Smell gas now?
Leave the appliance alone, turn off the gas at the bottle or meter if you can do it safely, and get everyone outside. No switches, flames or phones near the smell. Ring your gas supplier's emergency line from outside, then book a gas fitter.
Gas in Townsville
Not on the network list
The Queensland Government lists the places with a natural gas distribution network, and Townsville isn't one of them. The North Queensland Gas Pipeline does run 392km from Moranbah to Townsville, but the state says the major pipelines directly supply large industrial users and gas-fired generators.
Hot, sunny cylinders
Townsville Aero averages 3.7 days a year at 35°C or more and 120.8 clear days. The state's advice is to keep LPG cylinders upright and away from heat and direct sunlight where practicable.
Wet-season floods
Townsville Aero's wettest day on record brought 548.8 mm, so know the rule before you need it. After any flood, a licensed gasfitter must inspect the gas installation and appliances before they're used again.
Two kinds of gas, two kinds of burner
Queensland homes run on either reticulated natural gas, piped in, or LPG, usually from bottles. Appliances need different burners for each, and the state notes they can be converted. A cooktop or heater bought for mains gas won't simply plug into a bottle.
Any installation or conversion must be done by a licensed gasfitter. Before you buy an appliance, read its data plate and ask the fitter whether it suits your gas, or whether it can be converted. See LPG conversions for what that job involves.
The licences to ask for
In Queensland, anyone doing gas work must hold the right gas work licence or gas work authorisation, and not every holder may do every kind of gas work. You can search current holders on the RSHQ Portal without making an account.
A business that supervises or carries out gasfitting also needs a QBCC gasfitting licence, on top of the occupational licence issued by the Chief Gas Examiner and Resources Safety and Health Queensland. So ask for both numbers: the business's QBCC licence and the fitter's own gas work licence.
Paperwork at the end
For installation work, ask for a gas system compliance certificate. The Queensland Government notes a certificate may not be issued for service work or a basic repair, but you should still get an itemised tax receipt. Our guide to compliance certificates explains why it's worth keeping.
What you can check, and what needs a fitter
You can
- Check the test date stamped on the base or neck of each LPG cylinder. It's valid for 10 years, and an out-of-date or corroded cylinder shouldn't be used.
- Find the gas shut-off, at the bottle valve or the meter.
- Read the appliance's data plate for its model and gas type.
- Keep the manual and receipts handy for the fitter.
Leave to a licensed plumber
- Connecting, moving or disconnecting any gas appliance.
- Converting an appliance between natural gas and LPG.
- Any work on gas pipe, regulators or fittings.
- Repairing or removing a cylinder valve, which the state says you should never attempt yourself.
Questions for a Townsville gas fitter
- What's your gas work licence number, and does it cover this type of work?
- Is this appliance set up for LPG or natural gas, and does it need converting?
- Will I get a gas system compliance certificate when you finish?
- Where will the cylinders sit, and are they out of the afternoon sun?
What we would do
Before buying any gas appliance, confirm what gas your house runs on and photograph the data plates of what's there now. Then book a licensed gas fitter, check their gas work licence on the RSHQ Portal and the business's QBCC licence in myQBCC. After a flood, leave every gas appliance off until a fitter has inspected it, however dry things look.