Starting January 1, 2018, Greer Commission of Public Works (CPW) will no longer relight appliance pilot lights for customers. The only exception is if CPW causes the outage. In addition, CPW employees will no longer enter customer’s homes to work on their appliances.
“We simply do not have enough man power to trouble shoot appliances or the ability to store supplies for all the various units inside customer’s homes,” said Rob Rhodes, CPW Gas Department Manager.
We anticipate communities with older furnaces and space heaters may be impacted by these changes. We encourage all homeowners to have a certified plumbing and heating business perform the services going forward.
Possible Questions Related to New Rules:
What about customers with new gas service? Greer CPW encourages homeowners to have the individual that installed the appliances turn on the pilot light.
What happens if my gas service was disconnected for non-payment? Greer CPW will no longer relight your pilot light. You must call a certified plumbing and heating business to perform the work.
What happens if I turn off my gas service or close my account during the warmer months? Greer CPW will no longer relight your pilot light. You must call a certified plumbing and heating business to perform the work. We recommend leaving your raw pilot light on during the summer months. The average cost for doing this is $10 a month versus having a HVAC or plumbing business come to your home.
What about new customers with existing gas service to the home? New customers that move into a home where natural gas service already exists would be required to have a contractor light their pilot light.