Gas supply pipe - from metal to plastic - bodge job?
Discussion
Northern Gas have been changing gas supply pipes that run to properties in our area from metal to plastic. Most of the houses, including ours, are of an age that preceeded the use of plastic pipes. The rational by Northern Gas is that it is a regulatory requirement, and they are planning long term for houses to use hydrogen gas.
As homeowners, we do not get a say in it, so Northern Gas can excavate around a house to find a pipe and do what is necessary. In our case, they could not trace the metal pipe reliably and lifted a lot of flag stones promising that everything will be laid back as before with 'a 2 year guarantee'.
Our gas meter is located in a little room out the back of the house, together with boiler and electric supply. It was all a very neat arrangement with a metal pipe coming up through a concrete floor, plumbed into the gas meter. Not any more.
They found the pipe, lifted flags in an area where we stored logs, and fitted a metal pipe on the outside of the wall, running the plastic up through it, then through a hole they have put in the wall. It is then connected with a a kind of T-piece into the gas meter. I was hoping that they would replace 'like for like' and run the entirity of the new piping inside the room, potentially sliding it up the existing metal pipe. They said it was not possible and did what they did.
So now, we have a new pipe in the way (and it is not even straight), a flag stone that no longer fits (it needs a hole cutting in it, but they have slid it forward a couple of inches and filled the gap at the back with mortar) and the old metal pipe still in situ.
Photos:
Is there anyone here in the industry or had experience of this kind of job beeing done that can comment please? I would like to know if it was technically possible to re-use the original route, and then we can put everything back to how it was. It may be that the plastic pipe is too wide to run up the inside wall in the existing metal pipe, but could that whole piece have been replaced like they did outside, but inside? At the moment, it feels like a bodge.
Thanks.
As homeowners, we do not get a say in it, so Northern Gas can excavate around a house to find a pipe and do what is necessary. In our case, they could not trace the metal pipe reliably and lifted a lot of flag stones promising that everything will be laid back as before with 'a 2 year guarantee'.
Our gas meter is located in a little room out the back of the house, together with boiler and electric supply. It was all a very neat arrangement with a metal pipe coming up through a concrete floor, plumbed into the gas meter. Not any more.
They found the pipe, lifted flags in an area where we stored logs, and fitted a metal pipe on the outside of the wall, running the plastic up through it, then through a hole they have put in the wall. It is then connected with a a kind of T-piece into the gas meter. I was hoping that they would replace 'like for like' and run the entirity of the new piping inside the room, potentially sliding it up the existing metal pipe. They said it was not possible and did what they did.
So now, we have a new pipe in the way (and it is not even straight), a flag stone that no longer fits (it needs a hole cutting in it, but they have slid it forward a couple of inches and filled the gap at the back with mortar) and the old metal pipe still in situ.
Photos:
Is there anyone here in the industry or had experience of this kind of job beeing done that can comment please? I would like to know if it was technically possible to re-use the original route, and then we can put everything back to how it was. It may be that the plastic pipe is too wide to run up the inside wall in the existing metal pipe, but could that whole piece have been replaced like they did outside, but inside? At the moment, it feels like a bodge.
Thanks.
Edited by TUS373 on Wednesday 11th March 09:23
Gassing Station | Homes, Gardens and DIY | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff