Propane converter needed for homeowners losing SaskEnergy

Those living in and around Last Mountain Lake are considering all options now that SaskEnergy will be shutting off gas.

Propane is likely one the best fuel alternatives but it will be both an inconvenience and a cost.

“The manufacturer can provide us with some kind of a propane kit for the converter, that is one route to go,” Curtis Beingessner from Arrow Plumbing and Heating told the CJME morning show. “If it is not available then you would to purchase a furnace that is already made for propane that has a converter kit already in it.”

Homeowners will need to contact their furnace manufacturer to see if a converter kit is available.

Either way it will be costly.

“The kit itself is probably going to range between $300 – $500 if that is the route we can go, if the furnace has to be changed you’re probably looking at $3000 – $5000 depending on what you need and what size the house it.”

Given that around 250 property owners in six communities along the lake are impacted by SaskEnergy’s decision, there is concern there won’t be enough contractors to get the work done in time for the shut off on Labour Day.

“By Sept. 5 if everybody gets on it, there is enough gas contractors around that we should be able to get on it,” Beingessner maintained.

SaskEnergy is shutting off the gas supply because of continued ground movement. 

Ground shifting lead to the gas leak that caused the Regina Beach explosion in Dec. 2014.