Do Not Turn Gas Back On Yourself — FortisBC Must Inspect After Any Shutoff
Claim: Shutting off the gas at the meter is owner-operable. Turning it back on is not — ever, for any reason. Only a FortisBC technician or a TSBC-licensed gas contractor may restore gas service and relight pilots after any shutoff.
Mechanism
When you shut off gas at the meter, you have cut supply to an unknown system state. You do not know whether:
- A gas appliance was left open or in a mid-cycle state when the gas was cut
- A line was fractured during an earthquake or flood
- An internal valve or fitting failed while the system was pressurised
Restoring gas to an unknown state fills the interior of your home with unburned gas before any pilot or ignition source fires. In an enclosed space, this is explosive.
FortisBC’s protocol: a technician comes to your home, assesses the system state, restores pressure progressively, checks for downstream leaks, and only then relights or resets any appliances with pilot lights or electronic ignition lockouts. This is why the rule is absolute — not a general caution.
The same rule applies after a FortisBC-initiated shutoff (e.g. a meter replacement where no one was home): gas stays off until a technician can confirm no appliances are open and no lockouts need reset.
Scope
This applies to the main gas shutoff at the meter — the valve beside the FortisBC meter. It does not apply to individual appliance shutoffs (e.g. turning off the valve behind your range to do appliance maintenance) — those are owner-operable in both directions. The rule is specifically about the main service valve that controls all gas into the building.
Why the rule is easy to violate
The valve has no lock, no warning label in most installations, and the “restore” action is physically identical to the shutoff action — another quarter-turn. After an earthquake passes without a gas smell, or after an external event clears, the instinct to restore heat or cooking is strong. The rule is: resist that instinct and call FortisBC first. The inspection takes one technician visit; an uncontrolled gas release in an occupied building does not.
Idea Compass
North: Where this comes from
- gas-meter-shutoff (Home Systems) — the component note this rule is embedded in
- FortisBC meter safety guidance and post-earthquake protocol — the primary authoritative sources
- Technical Safety BC — TSBC-licensed gas contractor requirement for restoration
East: Tensions / failure
- Gas Shutoff Is a Quarter-Turn — Perpendicular Means Closed (Home Systems) — the action that creates the asymmetry: one direction is yours; the other is not
- When the Gas Smell Is Strong, Leave First — Shutoff Is Secondary (Home Systems) — the companion rule; both rules exist because of the same underlying hazard (gas accumulation in an enclosed space with ignition sources)
South: Where this leads
- vendor-roster (Home Systems) — FortisBC emergency line (1-800-663-9911) is the “after shutoff” resource; licensed gas fitter is the alternative if FortisBC response time is a concern
West: What’s similar
- electrical-panel (Home Systems) — a parallel asymmetry: resetting a tripped breaker is owner-operable; restoring the main service after a BC Hydro disconnect is not
- water-heater (Home Systems) — after gas service to a water heater is interrupted, the ignition sequence (relight pilot or reset electronic lockout) also requires the system to be verified pressurised before the appliance fires