Cooking Gas Safety:
Cooking gas sold in Nigeria is otherwise known as Liquefied Petroleum Gas, or LPG. Liquified because because the gases can be stored in liquid form with moderate pressure, Petroleum because the composite gases are light hydrocarbons (composed of carbon and hydrogen if we are to revisit organic chemistry notes in Year 1) – butane and propane in varying compositions.
Some days ago the news came to me as a shock when I heard that a final year student of Statistics department in my school was involved in gas explosion because of leak in the gas cylinder.
Gas explosion is one of the deadly incident that can lead to instant death and students needs to be lectured on safety use of cooking gas because here in Nigeria there are high rate of cooking gas users.
These little tips of mine will help you to indicate when your gas is leaking, on the other hand help you avoid high pressure in the gas cylinder and most especially help you to avoid domestic explosion.
They are-
•Keeping the cylinder away from bright sunlight, dampness, abrasion and heavy weights.
•Replaces cylinder and bunner every 5 years, as they are manufactured with a lifespan of 5 years
•Store the cylinders in a place where you have good ventilation. This is because LPG is heavier than air, and gravity ensures that it will flow along floors and and settle in pockets in the ground (if any). As a result, a leak and an ignition source are the only requirements for an explosion to occur.
•Check the cylinder burner :
If it's safe, walk over to your cylinder and make sure all your burners are turned off. It's a common mistake: Someone bumps into the cylinder and the gas is accidentally turned on.
•Keep the house lights off:
Don't turn the lights of your house on, as that could spark an explosion if gas is present. Make sure you have a flashlight handy.
•Open all the doors and windows:
Make sure you ventilate the house. Keep doors and windows open, that'll help get any gases out.
•Get out:
Finally, you should make sure you evacuate your home. Get a safe distance away across the street will work. Once you feel safe, call for emergency.