54. VALUE OF GAS AS FUEL.--As a fuel for cooking purposes, gas, both
_artificial_ and _natural_, is very effective, and in localities where
the piping of gas into homes is possible it is used extensively. Of the
two kinds, artificial gas produces the least heat; also, it is the most
expensive, usually costing two or three times as much as natural gas.
Both are very cheap, however, considering their convenience as a kitchen
fuel. Heat from gas is obtained by merely turning it on and igniting it,
as with a lighted match. Its consumption can be stopped at once by
closing off the supply, or it can be regulated as desired and in this
way made to give the exact amount of heat required for the method of
cookery adopted. Neither smoke nor soot is produced in burning gas if
the burners of the gas stove are adjusted to admit the right amount of
air, and no ashes nor refuse remain to be disposed of after gas has been
burned. Because gas is so easily handled, good results can be obtained
by those who have had very little experience in using it, and with study
and practice results become uniform and gas proves to be an
economical fuel.
55. MEASUREMENT OF GAS.--Gas is measured by the cubic foot, and a
definite price is charged for each 1,000 cubic feet. To determine the
quantity used, it is passed through what is called a meter, which
measures as the gas burns. It is important that each housewife be able
to read the amount registered by the meter, so that she can compare her
gas bill with the meter reading and thus determine whether the charges
are correct. If only the usual amount of gas has been consumed and the
bill does not seem to be correct or is much larger than it has been
previously, the matter should be reported to the proper authorities, for
the meter may be out of order and in need of repair.
[Illustration: Fig. 1 Gas Meter Dials]
56. READING A GAS METER.--To register the quantity of gas that is
consumed, a gas meter, as is shown in Fig. 1, is provided with three
large dials, each of which has ten spaces over which the hand, or
indicator, passes to indicate the amount of gas consumed, and with one
small dial, around which the hand makes one revolution every time 2
cubic feet of gas is consumed. This small dial serves to tell whether
gas is leaking when the stoves and lights are not turned on. Above each
large dial is an arrow that points out the direction in which to read,
the two outside ones reading toward the right and the center one toward
the left; also, above each dial is lettered the quantity of gas that
each dial registers, that at the right registering 1,000 cubic feet,
that in the center 10,000 cubic feet, and that at the left 100,000 cubic
feet. To read the dials, begin at the left, or the 100,000 dial, and
read toward the right. In each instance, read the number over which the
hand has passed last. For instance, when, as in Fig. 1, the hand lies
between 5 and 6 on the left dial, 5 is read; on the center dial, when
the hand lies between 5 and 6, 5 is read also; and on the right dial,
when the hand lies between 2 and 3, the 2, which is really 200, is read.
57. To compute the quantity of gas used, the dials are read from left to
right and the three readings are added. Then, in order to determine the
quantity burned since the previous reading, the amount registered at
that time, which is always stated on the gas bill, must be subtracted
from the new reading.
To illustrate the manner in which the cost of gas consumed may be
determined, assume that gas costs 90 cents per 1,000 cubic feet, that
the previous reading of the gas meter, say on May 15, was 52,600 cubic
feet, and that on June 15 the meter registered as shown in Fig. 1. As
was just explained, the left dial of the meter reads 5, the center dial
5, and the right dial 200. Therefore, put these figures down so that
they follow one another, as 5-5-200. This means then that the reading on
June 15 is 55,200 cubic feet. With this amount ascertained, subtract
from it the previous reading, or 52,600 cubic feet, which will give
2,600 cubic feet, or the quantity of gas burned from May 15 to June 15.
Since gas costs 90 cents per 1,000 cubic feet, the cost of the amount
burned, or 2,600 cubic feet, may be estimated by dividing 2,600 cubic
feet by 1,000 and multiplying the result by 90; thus 2,600 ÷ 1,000 =
2.6, and 2.6 x .90 = 2.34
58. PREPAYMENT METERS.--In many places, gas concerns install what are
called prepayment meters; that is, meters in which the money is
deposited before the gas is burned. Such meters register the
consumption of the gas in the same way as the meters just mentioned, but
they contain a receptacle for money. A coin, generally a quarter, is
dropped into a slot leading to this receptacle, and the amount of gas
sold for this sum is then permitted to pass through as it is needed.
When this amount of gas has been burned, another coin must be inserted
in the meter before more gas will be liberated.