Natural gas safety tips from the City of Union
By Garrett Christensen on Thursday, November 30th, 2023 in More Top Stories Northeastern Oregon News
UNION – (Information from the City of Union Newsletter) The holidays mean an uptick in both cooking and heating, and for many people, that means using natural gas. While gas as a heat source does have its perks, it also comes with a number of common safety risks. To help keep the community safe this winter, the City of Union has provided a list of safety recommendations for using gas appliances and infrastructure. Whether or not you’re actually a Union resident, it never hurts to brush up on safety.
Most utility providers will add a rotten egg smell to their gas lines to make a leak easily detectable. In the event of a leak, the City of Union offers the following DO NOT reminders:
DO NOT:
- Remain in the building where the leak was detected.
- Use any light switches.
- Try to find the source of the leak after detection.
- Smoke or strike a match.
- Use any electrical equipment that may cause a spark.
If a leak is detected, call 911 and the appropriate utility provider. Even outside of a leak or other immediate emergency, there are plenty of things residents and non-residents can do to safely use their gas appliances. As stated in the city’s recent newsletter:
- “Have at least one working carbon monoxide detector for each level of your home
- Never use a gas oven or range top as a space heater.
- Never cover the temperature controls, air openings, or vents of a gas appliance.
- Turn off gas fireplaces and space heaters before going to bed, they are not intended to be a main heat source.
- Check gas appliance connector by a qualified appliance service contractor periodically.
- Never attach electrical grounding wires to gas piping.
- Keep the space around furnaces and water heaters clean and clear of build-up, rags, newspapers or other debris.
- Never store combustibles such as gasoline, aerosol cans, paint, solvents, cleaners etc, near any fuel-burning equipment.
- Be cautious using products such as paint strippers, glues, varnishes etc as they give off vapors that can be ignited by any flame source, such as a burner pilot light. Vapors can also corrode metal vents and appliance combustion chambers.
- Turn off all gas appliances when using these types of products.
- Be aware of where gas (and other utility) lines are buried, especially when working outdoors. Always call 811 before you dig!”
Stay safe and happy holidays.
