Let me tell you - gas companies are serious.*
We've been here just over a week, and every once in a while we'd both get a whiff of natural gas. The thing is, it's been almost 20 years since we've lived in houses and you kind of lose your sense of what's normal. But in those 20 years, we've visited plenty of houses and we didn't really recall noticing the smell of gas in anyone's home. So maybe, just maybe, this is something that should be looked at?
Yeah, good idea, put it on my list, my ever-growing, exponentially expanding list.
And yesterday, just before lunch, the kids were happily playing, and I was in between chores and it seemed like a good time to call that 1-800 # and just ask a few questions.
Five minutes later, the kids and I and 1 pissed off cat were standing outside the front of the house, waiting for the gas man to arrive.
"You need to open some windows, don't switch any electrical appliances or lights on or off, just leave everything as it is, and wait outside."
Hornblower runs a tight ship and Hornblower is good at following orders. (Did you know I used to be in law enforcement? Yup. Had my own handcuffs, and the powers to arrest, detain, and strip search. The good old days.....) So, even though we were all 99.9% positive that the house was not going to blow up any second, we followed instructions and waited outside.
All part of my great plan to ingratiate myself in the neighbourhood. One day, exterminator vans are parked in front, another day the flaky family is waiting outside for the gas man. "Stay away from that family. They're kind of weird. And I heard they homeschool! Freaks."
Well, the gas man came (pretty fast too) and discovered that heck yes, there are 3 leaks. Not serious enough to warrant shutting off the furnace and hot water tank (do a happy dance) but not something we had been hallucinating.
The repair guy is coming today.
Remember when I posted a few weeks ago about how we were going to Ikea and Home Depot and looking at all the stuff we would get for the house? Well, forget about carpets, tiles, bathtubs, and locksets. But soon, I'll be able to show you some nice new shiny gas valves! And mouse traps! And rodent bait stations!
*And rightly so. Flippant attitude aside, the right thing to do is: "When you smell gas, act fast. Get out of the house and call the emergency # from a neighbour's."
4 comments:
We had a similar experience when we took over the little house in the tiny woods on the prairie. It seemed, though, that I was the only one who could smell the gas. How many times in those first two weeks did I ask, "Can't anyone else smell that?"
We had three small leaks, too... only they *did* shut off the gas until the repairm*e*n arrived: one for the oven, four for the other two leaks.
Both the gas co. guy and the appliance (stove) guy said that women usually smell the sweetly scented gas, not men.
Ah ha.
Enjoy your new home and lovely gardens.
The joys of old home ownership - I'm vascillating between 2 new energy efficient furnaces or new appliances and granite counter tops for the kitchen or maybe hardwood flooring...
Owner of a shiny new toilet - that was nasty leak...
The stuff we put up with for a place with a little character
Eva
m-mv Copyright 2003-2006 said:
"Both the gas co. guy and the appliance (stove) guy said that women usually smell the sweetly scented gas, not men."
There must be a scientific explanation for that.
Enjoy the foibles that your old/new adopted home present to you, HMS. When it's all over, you can laugh about it around the non-gas campfire.
It will come together. It really will. (I'm getting caught up, so you'll probably have a slew of comments from me. I hope you get email notification.)
Keep looking at the IKEA catalogs. They will carry you through the pesticides and gas mains. Really.
Dy
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