Gas safety, Ballarat edition
Open-flued heaters and exhaust fans
Energy Safe Victoria warns that running a rangehood or bathroom fan with an open-flued gas heater can create negative pressure and pull carbon monoxide into the room.
Old unsafe heaters can't be sold
Energy Safe has prohibited the sale of old open-flued gas space heaters without safety shutdown features, second-hand ones included.
Nearly a third of homes are rented
31.6% of homes in the City of Ballarat's area were rented in 2021. Victorian landlords must arrange gas and electrical safety checks every 2 years.
Mostly detached houses
85.1% of the council area's occupied homes were separate houses at the 2021 Census, and 12.0% townhouses or semis. In a townhouse, ask who owns the gas line before work starts.
What a proper heater service covers
Energy Safe Victoria and the BPC recommend gas space heaters, central heaters and water heaters are serviced at least every two years. The gasfitter should be endorsed for Type A appliance service work.
A service should include a look over the appliance and its flue, a negative pressure and combustion spillage test (the CO test), and running the appliance to confirm it works safely. If your quote doesn't mention the spillage test, ask why not.
Open-flued, room-sealed or flueless?
An open-flued heater draws air from the room and sends its exhaust up a flue. Energy Safe says these spill carbon monoxide more easily than other types. Newer models built to the current standard shut down if they spill combustion products for more than 15 minutes, and a gasfitter then has to make it safe and reset it.
A room-sealed heater takes its air from outside and vents outside, so exhaust fans don't affect it. Indoor flueless space heaters are restricted: regulations prohibit installing new ones, except that existing LPG flueless heaters may be replaced in limited circumstances.
Not sure which you have? Ask the gasfitter at the next service, or the heater's supplier.
Gas hot water and the 2027 rule
Your heater isn't affected by Victoria's 2027 rule if you own and live in the home. The rule is about hot water: from 1 March 2027, a gas hot water system in an existing home that has reached the end of its life must be replaced with an efficient electric system. Gas systems can still be repaired. Check current rules, and see our guide to the 2027 rule.
Checking the gasfitter
The Building and Plumbing Commission (BPC) registers, licenses and disciplines gasfitters in Victoria, according to Energy Safe Victoria. Every registered or licensed gasfitter carries a photo ID card listing the work they're allowed to do, and you can ask to see it at any time. Look for Type A servicing before anyone works on a heater.
Questions before the gasfitter starts
- Is my heater open-flued, and does it meet the current shutdown standard?
- Will you do a negative pressure and spillage test with the exhaust fans running?
- Does your photo ID show the Type A servicing endorsement?
- If the heater fails the test, what are my options?
What we would do
Book the heater service in autumn, before the first cold snap, and ask for the CO spillage test by name. If your heater is old and open-flued, get the gasfitter's view on whether it meets the current standard; Energy Safe suggests considering a replacement if a heater is old or hasn't been serviced for years. Fit a carbon monoxide alarm as a back-up, never as a substitute for the service.