Piped gas supply vs gas cylinder and the normal rates

I've used both and my preference is to use a gas cylinder. We always found it to be a lot cheaper, and also that one cylinder could often last a year or two although that depends on how much cooking you do. Also, with a gas bottle you just need to ask the gas bottle delivery man to change the bottle. If the hose or valve is old it's a small cost to replace it and the gas delivery guy will usually check it when he delivers.

When you use piped gas then the piping must go from the street up through the condominium's central riser to all the floors of the condominium and then to your gas stove in your apartment.  That is a lot of piping where leaks could potentially occur.

There was also an incident in Hampshire Place condo where an expat died from a massive gas explosion in his apartment. I think it was by piped gas but I am not totally sure.

Whatever you choose, make sure that the gas from a piped system or gas bottles has an  odour so you can detect leaks or when the gas hasn't been turned off properly.

I only had piped gas once, 2002 I think, and it came out to about RM7 per month, or six months for RM42.  I guess prices have gone up a lot or you are cooking much more than average. I mention 6 months because thats how long the big bottle lasts me for which I pay RM28 currently. So whats that, RM4.50 per month.

There are two bottle sizes available, small and big, the big only being about RM2 more and Im not sure why so cheap since its about 30% more volume. For bottles, you pay a RM50 deposit but the bottle is considered yours. When I moved from KL to Penang in 2012 I took the bottle with me and continued to trade it in with whoever I bought gas from--which is whoever happens to pass by the house. Whenever I leave Malaysia i'll just get my deposit back by selling it to whoever passes by the house. (I wonder if that gas shop in Damansara is still looking for their bottle?? Oops.)

So,  piped gas cost more but not much more like yours. I loved the convenience of never running out of gas which happened a lot with the bottles, and always at the most inconvenient times like Chinese New Year or Raya or some holiday when everyone is gone and you have to wait a few days. So I ordered two tiny camping stoves, they can fit in your hand, and bought 10 cans of camping gas for RM2 each and put them away for those emergencies when everyone is off and you are right in the middle of cooking. I liked the stoves so much I packed them in my suitcase to take back to US to use for actual camping later, then went to AEON or Tesco or some place and bought the single burner stove that accepts the small cans (i think people call them Korean BBQ restaurant stoves, you see them everywhere) and now I dont care if the gas guy went to Macau to gamble during Chinese New Year. Those cost about RM50. If you can plan the emergencies then it would save money to stop using the piped gas and get the bottle which every built-up kitchen in Malaysia has provided for in the cabinetry, or if you have no cabinets youd buy the stove-gas combo furniture/cart thing available at any furniture shop. If you go on bottles, you have to go to Tesco and buy the valve and hose which cost around RM20 as those are not provided by the gas guy on the motorbike. However, the motorbike guy does change the o-ring seal when needed as part of the service for regular customers. He also gives you his phone number to call when you run out of gas and they will usually come within 30 minutes, even at night. To start service with them and you live in a condo, just ask a neighbor who they use. Not everyone living in a condo uses piped gas, they will usually go for the cheapest way.

I dont understand how anyone could use RM60 a month of gas, even in a family of 10. Though there is only two of us, we cook three times a day and five months would be the extreme least time we've ever used up a big bottle. Even then its only RM5.60 per month. Im dumbfounded at how you can spend 10X as much. It just seems impossible but if thats the case, go get on bottles today and if you are renting tell your landlord to stop gas service in case there is a monthly standing charge. He can always restart service for the next person living in the place. Or, if he wont/cant cancel, let him pay the standing charges since he would have to anyway if the place were vacant. Tenants dont pay standing charges for utilities (if you are renting).

Oh crap hold the phone.....I forgot a critical component because its been so long since ive been in a condo. Are you paying the gas company or the condo association?

My previous post stands.....BUT....if you live in a condo there may be 3 components to a bill. The gas use, the standing or minimum monthly charges from the gas company, and the PROFIT the condo association takes by intervening in the charge, essentially buying the gas wholesale and reselling to each user for more.  This last part I totally forgot.

When last I lived in a condo they stuck it to us on the water, basically charging 10-20 times higher than the actual usage cost.  They did this by putting in a meter after the water company meter which was calibrated differently. Some condos simply apply a multiplication factor to the meter reading. In the condo where I had piped gas, it was old enough that there were no intervening meters, I got the bill directly from the gas company and thats why it was only RM7 a month. In the case of the water though, the reselling of the water to owners at a profit put the owners in a near riotous stage but the Manager said the By-Laws allowed the profiting.

I KNEW I was right that you couldnt be using RM60 of gas--and in fact you arent. You are using RM5 for which you are being charged RM60--if you are paying someone other than the gas supplier. Your question threw me off because you asked for price comparisons, not "Im living in a condo, why do I pay so much for utilities?" Buyers and renters never think to first ask about re-selling of utilities at profit and as you can see it can greatly impact cost of living.

And after all this talk im reminded that you may or may not have another problem. Now you have to ask the Manager if you are even allowed to have a bottle. If not,  they would cite safety issues as the reason when the reality is that they want to make residents slaves and prisoners of what I would personally call cheating. Likewise, if you avoid the Manager and try to make a deal on your own, you might find there is nobody willing to deliver gas bottles because the guard wouldnt let them through. Talk to your neighbors first.

The info in my previous post is correct--when we are talking about a level playing field and it doesnt look like we are. If you are paying the gas supplier directly, something is wrong with a bill that high; if you are paying a condo association for gas, you are paying them a profit on the gas.