About a month ago I posted a blog complaining about how the gas company will frequently come out after we’ve done a home inspection and they won’t be able to find a gas leak that we’ve identified.

In example #2, I wrote: At another home inspection I did last month in Bloomington, I could clearly smell gas while standing at the water heater.  I bent down and smelled a significant leak at the union.  I put some leak solution on the union, and it quickly blew a bubble about the size of a quarter.  This was so obvious that I didn’t even bother marking the location of the leak… but I’ll never make that mistake again.  The Bloomington seller called Centerpoint Energy, who came out and said there was no leak.  We then called Centerpoint Energy, talked to the technician that went out the first time, told him exactly where to find the leak, and he still couldn’t find it the second time he was out.  Unbelievable.

Here’s a quick follow-up video of that same gas leak that we found at a Bloomington Home Inspection, taken yesterday.

(Don’t Try This At Home)

Reuben Saltzman, Structure Tech Home Inspections - Email – Bloomington Home Inspection

As I’ve mentioned in previous blogs, I find a lot of gas leaks, and I always try to make it easy for a repair technician to find the leaks.  I take a photo of the leak with a bunch of soapy bubbles coming out of it, I mark the exact location of the leak with orange tape, and I write “Gas Leak” on it.  You can’t miss it.

So why is it so difficult for the GAS COMPANY to find these leaks?

Ironically, I’ve found that almost every time Centerpoint Energy comes out to repair a gas leak that I’ve found during a home inspection, they end up leaving the house without fixing the leak.  I’m not alone in my findings – I’ve heard this same sentiment expressed by many other Minnesota home inspectors, and this last month has been particularly frustrating.

Example #1: I inspected a home that had already been ‘pre-inspected’ by another home inspector.  The other home inspector had identified a gas leak and marked it with masking tape.  The photo below shows what the gas valve looked like at the time that I did my inspection.

After the first home inspector identified this leak, Centerpoint Energy came out and said there was no gas leak, and went on their way without fixing it.  I knew exactly what happened, because it happens to me all the time.  The photo below shows the same gas fitting with my gas leak solution bubbling.  Granted, it’s a very small leak, but who cares?  Fix it!

Example #2: At another home inspection I did last month in Bloomington, I could clearly smell gas while standing at the water heater.  I bent down and smelled a significant leak at the union.  I put some leak solution on the union, and it quickly blew a bubble about the size of a quarter.  This was so obvious that I didn’t even bother marking the location of the leak… but I’ll never make that mistake again.  The seller called Centerpoint Energy, who came out and said there was no leak.  We then called Centerpoint Energy, talked to the technician that went out the first time, told him exactly where to find the leak, and he still couldn’t find it the second time he was out.  Unbelievable.

These experiences drive me crazy.

My advice: If your home inspector tells you that you have a gas leak, hire a private contractor to fix it if you want it fixed.  I’ve never had experiences like these with a plumber, only the gas company.

Reuben Saltzman, Structure Tech Home Inspections - Email - Minnesota Home Inspector

On Sunday, September 21^st, a gas explosion demolished a vacant fourplex in north Minneapolis.  This was the second north Minneapolis home to have this happen since March.  I’ll go out on a limb and say I’m sure both explosions were caused by natural gas leaks, which were both the results of copper thieves doing their thing.  In both cases, neighboring residents reported strong natural gas odors before the explosions.  Natural gas is obviously dangerous, but really, how dangerous?

I believe that the utility companies cater to the lowest denominator when it comes to public service announcements about gas.  I’m sure we’ve all heard the saying; “If you smell gas, get out!”  I’ve heard the same radio commercial many times saying not to turn on a light switch, use the phone, a computer, etc… just leave the area immediately.  I’m not going to say this is bad advice – better safe than sorry, I’m sure, but I’d like to share some of my experiences with natural gas.

To start, I find gas leaks in about one out of every three houses I inspect.  These leaks are very small – sometimes so small I can’t smell the leak unless I’m very close to the pipe.  I use an electronic gas detector to find these, and I spray the suspected leak with a soap and water solution to verify that it’s really a leak, and not just a false reading by my detector.  If I see little bubbles, I report it as a minor leak, and recommend repair by a plumber.  I’ve never evacuated a house because of a leak, and I’ve never called the gas company.

How serious are these minor leaks?  To find out, I did a little testing at my own house.  I feel like I need to preface this with Don’t Try This At Home (there).  I started my test by spraying soap and water on a gas fitting and slowly loosening the connection until bubbles started forming (pictured below, left).  At this point, I could barely smell gas by putting my nose to the pipe.  I held a lighter to the gas leak… nothing.  I opened the nut more and more, and was finally able to get a small blue flame about half the size of the flame on my lighter.  At this point, I could faintly smell it from a few feet away, and got a bubble about two inches wide (pictured below, right).

With this much gas coming out, about half of what a cigarette lighter would emit, I would recommend immediate repair and would also notify the owner of the leak so they could get it fixed right away.  For the smaller leaks that are barely noticeable, I note them in my inspection reports and recommend repair, but I don’t consider them an imminent safety hazard.  So there, I said it; not all gas leaks are hazardous.  If you walk in to a room and smell gas, that’s a problem, and you should heed the gas company’s advice.

Reuben Saltzman, Structure Tech Home Inspections – Email – Minneapolis Home Inspections