Reference is being made to a report regarding the quantity of gas in a cylinder (“Consumers complain about LPG cylinders running out more quickly”, TMID 7 January).

About nine months ago I made a similar complaint in another section of the press. Following the publication of my letter, two Enemalta employees called on me to investigate. They were very polite, but their visit was only a waste of time. I will tell you why.

These employees told me that Enemalta is responsible for these cylinders only as long as these cylinders are under their control. Once the cylinder leaves the plant, they are no longer responsible. Fair enough, but that means that anyone can tamper with these cylinders.

A customer said that he was asked to weigh the cylinder himself. I used to weigh it every now and then, but judging from what these employees told me, even that is a useless exercise.

In fact I showed them an empty gas cylinder which weighed, when empty, 17 kilogrammes instead of 15 kilogrammes. I wanted to weigh it in their presence. They told me that the weight of the empty gas cylinder has nothing to do with the amount of gas in it.

They assured me that the bottling machine fills each cylinder with the exact amount of gas irrespective of the weight of the empty cylinder. This means that even if I weigh the cylinder delivered to me, I cannot know how much is gas and how much is metal!

In other words the customer can never know where he stands!

Giov. DeMartino

Mosta