A. Responsibility:
1. Any gas fitter not in the employ of the gas company shall not turn the gas on at the meter cock except with the specific permission of the gas company.
2. A gas fitter, whether employed by the gas company or not, shall not turn the gas on if the following conditions prevail:
a. If the piping, appliances or meter supplied are known to leak or to be defective.
b. If the piping or appliances are to be, but have not been, inspected and approved by the administrative authority.
c. If the proper administrative authority or the gas company has ordered the gas to be left turned on.
d. If the meter cock is found shut off, unless the gas fitter has, himself, shut it off or knows that it was shut off by the customer to prevent leakage and the cause of the leakage has been repaired. If the gas is found turned off for other causes or for some reason not known to the gas fitter, he shall then secure permission from the gas company before turning on the gas.
B. Procedure:
1. When turning gas into any piping system, a gas fitter shall exercise the greatest care and shall do the work himself. The gas fitter shall not direct a helper or other person to turn the gas on unless the work is closely supervised by the gas fitter who shall be personally on the job at the time.
2. The same care shall be taken each and every time the gas is turned on even though the gas has been shut off only for a short time and the same precautions have been taken only a short time before. These precautions are to avoid leaks and are checks on each other and shall not be omitted.
3. When gas is turned on at any meter cock, the gas fitter shall observe the following precautions:
a. Determine by actual inspection in every part of the building supplied through the cock that all appliances, including pilot flames, have been turned off and that no outlets on the piping are open. If impossible to get to all burners or appliances because of persons asleep in some of the rooms of the building, the gas shall not be turned on until it is possible to determine with certainty that there are no burners open in the rooms.
b. When all precautions have been taken by the gas fitters, the gas may be turned on and the gas fitter shall note whether the meter dial test indicates that gas is passing through the meter. The minimum time which the gas fitter shall wait to determine this will be as follows:
Size Of Proving Test Minimum Time
Dial On Meter Required
2 cubic feet 5 minutes
5 cubic feet 10 minutes
10 cubic feet 20 minutes
c. If the meter shows a passage of gas, the cock shall be closed and an inspection made to determine the point of leakage. See rule "searching for leaks", section 10-3-28 of this chapter.
d. Light all pilot lights on water heaters or other appliances except domestic lighting fixtures, carefully observing the precautions indicated on the appliances. The pilot light on lighting fixtures may also be lighted by the gas fitter, but this is not required if the fixture cock has been closed.
C. Removing Air From Piping:
1. After gas has been turned into piping for the first time or after any interruption of supply, the air in the piping shall be removed. This should be done by opening as many burners as necessary, one at a time, lighting the gas as soon as it comes to each until it is certain that no air remains in the piping. Each line shall be tested separately even though it is thought that no air has entered.
2. Open outlets shall not be used for gassing up. If enough gas to smell has escaped into the room during gassing up, this should be removed at once by proper ventilation. (Ord. 15.28)