# Connecting natural gas lines



## swimmer_spe (Dec 24, 2017)

I live in Ontario Canada.

In my own home, can I legally work on the NG lines?

I have a NG fireplace that was removed so I could redo the base. The lines were capped and a valve installed and shut.

Once the base is done, can I legally remove the plug, install the necessary lines to the same fireplace?

FYI: I work in the Power engineering field, and at work, as long as there is no modifications, I can break lines and replace 1 for 1 all components.


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## maxdad118 (Dec 25, 2017)

I work for the gas utility here in California and we don&#8217;t &#8216;police&#8217; a customer doing their own work. In fact, some homeowners do better work than the big box store installers. The common mistake is stacking flex line adapters on each other to fit a specific flex line size causing small leaks...you can only use 1 flex line adapter and if you got a female to male valve, whatever the flex line threads are designed for is the size flex you have to use-you can&#8217;t put an adapter on it. Different threads.


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## havasu (Dec 25, 2017)

maxdad118 said:


> I work for the gas utility here in California and we dont police a customer doing their own work. In fact, some homeowners do better work than the big box store installers. The common mistake is stacking flex line adapters on each other to fit a specific flex line size causing small leaks...you can only use 1 flex line adapter and if you got a female to male valve, whatever the flex line threads are designed for is the size flex you have to use-you cant put an adapter on it. Different threads.



I'm glad to see your post here. Living in So Cal, I have always done my own gas line moving, adding, eliminating, etc. People think I am crazy but I'm aware and knowledgeable of code, the do and the don'ts.


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## swimmer_spe (Dec 25, 2017)

OP here.

I am In Canada. Not California.


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## havasu (Dec 25, 2017)

OP, I apologize, but I am not from Canada, so hopefully someone familiar with Canadian laws will chime in, eh?


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## swimmer_spe (Dec 25, 2017)

havasu said:


> OP, I apologize, but I am not from Canada, so hopefully someone familiar with Canadian laws will chime in, eh?



That's ok. Some people see Ontario, and think of the city in CA.


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## havasu (Dec 25, 2017)

Yep, that town in 10 minutes south of where I live. They also talk funny down there as well!


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## maxdad118 (Dec 26, 2017)

I realize that, I&#8217;m just saying what we do down here. Not sure of what the &#8216;laws&#8217; are up there but I can&#8217;t imagine it would be much different? Here, the gas utility owns the service to the meter and home owners own the house line from the outlet tee and everything downstream. I would make a call to the the utility company and casually ask them. They may say the same thing? Do they have a service where they relight pilots and do safety checks on appliances? Just curious.


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## swimmer_spe (Dec 26, 2017)

maxdad118 said:


> I realize that, Im just saying what we do down here. Not sure of what the laws are up there but I cant imagine it would be much different? Here, the gas utility owns the service to the meter and home owners own the house line from the outlet tee and everything downstream. I would make a call to the the utility company and casually ask them. They may say the same thing? Do they have a service where they relight pilots and do safety checks on appliances? Just curious.



There is a regulating body up here. The services techs must be certified by them.


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## BuzzLOL (Dec 28, 2017)

swimmer_spe said:


> I have a NG fireplace that was removed so I could redo the base. The lines were capped and a valve installed and shut.



The line should have been capped after the "valve" as well. So nobody (kids) could turn it on and release gas...


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## swimmer_spe (Dec 28, 2017)

BuzzLOL said:


> The line should have been capped after the "valve" as well. So nobody (kids) could turn it on and release gas...



I had someone install a valve and cap the line. Basically, what I would need to do is make sure the valve is closed, remove the cap, put in the new lines to the fire place, turn the valve on, and life is good.


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## WyrTwister (Feb 16, 2018)

I do not live in Canada , either .  But I have always done my one natural gas work .  Be sure to use pipe dope on the fittings where it is requires .

     Check for leaks ( not with a match ) .

     Use tools that fit the fittings to avoid rounding off fittings .

Wyr
God bless


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## tuffy (Feb 17, 2018)

I don't live in Canada either. but here in Kirksville, mo we cannot mess around with natural gas lines at all you have to be a licensed plumber .but you  can to construction electrical  .were i live we are in a  rural area , and the small towns around can do what ever they want as they have no city codes. they have the national building code if there building a new house.


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## Gary (Feb 17, 2018)

Where we live, Illinois, I was able to do everything when we built 15 or so years ago. Framing, Electrical, Plumbing, Gas lines, Fireplace, etc. It just had to be inspected by the town's building inspector. From what I understand, that's not the case anymore. Things have gotten a little more regulated now & some of the trades need to be done by lic. tradesmen. Not sure why, as long as a lic. inspector looked it over when done, but I'm an old do it yourselfer with old ideas I guess.


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## WyrTwister (Feb 18, 2018)

Why , follow the money trail and / or the voting trail .

Wyr
God bless


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## swimmer_spe (Feb 18, 2018)

WyrTwister said:


> Why , follow the money trail and / or the voting trail .
> 
> Wyr
> God bless




Why?

Well, natural gas is highly flammable and if not done right could leak into your home and cause an explosion.


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## WyrTwister (Feb 19, 2018)

Very true .

     However , nothing is 100% safe .

     You probably think nothing of pulling into a convenience store and pumping 10 - 20 gallons of  highly flammable / explosive  / dangerous gasoline .

     Care to show your government license to do that ?  And Not your drivers licenses .  That just makes it legal to aim the vehicle down the highway .

Wyr
God bless


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## billshack (Feb 21, 2018)

I live in canada. and have  a gas licence. You should not do any gas plumbing work , if something went wrong you could be held liable both financially and criminality .


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## havasu (Feb 21, 2018)

In So Cal, our gas meters only put out 9 PSI maximum. Far easier to stop leaks than water with 100PSI. I have always done my own gas connections, and think finding someone with a NG Certification to touch my natural gas is just a ploy. Maybe necessary in Canada, but not here in Southern California. Sorry, but everything we do or touch is dangerous, and as my law professor once told me, "anyone can sue anyone for anything"


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## maxdad118 (Feb 21, 2018)

I doubt the pressure into your house is 9 lbs..distribution pressure is between 25-60 lbs on the mains and service in NorCal. Once the regulator steps it down at the meter location, it enters the house at 1/4 lb or 7&#8221; water column. So yes, very simple to do your own gas lines or mod&#8217;s in the house!


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## havasu (Feb 21, 2018)

I once hired a contractor, certified in gas lines, to run a black pipe gas line in my attic to a second fireplace I built. Once he left, I saw the flame was barely there, so I crawled up in the attic and saw he failed to thread one gas pipe at all. It was cross threaded at a 45 degree connection, with no coupling, and you could shove a pencil into the opening, leaking gas into my attic for about a month. I had to go up there and fix all of his work myself, and stopped his final payment and explained with all the pictures of his shoddy work, I begged him to take me to court. He never did.


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## maxdad118 (Feb 21, 2018)

Exactly my point, I know there are shoddy plumbers(not all) and I&#8217;d rather do it myself!


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## tuffy (Feb 21, 2018)

:agree:Even tho i cant legally do my own gas lines. I do them on the weekends so i know there done right and the way i want them done.


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## tuffy (Feb 21, 2018)

I'm going to be installing my own gas lines for my new natural gas fireplace insert since the fire dept. destroyed my flue oh well i was going to do this any way.im going to use the yellow flex line probably 25-50 feet of it and some black iron fittings. Shut off valve. And some more stuff I'm sure.


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## swimmer_spe (Feb 21, 2018)

billshack said:


> I live in canada. and have  a gas licence. You should not do any gas plumbing work , if something went wrong you could be held liable both financially and criminality .



Exactly what I was told. It is not that I cannot, it is that I should not, or risk legal issues.


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