Help, It's Broken! The Fix-It Bible For The Repairing-Impaired

Chapter 1: Help, Where Do I Start? The Must-Read Chapter Dangerous Breaks Uh-oh, something's wrong: there is smoke, water, or gas in your living space and you don't know what to do. Flailing about shrieking, "Heeelp, it's broken!" won't help, and neither will calling your dog, crying, or staring at the gathering catastrophe. If you live somewhere, you need to know how to quickly identify and respond to a potentially dangerous situation. Five Signs That Something is Very, Very Wrong Flooding or streaming water, especially near electrical outlets or appliances Smoke in your living space or the smell of burning, particularly from an electrical source Gas leaks, the smell of gas, or damage to an exterior gas meter An activated carbon monoxide alarm A circuit that trips repeatedly or flickering lights that you can't stop In all five of these scenarios, you need to leave immediately. In the case of smoke, gas, or carbon monoxide, go outside and call a professional from a cell phone. If you are short on cash flow, you should have a "rainy day" fund of a few hundred dollars, for use when it's raining water (or carbon monoxide) inside your living space. Who Ya Gonna Call . . . When in doubt, call the fire department. Although each of the above scenarios has the potential to involve fire or to become life threatening, local fire departments are rarely used for home emergencies. Fire personnel will usually come immediately without flashing lights, and often vacuum up the mess for you, free of charge. This is particularly true of salaried suburban departments that don't have too much to doit's either helping you or playing on the pole. It is perfectly legitimate to call and say, "Hi, I just accidentally hit my gas meter with my car, and I want to make sure I don't have a gas leak. Can you help me?" Yes, you'll feel like a dufus for not stepping on your brake earlier, but it's better than the feeling of self-implosion. Fire personnel are trained to deal with these situations. If they are busy or not able to help you, they will say so, and tell you who to call. Who Else To Call, and What To Do in the Meantime Smoke. Leave the residence and call 911 or the fire department, always. It doesn't matter if the smoke is from an electrical outlet, from an appliance, or from the large fire in your living room. If the smoke is coming from a contained electrical source, turn off the power supply to that part of the house with your circuit or fuse box, or if you're not sure how to do that, turn off your main electricity shutoff. Even if you have stopped the smoke, it's a good idea to call the fire department nonemergency number to have someone come identify and remove the hazard. Water. If it's near anything electrical, call the fire department and turn off your main electricity shutoff. If not, call your plumber. If you know where the water is coming from, turn off the water supply to that area of the house. If not, turn off your main water shutoff. Crying while you do this is okay. Gas. Natural gas is potentially the most dangerous household substance. It can result in sudden flash explosions and fires. If you smell gas, leave and call the fire department. Damage to a gas line either inside your house or to the outside gas lines also warrants leaving and calling. If you feel that it is safe, turn off the main gas supply to the house before you leave, but do not risk your safety. (If you're one of those people who thinks that gas smells good, ignore that feeling.)Cohen, Arianne is the author of 'Help, It's Broken! The Fix-It Bible For The Repairing-Impaired', published 2005 under ISBN 9781400098408 and ISBN 1400098408.