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Energy Safety (PDF Format)
KEEPING YOU AND YOUR FAMILY SAFE
Press a button, flip a switch, turn a dial — and electricity and natural gas brighten our nights, cook our meals, warm and cool us, and power our toys and tools. But electricity and natural gas are also powerful forces that must be respected.
Con Edison knows that safely delivering the energy metropolitan New York uses is serious business. But the need for safety doesn’t end when the electricity or natural gas reaches your home or business. That’s why we’ve prepared this energy-safety guide to outline some of the rules that help protect you and your family.
Electric Safety in the Home
Whether it’s your kitchen, den, or bathroom, your stove, computer, or hairdryer, knowing what hazards to look for will help keep you and your family safe. Essential electric-safety rules include:
- Check outlets for loose connections and corrosion. Call an electrician if there is a problem.
- Plug unused outlets with safety covers if you have young children at home.
- Check electric cords for worn spots or frayed wires. Replace them, because homemade repairs often lead to fires.
- Try not to conceal outlets behind furniture or window coverings.
- If an electrical product falls into water, do not try to retrieve it. Instead, make sure you are dry and that the plug is not wet or oily. Pull the plug, not the cord, from the outlet or use the circuit breaker to shut the power.
- Don’t use appliances during an electric storm. Only use the telephone if it’s an emergency.
- Don’t place electric cords under carpets or furniture. Do not attach cords to walls, baseboards, or other objects with nails or staples.
- Only use extension cords temporarily. And don’t overload or connect them to other extension cords.
- Never remove the third prong from a plug to make it fit a two-prong outlet. This could lead to an electric shock.
- Don’t overload outlets.
- Unplug unused appliances.
- Replace missing or broken wall plates.
- If an outlet or switch wall plate is hot to the touch, immediately shut off the circuit and have a professional check it.
- A tear-drop shaped darkening around or above an outlet or wall plate may indicate dangerous heat build-up.
- Don’t overload power strips.
- Use surge protectors to safeguard sensitive appliances and electronics.
- Be sure that all small appliances and tools are certified by a nationally recognized independent testing lab.
- Know where your main electrical panel is so you can turn off your electricity in case of an emergency.
When You’re Outside
- Avoid contact with open or damaged streetlight bases, especially if you see exposed wires. Call 311 to report this condition. In Westchester County, contact your local municipality.
- Never go near or touch a fallen power line or other damaged electrical equipment. Report the condition by calling 1-800-75-CONED (1-800-752-6633).
- Do not drive over downed lines. If your car comes into contact with a downed power line, don’t get out. Call 911 or honk for help, and keep nonemergency people away.
- Use electrical products or extension cords outdoors only if they are marked for outdoor use. Keep outdoor outlets covered and dry between uses.
- Never use outdoor portable electrical appliances/tools while you are wet or near water and never leave them unattended.
- Safety information for contractors can be found at www.conEd.com/contractor_safety.
Using Natural Gas Safely
We are committed to keeping our customers safe and we respond rapidly to any calls about gas leaks. We work with emergency responders to protect you. But it is important for you and your family to know what to do when you smell, hear, or see gas leaking.
When you suspect a gas leak you should…
- Leave your home immediately and take others with you. If outside, get well away from where you suspect the gas is leaking.
- Open windows before you leave if the odor is faint.
- Call us at 1-800-75-CONED (1-800-752-6633) once safely away from the leak. (National Grid customers should call 1-718-643-4050.)
- Tell us if there is also a problem with your electric service.
- Follow directions from emergency responders who are on site.
When you suspect a gas leak you should not…
Do anything to create a spark that could cause an explosion, such as:
- Light a match
- Turn appliances or lights on or off (including flashlights)
- Use a telephone or cell phone
- Ring a doorbell
- Start a car
Signs of a Gas Leak
- Smell — A distinctive, strong odor similar to rotten eggs.
- See — A white cloud, mist, fog, bubbles in standing water, blowing dust, or vegetation that appears to be dead or dying for no reason.
- Hear — A roaring, hissing, or whistling sound.
Gas Safety in the Home
Follow these gas safety rules at home:
- Never use a gas range or oven to heat your home.
- Gas-fired appliances such as stoves or gas dryers that are attached to a flexible connector should be moved or replaced only by professionals. Old flexible connectors should be replaced and not reused because they may become brittle over time and develop small cracks, which leak enough gas to reach a hazardous level.
- Don’t step, sit, lean, or place any objects on flexible connectors attached to appliances.
- To prevent combustible gases from entering a building through sewer lines, make sure that indoor sewer line caps are intact and securely attached.
- Have your heating and venting system serviced regularly.
- Keep cleaning products, gasoline, paints, and other combustible materials away from gas appliances.
- Don’t let children play near gas appliances.
- Keep the path and area around the gas meter clear so it can be reached in case of an emergency.
- Don’t enclose your gas meter. Remove snow and ice from around your gas meter.
Protect Yourself Against Carbon Monoxide
Carbon monoxide (CO) is a colorless, odorless, poisonous gas that can cause serious illness or death if inhaled in large concentrations for even a short period of time. Every home has fuel-burning appliances that can produce CO if they are not working properly.
Symptoms of CO poisoning include headaches, tightness of chest, dizziness, nausea, and fatigue.
- If you suspect CO poisoning, immediately evacuate the premises and call 911.
- Install CO detectors in your home. If you use a battery-operated or plug-in detector with battery backup, check the batteries every month and replace the batteries once a year.
- If the CO alarm sounds, but no one is showing symptoms of CO poisoning, open windows, turn off all potential CO sources, and leave. Have a qualified technician investigate the source of the CO and inspect your appliances, detector, and chimneys to make sure they are operating correctly.
- All heating systems, vents, chimneys and flues should be inspected and cleaned annually by a qualified technician.
- Be sure appliances, including portable generators, are properly adjusted and working to manufacturer’s specifications and local building codes.
- Keep your furnace or boiler’s air intake supply clear of obstructions. If your equipment is in a separate room, leave the door open or make sure it is louvered or has adequately sized ventilating grills.
- Do not use kerosene or propane auxiliary heaters indoors or in any enclosed space.
- Never use a gas range or oven to heat your home.
- Barbecue grills and portable generators should be used only outdoors. Do not use them in an enclosed porch or garage.
- Never leave your car, lawn mower, snow blower, or portable generator running in an enclosed space or in a garage or shed, even if the door is open.
Call Before You Dig
Dig with care because the slightest scratch, scrape, dent, or gouge in an underground gas pipeline can result in a dangerous leak.
To protect these pipelines, you must call the local one-call center at 811 two to 10 days before you dig or excavate on public or private property. After you call, utility companies will mark the approximate location of their lines at no charge to you.
Line Markers
Since pipelines are underground, pipeline markers are sometimes used to show their approximate location. These markers display the name and phone number of the pipeline operator, which can be used in case of an emergency.
Call 811 BeforeYou Dig
Seven days a week, 24 hours a day
This toll-free call will help protect you, your family, and your neighbors.
Private Property: What are Your Responsibilities?
Customer-Owned Service Lines
The property owner is responsible for marking the location, inspecting, and maintaining some underground pipelines, known as customer-owned service lines. For one to three family homes, the property owner is responsible beyond the first inside fitting if the meter is indoors, or the foundation wall if the meter is outdoors. For large residential and commercial buildings, the property owner’s responsibility begins at the property line.
Working Together
Con Edison continuously monitors and inspects its electric and gas systems to ensure public safety. We encourage you to take an active role in helping us keep our systems safe. Please be alert to suspicious individuals or activities around our facilities and equipment. If you see something suspicious, call the police.
Our Commitment to Safety
To ensure the highest level of safety, service reliability, and security Con Edison:
- Works with emergency responders and state and local agencies to prevent and prepare for emergencies. This is done through training and periodic drills.
- Works closely with the community.
- Uses the latest security and safety technologies and methods.
- Constantly examines its system and seeks to improve it through integrity management programs.
Tampering with Con Edison equipment is illegal
It also creates hazards that could hurt you. If you think someone has tampered with our equipment, call 1-888-314-5385. You do not have to give us your name.
Want to Know More?
If you want additional energy-safety information, visit Con Edison’s Web site, www.coned.com/customercentral/safetytip.asp
The following organizations also offer energy-safety ideas:
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