Gas can be dangerous

[chrishutt]

Those who think the whole gas safety thing is over-hyped might like to reflect on this -
http://www.southwalesargus.co.uk/display.var.927059.0.gas_fitter_admits_girls_manslaughter.php
It's been discussed on other forums (ARGI, Gas-news), although this report gives better info. than we had before.

 

[keyplayer]

Tragic. Can the defendant have been so short of work that he would illegally take this job on? And regardless of the supply side faults, would all qualified here have performed the tests as a matter of course? I've never had a gas fire fitted myself, though I've lived in places that had flue type ones ready installed.

 

[ChrisR]

The strange point here is that, as a qualified gas fitter, he shouldn't have had the slightest difficulty in fitting a flueless gas fire. Nothing hard about it at all. No flue to check! So much like with fitting a boiler you check the gas pressure is what the book says, and the amount of gas it burns. The gas pressure they come set to is usually very close to what you adjust to, so you wouldn't expect the fire to be dangerous even if it was a bit out.

If we assume that he didn't do that, it says more about the man than the relevance of being qualified. But also a lot about the importance of being 100% correct with the installation. Many if not most DIY installers might have got it wrong, with the same result.

I wouldn't be surprised if there was actually more to it than we're being told. I'd want the manufacturer in the dock.

 

[Agile]

I go to some warrantee calls on gas boilers.

Many are fitted by unregistered installers but about half are CORGI registered.

Few unregistered check gas pressures and even of the CORGIS I would estimate less than 40% ever check the gas burner or inlet pressures.

Benchmarks are filled in by less that 50% of the CORGIS and even then the answers are often sparse and some evidently copied from the book.

Its a pity that being registered with CORGI is not any guarantee that gas work is going to be done properly.

Tony

 

[fela kuti]

The fire would seem to have been the main source of heating for the house which i would say is a misuse of the fire as they are only intended for decorative effect.I wonder if this was explained at the point of purchase.They look good but when i have informed customers of the disadvantages ventilation and condensation they soon change their minds.
This type of appliance must have additional ventilation which can creat a nasty draught across the room,which many a user will block even when the dangers have been explained.
The most worrying aspect of this tragedy is that most gas fires now are fitted with an ODS device as standard and in this case for some reason was inoperative.
It has allways been my belief that campaigns to inform gas users of the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning do more to frighten them than to educate them.For instance nobody i have ever spoken to understands the relavance of abuild up of soot allthough some say that a yellow flame is dangerous but wouldn't know if a flame was dangerous until after i have serviced a fire and shown them the difference.
I would go further and say that jo public is vary aware of being overcharged for bad service and would only call
on professional help as a last resort and i cant blame them when you constantly hear "well he didn't do that the last time it was serviced".
If this had been BG it would have been a coperate prosecution,just makes you realise the responiblity ever time you enter
a home.