gas heat - turn on after shut off by mistake?

[swbsam]

I'm an idiot and, yesterday, switched the "Gas Heat Emergency Shut off" switch yesterday by mistake, thinking it was a light switch. I'm new at this whole home ownership thing!

I flipped the switch back but, all night, there's been no heat.

What do I do now?

THANK YOU

 

[nickbits]

relight the pilot light?

 

[FoBoT]

http://homerepair.about.com/od...air/ss/pilot_light.htm

 

[novasatori]

probably also not a good idea to light the pilot light right away if you've had the gas going all night without it lit

 

[venkman]

pilot light, but as stated above, don't explode yourself

 

[XZeroII]

hello? You still there?

(checking news for home explosion)

 

[nickbits]

Originally posted by: novasatori
probably also not a good idea to light the pilot light right away if you've had the gas going all night without it lit

unless the thing is a million years old it isn't going to be releasing any gas because of the thermocouple

 

[DrPizza]

Originally posted by: nickbits

Originally posted by: novasatori
probably also not a good idea to light the pilot light right away if you've had the gas going all night without it lit

unless the thing is a million years old it isn't going to be releasing any gas because of the thermocouple

45 < million. There's a chance the OP is going to blow himself to smithereens!!!

(Wasn't it the OP who paid $400 to have an outlet replaced? Can't wait to see the furnace bill for relighting a pilot.)

 

[Beanie46]

I keep seeing threads like this one and continually wonder what these posters were taught about self-sufficiency by their parents while they were "growing up." Honestly, it seems no one knows squat about anything these days.....things that earlier generations took for common knowledge.....pilot lights, shopping for food, how to cook meals other than rice, Mac-n-Cheese, etc., simple household repairs. Simply amazing and baffling that so many are absolutely clueless about life.

 

[Indolent]

Your gas shut off is hooked up to a light switch? How would you shut it off if the power went out?

Or is it a mechanical valve that looks nothing like a light switch, in which case, how would you get them mixed up?

 

[Scouzer]

Originally posted by: Beanie46
I keep seeing threads like this one and continually wonder what these posters were taught about self-sufficiency by their parents while they were "growing up." Honestly, it seems no one knows squat about anything these days.....things that earlier generations took for common knowledge.....pilot lights, shopping for food, how to cook meals other than rice, Mac-n-Cheese, etc., simple household repairs. Simply amazing and baffling that so many are absolutely clueless about life.

i dont know how to do any of those things you listed really. on my own for 4 years now

 

[CountZero]

Originally posted by: Beanie46
I keep seeing threads like this one and continually wonder what these posters were taught about self-sufficiency by their parents while they were "growing up." Honestly, it seems no one knows squat about anything these days.....things that earlier generations took for common knowledge.....pilot lights, shopping for food, how to cook meals other than rice, Mac-n-Cheese, etc., simple household repairs. Simply amazing and baffling that so many are absolutely clueless about life.

For the record the entire time I lived with my parents we never had anything but electric heat. That's something like 7 different houses. So not knowing anything about gas heating isn't simply baffling in any way at all. I know, its a shocker, but you might find yourself in a situation your parents couldn't prepare you for.

And if you are so good with pilot lights how about instead of criticizing their lack of knowledge you offer some of your knowledge, you know make ATOT something better instead of a cesspool of people looking down their nose at other people.

 

[swbsam]

Originally posted by: Beanie46
I keep seeing threads like this one and continually wonder what these posters were taught about self-sufficiency by their parents while they were "growing up." Honestly, it seems no one knows squat about anything these days.....things that earlier generations took for common knowledge.....pilot lights, shopping for food, how to cook meals other than rice, Mac-n-Cheese, etc., simple household repairs. Simply amazing and baffling that so many are absolutely clueless about life.

Well, I've always lived in apartments, being a New Yorker. In fact, I'm the only person I know who lives in a house. Were my parents to take me to someone else's house to show me how to light a pilot light, since they've always owned coops with shared heating (usually steam heat, at that).

As for the pilot light issue - thanks for the links - I printed the instructions out but luckily there were instructions taped onto the basement wall by the builder

EDIT: As far as shutting it off by mistake - there's an emergeny gas shut off (power) switch that looks exactly like a light switch, other than the red face plate and EMERGENCY written around it. Of course, I flipped the switch because I wasn't paying attention and fumbling around in the dark

 

[swbsam]

Originally posted by: DrPizza

(Wasn't it the OP who paid $400 to have an outlet replaced? Can't wait to see the furnace bill for relighting a pilot.)

A little creaped out that you keep track of these things but, yes, I paid $400 to replace an outlet because it wasn't powerful enough for my new dryer - they had to run a new line from the transformer or something. $400 was the cheaper of 3 estimates.. New York prices are pretty inflated, especially in neighborhoods that are seeing a boom

 

[BoomerD]

Originally posted by: DrPizza

Originally posted by: nickbits

Originally posted by: novasatori
probably also not a good idea to light the pilot light right away if you've had the gas going all night without it lit

unless the thing is a million years old it isn't going to be releasing any gas because of the thermocouple

45 < million. There's a chance the OP is going to blow himself to smithereens!!!

(Wasn't it the OP who paid $400 to have an outlet replaced? Can't wait to see the furnace bill for relighting a pilot.)

Around here, all you have to do is call PG&E and they'll send a tech out to light your pilot lights for you...

Anytime there's some kind of interruption to the service, they send a fleet of techs out to light pilot lights all over town.

Originally posted by: swbsam

Originally posted by: Beanie46
I keep seeing threads like this one and continually wonder what these posters were taught about self-sufficiency by their parents while they were "growing up." Honestly, it seems no one knows squat about anything these days.....things that earlier generations took for common knowledge.....pilot lights, shopping for food, how to cook meals other than rice, Mac-n-Cheese, etc., simple household repairs. Simply amazing and baffling that so many are absolutely clueless about life.

Well, I've always lived in apartments, being a New Yorker. In fact, I'm the only person I know who lives in a house. Where my parents to take me to someone else's house to show me how to light a pilot light, since they've always owned coops with shared heating (usually steam heat, at that).

As for the pilot light issue - thanks for the links - I printed the instructions out but luckily there were instructions taped onto the basement wall by the builder

EDIT: As far as shutting it off by mistake - there's an emergeny gas shut off (power) switch that looks exactly like a light switch, other than the red face plate and EMERGENCY written around it. Of course, I flipped the switch because I wasn't paying attention and fumbling around in the dark

When all else fails, RTFM?

Glad to hear you didn't ass-plode yourself...

 

[swbsam]

Originally posted by: BoomerD

Originally posted by: DrPizza

Originally posted by: nickbits

Originally posted by: novasatori
probably also not a good idea to light the pilot light right away if you've had the gas going all night without it lit

unless the thing is a million years old it isn't going to be releasing any gas because of the thermocouple

45 < million. There's a chance the OP is going to blow himself to smithereens!!!

(Wasn't it the OP who paid $400 to have an outlet replaced? Can't wait to see the furnace bill for relighting a pilot.)

Around here, all you have to do is call PG&E and they'll send a tech out to light your pilot lights for you...

Anytime there's some kind of interruption to the service, they send a fleet of techs out to light pilot lights all over town.

Originally posted by: swbsam

Originally posted by: Beanie46
I keep seeing threads like this one and continually wonder what these posters were taught about self-sufficiency by their parents while they were "growing up." Honestly, it seems no one knows squat about anything these days.....things that earlier generations took for common knowledge.....pilot lights, shopping for food, how to cook meals other than rice, Mac-n-Cheese, etc., simple household repairs. Simply amazing and baffling that so many are absolutely clueless about life.

Well, I've always lived in apartments, being a New Yorker. In fact, I'm the only person I know who lives in a house. Where my parents to take me to someone else's house to show me how to light a pilot light, since they've always owned coops with shared heating (usually steam heat, at that).

As for the pilot light issue - thanks for the links - I printed the instructions out but luckily there were instructions taped onto the basement wall by the builder

EDIT: As far as shutting it off by mistake - there's an emergeny gas shut off (power) switch that looks exactly like a light switch, other than the red face plate and EMERGENCY written around it. Of course, I flipped the switch because I wasn't paying attention and fumbling around in the dark

When all else fails, RTFM?

Glad to hear you didn't ass-plode yourself...

Ha - thanks! I posted this thread soon after I woke up in a freezing bedroom.. I should have investigated more, but my instinct was to call my landlord - the problem is that I don't have a landlord anymore! I should have looked, or at least called the gas company, but I thought it was too stupid of a question to bother them with Stupid questions are fine for ATOT, right?

 

[tyler811]

Originally posted by: CountZero

Originally posted by: Beanie46
I keep seeing threads like this one and continually wonder what these posters were taught about self-sufficiency by their parents while they were "growing up." Honestly, it seems no one knows squat about anything these days.....things that earlier generations took for common knowledge.....pilot lights, shopping for food, how to cook meals other than rice, Mac-n-Cheese, etc., simple household repairs. Simply amazing and baffling that so many are absolutely clueless about life.

For the record the entire time I lived with my parents we never had anything but electric heat. That's something like 7 different houses. So not knowing anything about gas heating isn't simply baffling in any way at all. I know, its a shocker, but you might find yourself in a situation your parents couldn't prepare you for.

And if you are so good with pilot lights how about instead of criticizing their lack of knowledge you offer some of your knowledge, you know make ATOT something better instead of a cesspool of people looking down their nose at other people.

This FTW

 

[BoomerD]

Originally posted by: swbsam
Ha - thanks! I posted this thread soon after I woke up in a freezing bedroom.. I should have investigated more, but my instinct was to call my landlord - the problem is that I don't have a landlord anymore! I should have looked, or at least called the gas company, but I thought it was too stupid of a question to bother them with Stupid questions are fine for ATOT, right?

:thumbsup:

Without stupid questions, ATOT would be dead...maybe 4-5 posts per day.

 

[tyler811]

Dude there is a plastic tab you can buy at any hardware store that will prevent you from shutting off the switch.
All it is a piece of plastic with a hole in one end so the swtich cannot be turned off. If your switches were installed correctly then the switch in the up position is on. Take out the bottom screw in the plate and place the plastic tab (Sorry do not remember what it is called) so that the hole in the plastic tab is down and you can insert the screw thru the plastic tab and put the screw back into the switch plate.

This will keep the switch from someone flipping it off.

 

[swbsam]

Originally posted by: tyler811
Dude there is a plastic tab you can buy at any hardware store that will prevent you from shutting off the switch.
All it is a piece of plastic with a hole in one end so the swtich cannot be turned off. If your switches were installed correctly then the switch in the up position is on. Take out the bottom screw in the plate and place the plastic tab (Sorry do not remember what it is called) so that the hole in the plastic tab is down and you can insert the screw thru the plastic tab and put the screw back into the switch plate.

This will keep the switch from someone flipping it off.

You know, I have no idea what emergency situation would require me using that switch, so I'm not sure if disabling it would be a good idea - gas leak, maybe? I think knowing that playing with that switch = bad will be good enough for now, but I'll look into that tab when I'm visiting home depot.

Thanks

 

[Born2bwire]

Originally posted by: Beanie46
I keep seeing threads like this one and continually wonder what these posters were taught about self-sufficiency by their parents while they were "growing up." Honestly, it seems no one knows squat about anything these days.....things that earlier generations took for common knowledge.....pilot lights, shopping for food, how to cook meals other than rice, Mac-n-Cheese, etc., simple household repairs. Simply amazing and baffling that so many are absolutely clueless about life.

Shit man, I went off to college 8 years ago and the first place I had I had to light the pilot light, clean the furnace filters, report a gas leak among other basic housing maintainance. Honestly, I don't know how people don't figure this stuff out in the first place. It ain't rocket science.