#100days - 94: buying a property with a death trap

In 1994 we got on the real estate ladder, buying a flat at the dodgy end of Putney Bridge Road in London. The previous owners had found the place too cold, so taped over all the air vents in the front room where the gas heater was fixed - a gas heater that hadn't been serviced since the flats were created from an old factory building in the mid 80s.

The lack of ventilation wasn't a problem in summer when all the windows were open to counteract London's often stifling humidity. But when winter set in, it was natural to close all the windows and turn on the gas heater.

If you don't ventilate a room with a gas heater - and don't get that heater serviced - it can start pumping carbon monoxide into the air. You get headaches, you get short-tempered, and you can get dead.

Fortunately, the gas heater was in such a state the pilot light kept going out, forcing us to get it serviced. The nice man turned up, took one look round the front room and pronounced it a death trap. He fixed the heater, we unsealed all the vents, and everyone lived happily ever after. Phew!

So, when you move into a new place - rented or mortgaged or owned outright - make sure any room with a gas appliance in it is properly vented.

Here endeth your Public Service Announcement!