NY is offer free energy audits. I had one today. He was walking around with a gas detector looking for leaks. I asked him to look at my outside meter. For several years I have smelled gas at my meter on windless days. Two guys were out with gas detectors but never found a leak. I asked this guy to look also. He found a leak at the meter manifold; so I wasn't crazy after all.] He told me to call the utility and they would fix it for free. The utility guy found a small on a T a few inches away from the meter. It bubbled very gently. He was willing to fix it, but decided that without a union it would be too big a job and I had to get my own contractor. He would turn the gas off and come back in 5 days to inspect it. He agreed there was no particular danger involved, but he had to follow protocol. I called the guy who did the energy audit. He said there was a tech who could come right out and do it. He did, charging me $350 to cut the pipe, install a union, and put it back together. He said the joint was exposed to the rain, and compound washed out to cause a leak. So, my question, finally... In terms of dollars, what is the cost of a gently bubbling leak likely to be? $1 a month? $10 a month? $50 a month? Basically I am pissed at the audit guy. If he hadn't told me to call the utility, I could have saved the $350. There is no real way the leak could hurt anything. But if I save some money from not wasting gas, then maybe it wasn't so bad. Obviously you don't really know, but what would you guess?

After replacing the motor of my home furnace due to dried lubricant. I noticed a new strange behavior. After the furnace turns off, the fan just starts 10 seconds later for 1-3 minutes and turns off. I don't understand why wouldn't the fan continue to run until the furnace cool down? why does it stop and restart? I want to play with the fan limit control and the upper limit control is fixed at 150degrees, the lower limit control tab is moveable. thanks. calvin.