Propane Safety

Know how to protect your home and family

For more than 100 years, Downey Energy and the Downey family have been serving homes and businesses in the Hudson Valley.

Our customers are not merely account numbers in a database. You are our neighbors, whether you live in Poughkeepsie, Beacon, Carmel, Cold Spring, Peekskill or anywhere in our service area.

We care about you and take propane safety seriously. We make sure that our delivery drivers and service technicians have up-to-date training in the latest propane safety standards. And we want you to know about propane safety too, so you’ll be able to keep your loved ones and property safe.

What do I do if I smell gas?

Thanks to strong regulations and high propane industry standards, propane has a strong safety track record. But you still must know how to protect yourself if you smell gas, whether it’s in your home or anywhere else around gas equipment.

These propane safety tips are essential for protecting lives and property and must be taken as soon as you smell gas:

• Put out any sources of ignition, like candles or cigarettes.
• Get out of the house IMMEDIATELY.
• Don’t use any light switches, thermostats, telephones or appliances until you are safely out of the house and away from the area where you smell gas.
• If you can get to it safely, close the gas shutoff valve on the propane tank or cylinder.
• Once you are safely away, call 911 and Downey Energy.
• Give emergency personnel and the qualified propane service technicians time to check for escaped propane gas and do any repairs.
• Do not go back to the area where the leak was, or try to turn on the propane supply valve, even if you no longer smell gas.
• Have a trained propane service technician repair the leak, carefully inspect all gas appliances and relight all pilots.
• Don’t return until you have permission from emergency personnel or the service technician.

Want more propane safety tips? The Propane Education & Research Council (PERC) has created the informative videos below to tell you all about propane safety!

Downey Energy is ready to help when it comes to propane safety. Any questions? Contact us!