Amerigas Complaint - WHAT A RIP OFF - PROPANE

Posted by trmn8r on 2011-01-09:

If the leak is in your house, I believe you have to pay. Outside, no. I did my own propane piping, and I had a leak which I found on my own with a soapy brush and a couple pounds air pressure in the system.

If you have a leak, it is of the utmost importance to find it. I'd pay if you don't know how to do it yourself. You don't want your house blowing up, I assume. I believe A-Gas prices once per year. I fill up once a year, in July, and get a substantial discount. The rest of the year it is quite high.

Posted by kitty1999 on 2011-01-09:

WE DID NOT HAVE A LEAK. APPARENTLY OUR GAUGE WAS STUCK AT 55% AND WE RAN OUT.

Posted by Nohandle on 2011-01-09:

Kitty, you or someone else familiar with propane gas educate us. My home is total electric so back when I visited with my bedridden mother, before her death, smelled gas when I turned on her range. It spooked me so I called the propane company and the tank was almost empty. This was in the summertime and there was no extra charge over or above the cost of filling the tank. I honestly didn't realize the smell of gas sometimes indicates a tank was near empty. I knew nothing about a gauge.

Posted by kitty1999 on 2011-01-09:

THEY PUT A ODOR IN THE PROPANE AND ITS HEAVIER THAN PROPANE THAT WAY IF YOU RUN LOW THE ODOR COMES INTO THE HOUSE (THIS IS WHAT THEY TOLD US). THE GAUGE IS ON THE PROPANE TANK OUTSIDE AND IT TELLS YOU YOUR PERCENTAGE ON HOW MUCH PROPANE IS IN THERE SO YOU CAN CALL THEM IF YOU ARE NOT ON AUTO FILL. BUT WHEN IT STICKS WHAT ARE YOU TO DO?

Posted by Skye on 2011-01-09:

I'm not familiar with anything with propane, but Kitty, do you have to have regularly scheduled maintenance and readings? Who makes sure things such as the gauge are working properly?

I'm not saying this is or is not your fault, I'm just trying to understand how it works. We have gas, and have scheduled maintenance to make sure everything is in proper working order, with our furnace.

Posted by kitty1999 on 2011-01-09:

AS FAR AS I KNOW AMERIGAS DONT HAVE A SCHEDULED MAINTENANCE. WE HAVE ONLY HAD THEM FOR A YEAR AND A HALF. YOUR PROPANE TANK AND FURNACE ARE TWO SEPARATE THINGS. WE HAVE BOILER HEAT AND THAT GETS YEARLY MAINTENANCE. IF YOU ARE NOT ON AUTO FILL IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBLITY TO CHECK YOUR PERCENT IN YOUR TANK AND CALL YOUR PROPANCE CO.

Posted by Nohandle on 2011-01-09:

Kitty, please click your caps key. It would be easier for me to read. I really never understood how it worked. I believe my mother was on auto fill but I honestly smelled gas so you explained that one. Obviously they missed her scheduled delivery or she used so little they just skipped her until called when needed. I could deal, if needed, no range working but heat is an entirely different situation.

Posted by kitty1999 on 2011-01-09:

sorry. Yea we have no heat or range. bad thing is i have a young daughter and another on the way. Until we get another propane co.(no one is open until mon) we are using kerosene and one of them edenpures to heat our whole house.

Posted by Nohandle on 2011-01-09:

Thanks Kitty, much better. If I understand this correctly a customer is responsible for reading his own gauge/meter to determine if gas is needed. If the gauge is faulty then somehow it's the customer's fault? It's my understanding some customers own their tank and are responsible for all and some rent from the gas company and the gas company is responsible. Which is it in your case?

Posted by kitty1999 on 2011-01-09:

We rent our tank from Amerigas. When the guy came out to do a leak test he said it is very common for a gauge to stick (an elderly gentleman just went through it 2 wks ago). So his suggestion was to take a hammer out there everytime we check our percentage and beat on it to make sure its not frozen. I would have assumed it was amerigas' responsibilty for faulty equipment but i guess not.

Posted by Skye on 2011-01-09:

I don't know about beating a gauge that may be frozen. It may just ending up cracking the glass and causing more damage.

But if that's what Amerigas thinks works best,then so be it. I'm not familiar with having propane for my home, but if you have a furnace, is that for oil or gas? Not sure what the propane is used for, maybe you can explain it to me Kitty,

Thanks!

Posted by trmn8r on 2011-01-09:

Kitty said they have no heat or range - that is what she uses propane for (and maybe a clothes dryer). She is getting by with electric heaters.

Tapping on the gauge is perfectly safe, as long as you don't do it with a hammer. The gauge is round, with a small window. You could safely use a piece of wood.

I have used Amerigas for 16 years, never had a gauge stick but it is perfectly understandable. There is no regular maintenance except they replace the tanks when they corrode. I honestly feel it would be the homeowner that monitors their tank to notice that the gauge hasn't moved but they used a lot of gas. A new homeowner may not know how fast it is used.

I'm totally confused about the leak that wasn't a leak, and if the OP had to pay $200 to find out there wasn't a leak. Where was the gas smelled? And why didn't the range/heat stop before they came for a gas leak? Coincidence?

Posted by ript on 2011-01-09:

Be careful with the kerosene Kitty. It can be harmful to inhale. I use odorless kerosene in my hurricane lamps.

Posted by AmeriGas Customer Service on 2011-01-10:

We are sorry to hear about your situation and apologize for your recent experience with AmeriGas. AmeriGas prides itself on providing our customers with the highest levels of customer service and we would like to help. At your convenience, please contact Fran directly via email at customerfirstfran@amerigas.com so we can promptly assist you with this issue. To better assist you, please provide your AmeriGas customer number, phone number or the address and zip code where your propane tank is located. Thank-You. AmeriGas Customer Service.