Gas Smell from the Hob? Read This Before Anything Else in Edgbaston

This page exists for one reason above all others: if you can smell gas near your hob, the correct next step is not a repair booking — it's the National Gas Emergency Service, on 0800 111 999, right now. The line is free and available 24 hours a day. Everything else on this page matters less than that sentence, so we've put it first.

What to do immediately, calmly and in order

Don't operate light switches, sockets or any electrical appliances — including the hob's own controls — and don't light anything. Open doors and windows if it's safe to do so, to let gas disperse. If you can reach the meter safely and know how, turn the gas off at the meter control valve. Then leave the property with everyone else in it and call 0800 111 999 from outside, away from the building. Do not go back inside until the emergency service or a competent professional has advised that it's safe.

A few things people understandably get wrong: don't try to find the leak yourself, don't test it with a flame, and don't assume the smell will pass. Natural gas has no natural odour — the smell you notice is an additive put there precisely so you'd notice it. Treat every suspected gas smell as a real leak until a professional confirms otherwise.

What happens next

The gas emergency service attends, makes the situation safe and tells you when the property can be re-entered and how the supply can be restored. Their call is free. Once the immediate situation is resolved and the property is confirmed safe, there may be repair work to arrange — the gas hob, its connections or pipework. That work belongs to a Gas Safe registered engineer, and the emergency service will usually confirm as much.

Where Maintenance Men fits in — and where we don't

We are not Gas Safe registered and we never carry out gas work of any kind: no repairs, adjustments, disconnections or reconnections of gas appliances, burners, valves, pipework or supply. During an emergency, we're not the right call — the emergency line is. Afterwards, once the property is confirmed safe, we can help in two limited ways: advising on any genuinely electrical aspects of the hob that fall within electrical competence, and recommending the trusted Gas Safe registered engineers with whom we work closely, so the gas-side repair is quoted and done properly.

When a smell appears without a full leak

Sometimes a smell develops after cleaning the hob with strong products, or a spillover produces an odour that resembles gas. The rule doesn't change: you cannot reliably tell the difference, so every suspected gas smell gets the emergency treatment first. If the emergency service finds no leak, that's the best possible outcome — and it costs nothing to know.

Keeping it from happening again

Once the property is safe and any repair is done, sensible habits help: regular gentle cleaning of burner areas, checking that pans match burner sizes, and never ignoring even a faint whiff of gas. If your hob is old and the emergency service raises concerns about its condition, a Gas Safe registered engineer can assess whether repair or replacement is the sensible path.

Afterwards

If you'd like help arranging a Gas Safe engineer to repair or replace the hob, or advice on anything electrical within our scope, contact us by phone or website. A booking fee is paid when booking and the hourly rate depends on how soon you need us; any work within our scope is quoted in full and approved by you before it starts. The emergency itself, though, stays with 0800 111 999 — that's the number that matters when gas is involved.