Green Tip of the Day

8. Turn off those pilot lights.

Do you have a gas fireplace installed in your home? They are great in the winter when you need that extra heat for those cold winter days. What do you do with them in the summer seasons? Did you know that approximately half † of the gas it consumes is burned by its pilot-light (that's when the tiny flame is kept burning year round)? Now that summer has arrived those fireplace's are no longer needed, so blow out those pilot lights and save on your gas bill.

Now if you were at all like I was a few months ago, you might be asking, "well isn't that dangerous". Blowing out the pilot light is perfectly fine, so long as you follow the guidelines. They can usually be found printed on a card beneath the fireplace. Also, be careful to follow all of the steps and precautions.

† HomeFamily.net

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[ READER COMMENTS ]

1

Gerri G said:

For most women and old people who don't know how to re-light the polit light in the winter, this is scary. What would you tell them to do???

Posted at 07:38 AM, on June 10 2007

2

Jyle said:

Most people don't know how to light the pilot light. Many people call in the professionals when they get blown out accidentally. The way I look at it is anyone who drives a car needs to know how to change a tire; everyone who has a furnace should learn how to shut off the gas or light the pilot light. The truth is that it's just as simple as lighting a BBQ (not coal). As long as your unit isn't a hundred years old, it will have an automatic shut-off in case you ever made a mistake. They have these new furnaces that have done away with pilot lights altogether, I'm not sure how they work but I'll write a blog about them soon.

Posted at 01:54 AM, on June 13 2007

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