Energy Safety February 2010 Newsletter
General
Tips to keep safe with gas and electricity this summer
Summer is the time of year when homeowners and DIYers are often doing maintenance around their houses or we are barbecuing with family and friends ….
Energy Safety has some tips for keeping safe with electricity and gas this summer. These include:
- using Residual Current Device (RCDs)
- taking care when using gas appliances
- doing DIY inside or outside
- checking for overhead lines and underground cables and pipes
If in doubt always seek professional help.
Related link
Unsafe travel plug adaptor banned
Energy Safety has banned the importation, sale, distribution and use of a particular type of travel plug adaptor, known as a “Universal Adaptor” or “all-in-one adaptor”.
These adaptors are unsafe, as they do not offer adequate protection from contact with live parts, to the point where live 230 volt parts can easily be accessed and touched.
The adaptors have been sold through tourist gift shops and pharmacies and on online auction sites such as Trade Me. A supplier, Melric International Limited, has already initiated a voluntary recall. It is believed the adaptors first appeared in late 2007.
Plug adaptors are intended for use by overseas travellers with small low power personal appliances that they carry with them, such as a cell phone charger, laptop computers, or battery charger for camera equipment.
Only the adaptors fully meeting the description given in the Prohibition Notice issued by Energy Safety are banned.
Related links
Phones Direct convicted after shock from travel plug adaptor
Paul Scoble, of website seller Phones Direct, pleaded guilty to breaching the Electricity Regulations and was convicted in the Hamilton District Court on 17 December 2009 and fined $1,000 and $130 costs.
Paul Scoble pleaded guilty to supplying an unsafe travel plug adaptor, and also to supplying an illegal mobile phone charger, by failing to establish the safety of a mobile phone charger before offering it for sale.
Energy Safety prosecuted Phones Direct after a woman received a severe electric shock from a travel adaptor bought from Phones Direct in May 2008.
Richard Lamb, Energy Safety Compliance Officer, says the products ordered from a company in New Zealand were dispatched to customers directly from Hong Kong, a distribution method commonly known as “Drop shipping”. While this appears to be an efficient means of distribution, drop shipping does have some associated risks and suppliers should ensure that what is dispatched is legal and safe.
The best protection for consumers is to use a trusted supplier which sells items suitable for New Zealand conditions and approved for use here.
Paul Scoble breached Electricity Regulations 101 and 101A.
Related link
Gas (Safety and Measurement) Regulations
The Associate Minister of Energy and Resources, Hon Pansy Wong, released the exposure draft of the proposed Gas (Safety and Measurement) Regulations 2010 on Friday 22 January.
Members of the gas industry and other associated organisations have been asked to provide comments and suggestions on the proposed Gas (Safety and Measurement) Regulations 2010 by 26 February.
Related link
Camping safely with gas appliances
For many of us, summer means camping. Remember these safety tips when planning a camping trip and using gas appliances:
- Use gas appliances outside.
- Never use in confined spaces, such as small tents.
- If inside, make sure that there's plenty of space and ventilation.
- Ventilation should allow air to move across the space with openings at high and low levels.
- Keep gas appliances in good condition.
- Always follow the manufacturer's instructions.
- Give your flame room to burn - it should just touch the bottom of the pot.
- Do not use gas appliances if they are giving off a smell as this indicates leaking gas or emissions linked to carbon monoxide.
- If your gas appliance is malfunctioning - stop using it! Have it checked and serviced by a competent service person or dispose of it safely.
Gas appliances should be used outdoors for their intended purpose, in accordance with manufacturers’ instructions. In particular, cookers, grillers and barbecues should not be used for heating.
Remember: gas appliances can cause fatal carbon monoxide poisoning if they malfunction or operate without proper ventilation.
Related links
2009 accident summary online
For a number of years Energy Safety has published an annual summary of notifiable electrical and gas accidents.
To improve the usefulness of this information we are now moving to producing online reports at more regular intervals.
The reports will now be published quarterly on the Energy Safety website, with notification of their publication being made through Business Updates. Trend analysis will continue to be published on an annual basis for each calendar year.
Only completed investigations will be reported in each quarter, regardless of the date of the accident. As a consequence, some accidents that have been published in the 2008 annual report will also appear in the 2009 quarterly reports. This will apply to accidents that occurred in 2008, but for which the investigation was completed in 2009.
From 1 January 2009 responsibility for investigating workplace electrical and gas related accidents transferred to the Department of Labour, therefore information on such events is no longer included in the Energy Safety reports or trends analysis.
Related link
|
Forward
to an associate
Print Issues
Back
to Headlines
