Relocating/reorganising heating pipes

-K2-

I live in an apartment where there used to be a gas boiler in a large cupboard off the kitchen. A few years ago the boiler was replaced and relocated to another part of the apartment to permit an outside vent.

I now wish to renovate the kitchen. The old boiler cupboard is a (relatively) very large space and so I would like to incorporate this into the kitchen.

The issue is that all the piping for the heating distribution remains in the bottom of the cupboard space. In addition the gas inlet pipe and shut-off is there too.

What I would like to do is reduce the general bulk of the pipes to make more use of the space. The best outcome would be to relocate the pipes to one side of the cupboard in order to permit installation of a standard fridge in there. The space is about 77x77cm square.

Obviously some access to the piping would need to be maintained - how much access would be required?

Can anyone comment on the scale and difficulty of the job and perhaps suggest the best options for this?

I've included some photos below.

In the first picture the top-right corner shows the pipes heading off the various rads and hot water pipes in the apartment along with the gas inlet. In the bottom-right corner are the pipes heading to the boiler. The mess that's in between is what I would like to tackle.

Thanks.

sky6

Hi, Let me first begin by saying that this is some of the ugliest pipework I;ve ever seen. Having said that everything is possible but may I ask do you own this property or is it rented. The reason I aks is if rented get the Landlord to have it sorted for you. But looking at it can you not just create a shelf over all the pipework and just use it for storage. A new modern manifold could be used to tidy up the Heating pipes and also the hot and cold Water.
The Gas is a little more difficult in that you may have to get permission from all other residents to have the Gas turned of while the pipwork is being reorganized. This will have to be done by a professional or the Gas Company.
All in all a shelf might be the best solution and certainly the cheapest.

-K2-

I share your opinion of the pipework. My wife owns the apartment so no problem with getting things done. The gas is obviously a slightly bigger issue than the heating pipes.

Buford T Justice

If you actually do go ahead with moving the manifolds that are there, then you should really consider calling a plumber for this job.

Sparkpea

that is some messy pipework

perhaps if possible the best and maybe easiest option would be to altered all pipes into a kickspace to be under the fridge, so its like a false floor sort of thing

indie armada

ye might also consider tidying up the electrics that are there. loose spurs and cables cut instead of being disconected are not ideal. cables should be clipped to the wall or in conduit and in this case heat resistant flex would be a good idea. having the cable wrapped around the pipes like that is dangerous at best and the pipes probably should be cross bonded too.

yoshytoshy

It's not pleasing to the eye ,but it looks like it's done properly. Pretty standard for older properties.

It's probably easiest to pipe everything to the wall at the back ,but keep in mind that all this pipework will create a lot of heat and this may interfere with the working of your fridge.

-K2-

I'm finally getting around to this and have decided to proceed with a shelf/plinth over the pipes. I'll get the wiring cleaned up as well, it really is a mess.

My main concern is with heat from the pipes interfering with the fridge. How can I mitigate this? Would adding an insulating sandwidch of glass fibre or stryofoam to the shelf help? How about insulating the pipes as well?

DoneDL

I would go with insulating the plinth and not screwing id down, if that is a gas control valve on the old barrell then you need access to it without the use of tools. Is it possible to locate the fridge elsewhere and using this cupboard for storage only

-K2-

DoneDL wrote: »

I would go with insulating the plinth and not screwing id down, if that is a gas control valve on the old barrell then you need access to it without the use of tools. Is it possible to locate the fridge elsewhere and using this cupboard for storage only

I think if the shelf was fitted with an easily removable front cover it would be possible to reach in and turn off the gas in an emergency. Would that work?

DoneDL

That should be ok, the control valve on your meter is the main shut off valve and there should also be one on your boiler. The main concern is that there are mecanical joints ie nut and olive which should be easily accessed for repair, inspection etc. Have you considered putting a hinged front on the plinth for access with holes for ventilation and alllowing heat to transfer out.