Supplying some gas safety facts

Jan 22 2009 by Margaret Shaw, Hamilton Advertiser

HAVING read the article in last week’s Advertiser about Hamilton parents claiming St Peter’s Primary pupils’ lives were being put at risk through the use of gas heaters in a school’s classrooms, we felt the need to set the record straight.

A South Lanarkshire Council spokesman said that following a heating system breakdown, “in the interim the school is using Calor Gas heaters to heat classrooms.”

However, neither the heaters nor the gas used by the school in question were supplied by Calor but, as is often the case, the Calor name has been used as a generic term for all LPG cylinders.

As far as the safety concern over these units is concerned, there is no evidence to support this. Hundreds of thousands of portable gas heaters have been sold throughout the country during the past 40 years and their safety record is excellent. Moreover, Calor mobile heaters provide a clean and economical instant heat solution throughout the home and business, having long since replaced paraffin heaters and coal fires.

However, as with any form of gas heating, we recommend that readers have their heater serviced regularly. Calor provide a free Heater Health check scheme whereby customers can have their mobile gas heaters visually inspected to identify whether a service or replacement is required.

To arrange a free inspection simply contact the Lanarkshire Calor Centre on 01698 745532.

Simon Maris, communications manager, Calor.