Gas tubing may pose a fire hazard to millions of homeowners

A certain kind of gas tubing may be putting as many as 8 million homeowners at risk of gas leaks and fires in the event of a lightning strike.

Manufacturers and fire commissioners are working to spread the word.

The bright yellow, flexible gas tubing made of corrugated stainless steel has been linked to lightning-induced fires in states including Maryland, Indiana, Ohio, and New Hampshire.

In recent years, manufacturers and the national fuel gas code have adopted new guidelines for installing the tubing to prevent fires caused by lightning strikes.

But Chris Swonger with Gastite, a company selling the tubing, says homes that have been built or renovated since the 1990s still may have the improperly installed tubing known as CSST.

“We’re doing everything we can to get the word out, state by state, to homeowners throughout the country,” Swonger said.

Swonger, who said an inspection and tubing fix could run homeowners up to $150, estimates up to 8 million homes in the country are at risk.

His company is among four manufacturers that reached a multimillion-dollar settlement in a 2006 class-action lawsuit related to fires in Arkansas linked to yellow flexible tubing.