How to Shut Off Your Home Gas Supply Valve

Shutting off utilities, such as your home's water supply or electrical power, is fairly common—something you do whenever making a repair or upgrade. By contrast, shutting off your natural gas supply is something you may never have to do. Work on branch gas lines in a home is not safe for amateurs and should be left to plumbers or gas company technicians. But most gas companies allow homeowners to shut off the gas at their own meters and even provide instructions for doing this safely. If you have questions about shutting off your home's gas supply at the meter, contact your gas utility provider.

Reasons for Shutting Off the Gas

The main shutoff valve controlling your home's natural gas supply may come into play during major construction or renovation involving gas lines or when closing up or shuttering a home. In rare instances, you may need to shut off the gas supply in the event of a natural disaster.

Once the valve is turned off, do not turn it back on by yourself. It must be turned on by a gas company technician. The gas company will likely perform a pressure test on the system and relight all pilot lights in the house as part of turning the gas back on.

Types of Shutoff Valves

There are different ways to shut off the gas in your home. The main gas to your home can be shut off before the meter with the “street-side” shutoff valve, or after the meter, before the first gas appliance, with the “house-side” shutoff valve. 

The street-side valve is located before the meter and connects to the local gas supply. The house-side valve is located after the meter and before your first gas appliance. The street-side gas shutoff is meant to be operated by plumbers and HVAC contractors, gas utility professionals, and the fire department. Some older homes do not have a house-side valve, so the street-side valve is the main shutoff.  

It’s unnecessary to turn off the gas supply to your entire home if you are replacing, repairing, or shutting off just one appliance. You can turn the gas supply off to a specific gas appliance, like a stove or water heater, equipped with its own shutoff valve. The shutoff valve will be attached to the pipe or flexible tubing that connects your appliance to your home gas supply.

Location of the Main Shutoff Valve

Street-Side Shutoff Valve

The street-side shutoff valve is located near the gas meter supplied by your utility company. Your gas meter may be located outside your home on an exterior wall, or it may be found inside your home on an outside wall—often in a basement or utility area, such as a garage or the mechanical room where the furnace or water heater are located. 

Typically, the valve is located on the supply pipe that rises from the ground and ultimately connects to the meter. The valve appears in the line before the meter so that the gas can be shut off before it reaches the meter. There also may be a second shutoff valve after the meter, between the meter and the house. The correct valve to shut off is the one before the meter.

House-Side Shutoff Valve

The house-side shutoff valve may be outside or inside the home. On the outside, it will be after the meter on the pipe before it connects to the house. If it’s inside, look for a valve on the pipe before your first gas appliance.

How to Shut Off the Main Gas Valve

Street-Side Shutoff Valve

The street-side shutoff valve has a rectangular (or flat-sided) tab that is about 1/2 inch thick; this is what you turn to shut off the gas. When the tab is parallel to the gas pipe, the valve is open and the gas is on. When it is fully perpendicular to the pipe, the valve is closed and the gas is off.

To close the valve, use an adjustable wrench adjusted to fit snugly over the valve tab. You can also use clamping pliers or an open-end wrench. Turn the tab so it is fully perpendicular (90 degrees) to the gas line. It will take only a quarter-turn.

NOTE: Many gas meter valves have a hole in the tab (or on a bracket attached to the tab) that will line up with a corresponding hole in the valve body when the gas valve is in the closed position. The utility company will use the hole to lock the valve in a closed position when the gas account is closed. When the holes in the valve handle are lined up, it indicates the valve is in the off position.

House-Side Shutoff Valve

The house-side shutoff valve is usually a ball valve-type handle that doesn’t need a special tool to turn. If the handle is parallel to the gas pipe, it’s in the open position. To shut off the gas flow, turn the handle perpendicular to the gas pipe.