FLEXIBLE GAS CONNECTORS

NEWS from CPSC

U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission

CPSC Warns About Dangerous Flexible Gas Connectors
Used on Home Appliances

WASHINGTON D.C. Some older corrugated metal tubes used to connect home appliances to natural gas supply pipes could corrode leading to a fire or explosion, according to Chairman Ann Brown of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). These connectors are used most often with gas ranges, ovens and clothes dryers. "The CPSC has received 200 reports of these connectors failing," Brown said. "These failed connectors have been associated with 35 deaths and 59 injuries. We are urging people to have their gas appliances inspected to see if they have one of these old, potentially dangerous connectors." The connectors the CPSC is warning consumers about are older, uncoated, brass connectors, which have not been made for at least the past 10 years. The brass fittings on these connectors which attach the connector to the natural gas supply pipe and the appliance, were soldered onto a corrugated brass tube. The CPSC believes that the solder can fail, causing a break in the connector and resulting in a gas leak.

Many of these connectors may still be in use, and the CPSC is warning consumers to have their connectors inspected. Because it is very difficult to tell just by looking at it whether a connector has been soldered, the CPSC recommends that ANY uncoated brass connector be replaced immediately by a new stainless steel connector or a new plastic-coated brass connector.

The CPSC warns consumers not to move their appliances in an effort to inspect the connectors themselves. The connector should be inspected only by a professional service provider. These older brass connectors with weak, soldered connections could break if moved, leading to an explosion or fire. Moving an appliance, even slightly, if only to clean behind it, could cause a weakened connector to fail.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission protects the public from the unreasonable risk of injury or death from 15,000 types of consumer products under the agency's jurisdiction. To report a dangerous product or a product-related injury and for information on CPSC's fax-on-demand service, call CPSC's hotline at (800) 638-2772 or CPSC's teletypewriter at (800) 638-8270. To order a press release through fax-on-demand, call (301) 504-0051 from the handset of your fax machine and enter the release number. Consumers can obtain this release and recall information via Internet gopher services at cpsc.gov or report product hazards to info@cpsc.gov.

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