I was overwhelmed with gas problems the past week.
Yesterday, I went to replace the air filter at a lady friend's condo. The heater was off. When I opened the closet that housed the gas furnace, I smelled gas. I sniffed and sniffed, it's no mistake, it's the gas smell. The lady friend came over, she could not smell it.
We called the gas company to report it (Southern California gas that is). An hour later, a lady technician came with some tools. She had some electronic meter/detector with a long flexible stick. It beeped at the shut off valve located next to the furnace. So there was some small but real gas leak. I thought the technician would tell me to call some private service to fix the leak. But no, she said she could fix it for us. She said the grease in the valve might have dried off over time. I didn't watch her work the whole time but I saw some thin poly tubing that I think she used to guide to grease the valve on the inside?/outside?. After fixing and checking, she turned on the heater to check the exhaust where the burned air escaped up through the vent going up. All was free of charge.
My thumbs up to So Cal gas service.
I emailed to my folks advising them to smell for gas leak inside their closet with the heater off.

 

It's very common for those older style gas shut off valves to leak..... whether on or off.
I never tried greasing them.... just replaced them.

Many gas suppliers have a crew of gas technicians that are aces and their rates are usually free.... and if not free..... very reasonable.

 

This sounds like kudos for the gas company and I agree.
It's technically not their job to fix or replace a leaking interior valve, but they did it for you.

Anyone who smells gas or is having trouble lighting a pilot should call the gas company. They will usually be out quickly.
They will also inspect your gas appliances and recommend any fixes.
Through other services, low income families (or others) can qualify for free upgrades and weatherproofing, some of it quite valuable.

This applies to SOCAL.