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Faulty Gas meter?

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spottedtango
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PostPosted: 23:58 - 10 Sep 2016    Post subject: Faulty Gas meter? Reply with quote

Hello,

Here's my problem, my mum has a gas meter in a cupboard that smells a wee bit of gas. The meter has a dial attached to it along with the reading.

There is only two appliances in the house that use gas, the cooker and the combi. When both of these are off the dial still moves slowly.

I've had a look online and people say its the pilot light on the boiler but this combi doesn't have a pilot light at all and i'm 100% sure of this.

A while ago a gas inspector looked at the meter and bumped/moved it slightly.

Is it possible hes caused it to leak slightly? Has anyone else had this problem? How did you go about sorting it?

My mums gas bills seem to be higher than usual considering it's summer and the heatings not been on. Thinking
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Rogerborg
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PostPosted: 00:31 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Re: Faulty Gas meter? Reply with quote

spottedtango wrote:
smells a wee bit of gas

0800 111 999
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Raffles
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PostPosted: 00:39 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

I've just been outside and looked at my gas meter:-

https://s10.postimg.org/e7q4wast5/IMG_5978_1.jpg

It has suggestions should you suspect a leakage of gas. Starting a thread on BCF isn't one of them.

Edit: Beaten to it by that Rogerthingie....D'oh!
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Last edited by Raffles on 00:44 - 11 Sep 2016; edited 1 time in total
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CaNsA
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PostPosted: 00:44 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Re: Faulty Gas meter? Reply with quote

Rogerborg wrote:
spottedtango wrote:
smells a wee bit of gas

0800 111 999


Do this right now, i fucking mean it... stop fucking about and phone the fucking number.

A while back there was a slight smell of gas in the cupboard where our old style gas meter is.

Phoned the number above, gas dude was round within 30mins and replaced the pipe that connects the meter to the mains supply.

It was all free because it was on the supply side of the meter, not the consumer side.
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stinkwheel
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PostPosted: 01:08 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

As above.

Gas leaks are unbelievably dangerous, small, long-standing ones probably being the most dangerous. So much so that the gas board are one of the very few agencies who have the blanket legal right to force entry to your property without a warrant. Not even the police have that.

What next? Dear Aunty BCF, my house is on fire and my skin is starting to blister, what should I do?
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Ste
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PostPosted: 09:10 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

Out of interest, how long has there been the slight smell of gas?
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Wafer_Thin_Ham
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PostPosted: 09:13 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

Don't panic OP. Have a cigarette to calm down. Thumbs Up Wink
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CaNsA
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PostPosted: 09:19 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Re: Faulty Gas meter? Reply with quote

spottedtango wrote:
Here's my problem, my mum has a gas meter


Actually... it's your mum's problem.
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RichardCraniu...
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PostPosted: 10:26 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

If it's a newer combi it won't have a constant pilot, it will just light when there is a demand.

Give national grid a bell, they'll come out and test for leaks, probably change the regulator, maybe change the meter, change any washers and then do another test. If what they have done has fixed the leak then you're fine.

If they do all the above and it still leaks then it's on the customers side and your gas is getting turned off until you can get a gas safe registered engineer out to fix it.

If they get there and test for leaks, there's no leaks but they still sniff out gas, chances are it will be a leaking service and this opens a realm of possibilities.

P.s Turn the handle off on the ECV
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Rogerborg
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PostPosted: 10:59 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

stinkwheel wrote:
What next? Dear Aunty BCF, my house is on fire and my skin is starting to blister, what should I do?

It puts the lotion on its skin.
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RhynoCZ
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PostPosted: 11:10 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

OP, I don't want to sound harsh, but how thick one must be, to go ask on a forum about a gas leak in his house? Call the number this instant mister, or the Emergency services (999, I suppose).

It is funny though, when people have water leak, they call someone or at least close the main valve immediately. When they have a gas leak, they just ask on a internet forum, what to do.
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spottedtango
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PostPosted: 11:55 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

When i say a wee bit of gas i mean its very faint. Its not like i open the cupboard and go aw that pesky gas leak better go light a fag. See what happens whilst i have a think.


I was reading certain articles on google that were saying a slight amount of gas leakage is permuteble.

https://www.mybuilder.com/questions/v/19799/gas-smell-leak-from-meter-area-is-this-normal
https://www.landlordzone.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?51591-Is-it-normal-for-the-gas-meter-cupboard-to-smell-of-gas
https://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?t=486846

This is just some, there's tons of pages saying the gas man says its okay bla bla bla, so I thought id ask.

Theres alot of conflicting info on the web. Ill get my mum to phone asap to be sure.

I can honestly say it's probably since the meter has been inspected.


Last edited by spottedtango on 12:07 - 11 Sep 2016; edited 1 time in total
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RhynoCZ
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PostPosted: 12:07 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

It's always better to be safe than sorry. Small cracks can spread into bigger ones with no warning. And yes, a slight leak is alright but that's nothing you should be able to smell with your nose. I'm talking the kind of leaks, that only trained dogs and meassuring devices can detect.
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Ste
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PostPosted: 12:21 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

spottedtango wrote:
I was reading certain articles on google that were saying a slight amount of gas leakage is permuteble.

There's just as many articles / forums threads saying to call the gas people immediately.

spottedtango wrote:
I can honestly say it's probably since the meter has been inspected.

That sounds like all the more reason to call them.

Call them this afternoon, preferably right now.

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RichardCraniu...
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PostPosted: 12:39 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

spottedtango wrote:
When i say a wee bit of gas i mean its very faint. Its not like i open the cupboard and go aw that pesky gas leak better go light a fag. See what happens whilst i have a think.


I was reading certain articles on google that were saying a slight amount of gas is permutable


If there is any smell of gas then no leak is permissible, phone national grid right now.
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Nobby the Bastard
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PostPosted: 13:06 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

Would you like to be nominated for your darwin award now or after your terrace has been destroyed?
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Raffles
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PostPosted: 13:14 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ste wrote:
There's just as many articles / forums threads saying to call the gas people immediately. Call them this afternoon, preferably right now.

Yeah, but if he calls them this afternoon and they disconnect his supply due to it being unsafe, it's gonna cost him a fortune to call out a plumber to rectify the leak with it being Sunday. Wouldn't it be cheaper to just let the gas keep leaking out and call 'em tomorrow or some other day during the working week?
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Nobby the Bastard
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PostPosted: 13:23 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

Raffles wrote:
Ste wrote:
There's just as many articles / forums threads saying to call the gas people immediately. Call them this afternoon, preferably right now.

Yeah, but if he calls them this afternoon and they disconnect his supply due to it being unsafe, it's gonna cost him a fortune to call out a plumber to rectify the leak with it being Sunday. Wouldn't it be cheaper to just let the gas keep leaking out and call 'em tomorrow or some other day during the working week?


Alternatively, call out gas board. Don't bother cooking lunch and go to carvery instead. Come home to a house that is't a pile of rubble full of dead relatives.
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Ste
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PostPosted: 13:25 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

If it's unsafe then the sooner it's disconnected, the better.

Should the problem turn out to be something the OPs mum would have to call someone out to fix then that could be done on Monday or some other day in the week.

If the OP and his mum are happy to explode themselves then that's their decision but I don't think their neighbours would be too impressed about it.

Just call the freephone number and get it looked at.
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RichardCraniu...
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PostPosted: 15:27 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

If the problem started after the meter was inspected then in all likelihood it's a worn washer, a lose union or a popped joint near the meter.

National Grid will only cap you off its it's something on your side, so if it's a lose union or worn washer then you won't be capped off.

If it's anything after the meter they will disconnect you.

"It'll be fine until the morning" I can hear you say.

Could be a leaking service pipe and it's going into your cavity, little old mother comes home tonight and turns her light switch on, it just so happens that this is the day the light switch sparks and boom goes her house.

Just call national grid, get them out, if they cap it then sound, just pay the call out fee for a gas fitter.

All a gas fitter will do is come to your house with a particle sniffer, find the leak and replace the pipe. £100 if the pipe isn't buried, which it won't be if the smell is in your gas meter cupboard.

OP, mix some fairy liquid into water and put it in to a spray bottle. Put the spray on "stream" and not on "spray". Spray it on all nuts and joints, if it bubbles then you're buggered
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Al
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PostPosted: 16:02 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

If the dial is spinning when no appliances are using gas the leak is going to be on the outlet meter connection or on your side of it.
If it's enough to make the dial visibly spin then I'd turn the ECV off and call the emergency no. The dial on my meter barely moves and my boiler has a constant pilot light.
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iooi
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PostPosted: 17:25 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

Get online quick and get plenty of life insurance on your mum Thumbs Up
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CaNsA
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PostPosted: 17:46 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

CaNsA wrote:
A while back there was a slight smell of gas in the cupboard where our old style gas meter is.

Phoned the number above, gas dude was round within 30mins and replaced the pipe that connects the meter to the mains supply.

It was all free because it was on the supply side of the meter, not the consumer side.


spottedtango wrote:
When i say a wee bit of gas i mean its very faint.



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Kai.Wilson
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PostPosted: 20:36 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

Update OP?
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RichardCraniu...
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PostPosted: 20:46 - 11 Sep 2016    Post subject: Reply with quote

https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2010/09/10/article-1310734-0B1DD364000005DC-635_634x359.jpg
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