Gas safety when caravanning or boating

It’s June tomorrow and as the temperature rises, increasing amounts of people head away for a long weekend or holiday.

Some will opt for a staycation in the UK; others will pack their passports and head towards the nearest ferry port or airport. Some will choose to stay in a hotel; others will own a holiday lodge or canal boat. Scores will simply hook up their caravan to the car and set off with their accommodation trundling behind them.

Holidays are part and parcel of life. They are there to be enjoyed – a time to relax, explore, discover and recharge those batteries. So the last thing we want to do is throw cold water over your anticipation, but there is a question we need to ask: when was the last time you did a safety check on your accommodation's gas appliances?

Whether you are staying in a touring caravan, motor-home, narrow boat, canal cruiser, residential park home or static caravan, it is very likely that your accommodation will rely on natural gas or LPG (Liquid Petroleum Gas) to run certain appliances. After all, modern living means we have come to expect certain mod cons.

Yet it is highly likely that these gas equipment and appliances have been sitting dormant during the winter months. Are you sure that after so many months of inactivity, they will be 100% safe to use? When was the last time you had your gas appliances serviced?

Irrespective of whether they are on a boat, caravan or lodge, all gas appliances must be installed in accordance with current gas safety regulations to ensure that they comply with the law and of minimal risk to users. We highly recommend that you organise annual checks on gas appliances, both at home and away.

The following holiday homes and leisure vehicles are likely to have LPG or natural gas appliances that should be checked on a regular basis:

• Static caravans
  
• Lodges
  
• Park homes
  
• Motor-homes
  
• Camper vans
  
• Caravans
  
• Narrow boats
  
• Canal cruisers
  

Do you have a carbon monoxide detector in your holiday home or boat? Have you checked that it's working correctly? Changed the batteries recently? CO is tasteless, odourless and can't be seen, but carbon monoxide asphyxiation or poisoning can cause sickness, paralysis, brain damage and even death.

Faulty gas appliances and flues can emit potentially deadly CO so it is imperative that all gas equipment and appliances are correctly installed, serviced and maintained.

Did you know that if you hire out your caravan, park home, canal or river boat to others, you are legally required to have an up-to-date gas safety certificate? A certificate will last 12 months and ensures that all gas appliances and pipe work are safe.

If you have booked accommodation for your forthcoming holiday, please make sure that you ask for a copy of the latest gas safety certificate from the hirer before your break commences.

If you are thinking of working within the leisure industry, Gas Training & Assessment can help. Our CCLP1 (PD, RPH, LAV, B) course enables you to work on Permanent Dwellings (PD), Residential Park Homes (RPH), Leisure Accommodation Vehicles (LAV) and Boats (B). There is also a conversion course from natural gas to LPG (CONGLP1), which is shorter and all of your natural gas appliances can then be worked on if they run on LPG.