Smell Of Gas In The Apartment

[lucha54]

OK i meant gas not gasoline but I didn't want you thinking I meant farts! That's why I changed it!! Haha
Unfortunately we don't have a portero.

There's actually more to the story ... we were going to get a gastronomic oven and hire a gasista to swap them out... in addition to the door of the oven not closing properly and needing to rig it with a thick piece of folded cardboard underneath so it stays pretty much fully shut while we're cooking. I had first notified the landlord that the door was not working, while at the same time asking for permission to put in our own oven and store his at my boyfriend's family's apartment (which is only half lived-in). Then I told him about the gas smell but that when we got the new oven I would ask the gasista who would be installing it. Then when the prices of electrodomesticos sky-rocketed after the mini-currency crash, we put the idea of the new stove on the back burner (pun intended/not intended) then asked for help in fixing the oven door that doesn't stay shut on its own and that's when he gave us the number of the guy who originally installed it which is out of service.

Sorry I didn't just say all that, it seemed very long-winded but now I have caused confusion. Thanks so much for your advice so far!

Edit: it smells like gas when the gas knob is turned but after several hours of being out of the house, so no, not while we're cooking but just when the gas knob is left open. It's complicated too because I only smell it occasionally but my older friends say it's very strong.

 

[garryl]

First, try not to confuse with gas and gasoline. Gas is odorless, but to make it safer, gas company
add nasty odor so when there is a leak, people can smell. There is always a small leak in Argentina
apartment, so somewhere in the kitchen, you always smell a little bit in the kitchen or in the stairs.
This smell just stay there for years.

Gasoline is the liquid you add to fuel your car, if you smell gasoline, which has a very different odor,
you could smell someone's paint job, when people finish their floor, it could be mistaken of gasoline smell.

 

[garryl]

Ok, sounds like you were talking about gas. I have to tell you a true story: there was a gas leak at my friend's building in Recoleta.
One of the owner smelled strong gas smell at night, called the portero, portero went to her flat and lit a match, that caused
an explosion, the building was cracked and the portero almost died. Just be careful.

 

[jackbower]

no offense but if you think you smell gas in your house and you might have a leak, get off the internet asap and call a gasista. It wont cost much and youll sleep better having peace of mind. Hope its nothing serious.

 

[nikad]

Call your gas company. In the city is Metrogas. They have an emergency number. This is no joke.:

PARA DENUNCIAR EMERGENCIAS, POR FAVOR, LLAME AL TELÉFONO 4309-1050 O
AL 0800 333 6427 (MGAS)

• Por favor, mantenga ventilado el ambiente.
• Si es posible, corte el gas desde la llave de paso del medidor.
• Cierre las llaves de paso de los artefactos que estén encendidos.
• No accione llaves de luz ni aparatos eléctricos.
• No encienda cerillas o mecheros y, por supuesto, no fume.

En aquellos casos que el cliente no pueda cerciorarse en que ambiente se genera el escape de gas, y/o cuando se perciba olor a gas sin poder controlarlo, Emergencias asiste en forma urgente para el control de los mismos.

 

[argsteve]

tighten the gas connections on your water heater I had this happen once to me..... find some pliers or a wrench etc and try to tighten the fittings of the gas that goes to your water heater........ as others have said dont take this lightly........ call someone and get it fixed... make sure that the pilot light it working on the water heater some old units the light will go out and the gas keeps going.....

 

[La Fleur]

ElNicoOriginal is quite right in his warning that reporting a gas leak to MetroGas will get the gas to your building cut off. And only a month without gas is a fast turn around for them. However, what he didn't mention is that a qualified (matriculado) gasista is required by law to report any gas leaks they find to MetroGas (although whether they actually do so in your case is another question that is answered only by going through the process). So using them may get the same result.

The best thing is to do if the problem is intermittent is to do some intelligent problem-solving yourself.

First, see if the problem is the cooker itself. Do this by turning the gas off at the wall (the silver handle) when not in use. Do you still get a smell of gas after a while of non-use? If not, the cooker is the source of the smell. This could be

• Because the jets take too long to ignite and the gas escapes before ignition. Light the jets straight away.
• The connection between the wall and the cooker is loose. If you can get at the connection, do the soapy water test (described elsewhere). Or get a gasista to test/fix it.

If the problem is not the cooker, do you have a gas calefon (hot water heater) in the kitchen? In a 15 year old building the calefon should be in area open to the air (because the building code changed before then) - ie outside or in semi-covered space. But if it is in the kitchen it could be the source of the problem. If the calefon is not calibrated perfectly the pilot light does not burn all the gas available to it and there can be a smell of gas. This is not a big problem so long as your space is ventilated properly. More on that in a sec.

If the problem is not the cooker or calefon, then you may have a leak in a pipe - possible inside a wall. Turn off the gas at the masterkey (another silver handle somewhere that turns off all gas appliances in the apartment). Is there still a smell of gas after a few hours? This is where you need to seriously consider getting a gasista or Metrogas to check the pipes.

You should also check the ventilation in your kitchen. Gas is only dangerous if you get a buildup of it in a confined space. You should have ventilation holes at floor level and above head level in rooms containing gas appliances. These are small grills which allow permanent airflow so any gas can escape. If you have these grills, check that they actually have holes behind them to the outside. (No, I am not joking. My apt had lots of nice grills when I bought it but they were just stuck on blank walls!) I think it is best to always leave a window open too.

You should also be aware that gas does not have a consistent smell:

• When everyone is using the gas (eg dinner time) the gas pressure is lower, so any smell is less noticeable.
• The gas smell is added to what is otherwise odorless gas, as someone else pointed out. From time to time the gas company adds extra smell so consumers will be aware of small leaks.

So if the smell is not consistent, it may have to do with these factors, rather than the presence or absence of a leak.

I hope that is helpful. Good luck.

La Fleur

 

[lucha54]

WOW EVERYONE THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!! Just got back from a week in Bariloche; I had shut off the gas switch that controls gas to the stove in the kitchen (calefon was never turned off) and my older friend who smelled it strongly before we left says that when we entered tonight it was completely gone. I know it sounds crazy to have brushed it off for this long but I barely ever smelled it except once or twice in two months; it's only when other people (with maybe more sensitive noses?_ came over that it became apparent that it really needed to be addressed. Anyway I'll keep it off when I'm not using the oven until Monday when I get a gasista over here... I'll send an update when I know more.

 

[nativexpat]

Most buildings in BA do not totally comply with Metrogas regulations. If you ever feel like landlords/porteros dismiss you in regards to strong gas smell, you just threaten to call Metrogas.

People and neighbors fear this because if Metrogas finds a leak or something that is not compliant (which is frequently the case), they may shut off the gas in the whole building until all repairs are done (at the building's expense) and this takes forever. Furthermore, it is believed that Metrogas inspectors will bribe you no matter what, so apartment owners prefer not having to deal with them at all.

Sort of a catch-22... always based in lack of honesty/trust.

 

[lucha54]

Now I'm remembering that my boyfriend called the administration to say we had a gas smell, and they brushed it off as well! (probably for fear of us calling Metrogas). They said that the problem was only specific to our apartment (which they have no way of knowing besides that they possibly don't have complaints from other apartments) and told us we needed to contact the landlord about it. Ahhh Argentina....