which you can borrow for your own customers for the cold months ahead:
1 If the pilot light of an appliance goes out, turn off the gas at the appliance for several minutes before you attempt to re-light it. You should find instructions attached to the appliance.
2 When re-lighting a pilot light, first strike the match and hold it to the opening. Then slowly turn on the gas.
3 Pilot lights and main burners on gas appliances should always produce a blue flame. If the flame is yellow or red, call a certified heating and air conditioning contractor immediately.
4 Use a gas appliance only for its intended purpose. An oven, for example, should not be used to heat a room.
5 Before using a space heater, remove any cobwebs, dust, or dirt.
6 If the space heater is vented, be sure the vent is operating properly.
7 If the space heater doesn't have a vent or an oxygen cut-off switch, provide proper outside ventilation such as a slightly open window.
8 Check the air/gas mixture of the space heater's flame to assure it is blue, and not red or yellow.
9 Make sure the grille is intact and in place.
10 Keep space heaters away from furniture, draperies, and other combustible materials.
11 Never store or use gasoline or flammable liquids (such as paint, paint thinner, cleaning fluids, and so on) in the same room with any gas appliance.
12 Never store rags, paper, or other combustibles near floor or wall furnace grilles.
13 Never store combustibles near an appliance with a pilot light or open flame.
14 Have qualified service people install and maintain all gas appliances.
15 Always follow the manufacturer's instructions for the installation and operation of each appliance. If your gas water heater is in the garage, be sure it is installed at least 18 in. off the floor.
16 Before digging in your yard between the gas meter and the property line, call the gas company to have the gas line located and marked.
17 Have your plumber make periodic inspections of gas lines in your home and on your property.

If there is a gas odor
If you ever smell the odor of gas in your home, follow these three steps:
1 Do not switch anything electric on or off, strike a match, or do anything that might cause a spark. And don't use your telephone, because telephones use small amounts of electricity which could ignite the gas.
2 Have everyone evacuate immediately. Leave the doors open for ventilation.
3 For safety's sake, go to a telephone away from your house and call your gas utility. Wait for the cause of the odor is found before returning to your home.

This article was taken from GAS Utility and Pipeline Industries SEPTEMBER 1998

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