Smell Gas at Home in Metro Atlanta? What to Do and Who to Call

What should you do, step by step?

1. Get out. Leave the house immediately and warn others in the home as you go. Do not stop to open windows or gather belongings.
2. Do not make a spark. Atlanta Gas Light lists lighters, matches, cigarettes, flashlights, light switches and telephones as things to avoid touching.
3. Get distance, then call. AGL says to wait until you are a safe distance away before using a cell phone. Call 911 first.
4. Call the pipe utility. For most of metro Atlanta that is Atlanta Gas Light at 877.427.4321. Some cities run their own systems; see the list below.
5. Stay away. Keep everyone, including neighbors and pets, back from the house until emergency personnel tell you it is safe to return.

Do not try to find the leak, shut appliances off one by one or wait to see whether the smell fades.

How do you recognize a gas leak?

Atlanta Gas Light describes three signs. The smell is a distinctive rotten-egg odor. You may hear a hissing or roaring noise near a gas appliance or line. Outdoors, look for dead or discolored vegetation, blowing dirt or water that keeps bubbling over the path of a buried gas line. Any one of these is reason enough to leave.

Do not rely on smell alone. Treat a hissing sound or dying grass along a gas line as seriously as an odor.

Who do you call in your part of metro Atlanta?

Georgia's gas market has two layers, and it confuses many newcomers. Since deregulation took effect in 1998, homes on the Atlanta Gas Light system buy gas from a certified marketer, which sends the monthly bill. Atlanta Gas Light still owns and maintains the pipes and meters and answers leak calls. Your marketer does not send a crew for a leak, so do not call them first.

A number of cities never joined that system and run their own gas utilities. If you live in one of these service areas, the city system is your pipe utility:

In every case, 911 comes first. Service areas do not follow city limits neatly: Buford's system reaches into parts of Gwinnett, Hall and other counties, while some addresses near Lawrenceville and Cartersville are on Atlanta Gas Light pipes. The surest way to know is your gas bill, which shows which utility delivers your gas. Write the right number on the inside of a kitchen cabinet or save it in your phone today, before you need it.

Should you call a plumber first?

No. A leak call goes to 911 and the utility, which can shut off gas at the meter. Once the utility has found the source and made it safe, the repair on your side of the meter is usually yours to arrange. Atlanta Gas Light says customers are responsible for the gas lines from the meter to their appliances, including buried lines to yard lights, grills, pool heaters and detached garages or workshops.

That is where a plumber who does gas piping repair comes in. Expect a pressure test after the repair, and possibly a permit and inspection depending on your city or county, before the utility restores service and relights pilots.

What happens after responders arrive?

Firefighters and the utility crew will usually check the air in and around the house with gas detectors, find the source and stop the flow, often by shutting off gas at the meter. They may ventilate the building before anyone goes back in. Follow their instructions on when it is safe to return, and do not turn the gas back on yourself after it has been shut off at the meter.

If the leak is on the utility's side, such as the meter or the service line in the yard, the utility repairs it. If it is on your side, such as a fitting behind the dryer or a corroded buried line to a detached garage, you will be told to have it fixed before service is restored. Keep any paperwork or tag the crew leaves; the plumber will want to see it.

What if you smell gas outdoors or next door?

A strong outdoor smell, or a smell near a neighbor's meter, still calls for distance first. Move away from the area, keep others back, and call 911 and the utility. If you see a contractor's machine hit a line, or hear gas blowing from the ground, leave the area and call; do not try to shut anything off. Hearing hissing near the street is a utility matter, not a homeowner repair.

What if the smell is faint or only near one appliance?

A brief whiff when a burner lights, or right after a pilot goes out, can happen. A smell that lingers, grows stronger or keeps coming back is a leak until proven otherwise, and the safe response is the same: leave and call. The utility would rather check a false alarm than miss a real one.

For an appliance that keeps causing trouble, such as a water heater whose pilot will not stay lit or a range burner that smells when it is off, have it inspected once the utility has cleared the house. Our water heater repair or replace guide and water heater service page can help with next steps.

What about digging in the yard?

Many gas leaks outside start with a shovel. Before you plant a tree, set fence posts or add a deck, submit a Georgia 811 request at least three business days ahead. The service is free, and it is funded by utility companies. Remember that the utility marks its own lines; buried customer-owned piping past the meter may not be marked, and Atlanta Gas Light says to have it located and to dig by hand near it.

The same caution applies to sewer work. A trenchless sewer job still needs small pits, and the crew should know where every gas line runs first.

How can you lower the risk of a leak?

• Know your shutoff. Learn where the meter is, but leave the meter valve to the utility or firefighters during an emergency.
• Check old flexible connectors. Ask a plumber to look at the connectors behind the range, dryer and water heater when doing other work.
• Inspect buried lines. AGL recommends checking buried customer piping periodically for corrosion and leaks.
• Use qualified help. AGL says repairs, locating and connector work should be done by a qualified plumbing or heating contractor.
• Teach the household. Make sure children and guests know the smell and the rule: get out first, call from outside.

Where to go from here

Once the utility has cleared the scene, you can find independent plumbers for gas work through our full list of services, the urgent plumbing page, or local pages such as Austell gas line repair, gas lines in Buford and Lawrenceville. If you are unsure whether something can wait until morning, read when to call an emergency plumber. A gas smell is never in the wait category.