LPG external pipework query re pipe types and fittings

Irish Steve

Need some ideas, as I don't have quick access to an RGI installer.

House was built 34 years ago, and has LPG feed in from cylinders on a changeover regulator that was put beside garage, it supplies a hob in the kitchen and a coal effect gas fire in one of the sitting rooms, it was all piped under external concrete paths to the house using Copper and solder connections. In November 2020, OPW needed the gas cylinders (and our oil tank) moved to facilitate work on a flood relief scheme, which has taken for ever. That was done, and as there were copper solder fittings on the line, the feed in from the old location was cut off, and a solder cap put on to close it off, and a temporary connection T was soldered in to another location that was accessible.

Today, they at last got round to putting the oil tank back on the new plinth they've had to build where it used to be, and a plumber came out to do the install of the new line, as the old one got destroyed by their work, and while he was here, the site foreman asked while I was with them about reinstating the gas cylinders to their former location, which will also need new pipe and he said he can't do it as he's not RGI, but he had a quick look, and made a comment that is potentially going to cause a world of pain, he was saying that he thought that solder fittings on copper can't be used for LPG, and compression fittings can't be used underground because of lack of access, so now I need to find out very quickly what our options are, in that the whole pipework that's in place both outdoors and inside has soldered copper fittings, and to make it worse, the stub end that was left to connect to again when the time came has been caught by OPW, and that's put a kink in the 15mm pipe that goes to the gas fire, so there's more repair work to be done there to repair that.

If we have to replace all of that pipework, I need to know what our options are, in terms of what pipe can be used, and what fittings, as I don't want to have to start drilling holes above ground to get gas pipes into the house, for all sorts of reasons, and as usual, OPW don't have an RGI that can do this work, and they need to sort it yesterday, to avoid delaying the rest of the massively overdue work, this job was supposed to be finished in early 2017. and they're still here, so getting them finally out of our site and lives is a very high priority for us, so I need to be able to quote effectively chapter and verse at them, as to what the options are, the only redeeming feature of this is that OPW/Meath CC will have to pay for all of this, as they were the ones that required it all to be taken out for their work, but I really don't want to get into a procurement/tender hassle, as that will add months to the finish date, and someone may have to dig a hole in our kitchen floor under the hob cupboard, which is going to be a right regal PAIN, so I need to get a clear answer on the options.

Thanks

10-10-20

Hmmm - sounds like a nightmare. Sorry!

Any chance that a single piece of copper on a coil could be laid to bring it to the side of the house where a compression fitting could be used?

Wearb

I don't know about gas lines, but an oil line can be joined underground IF done in a way that provided access, such as a manhole/inspection chamber.

Irish Steve

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121779444#Comment_121779444

That's an option now, with only a short window to do it, but my concern is to determine if we have to take out the old pipes with soldered connections in order to get signed off as compliant, as that's a whole different nightmare to have to contemplate.

Irish Steve

It's got way worse, having looked at it, the plumber has basically said that to sign off on the system, it's a complete replace job, he can't sign off on just reconnecting the bottles, so the pipework has to be replaced to get rid of soft soldered fittings that were used 30+ years ago, the hob can't be certified because it has no flame failure devices, and is on a flexible hose connection, and the coal effect gas fire is also not compliant, so we've got a huge job on our hands to get back to where we were when the bottles got moved to facilitate the work.

Oh, and in passing, the oil tank that got moved last week is also illegal, due to the proximity of the water course, the tank has to be bunded, and that's not happened, the new tank that was temporarily put in when they took out our old 2500 litre tank is single skin, so not legal, and this was supposedly planned by consultants. Now we know why the Children's hospital costs have escalated like they have.

It's going to be a challenging few days to find replacements that will fit the fireplace and the hole in the kitchen worktop, and then the real work starts, connecting it all up. The one redeeming feature of this mess is that we can still get pipes into place without having to tear out fresh concrete paths that have only just been laid, we have a way to get them in without problems.

10-10-20

Wow, you have a lot of pots on the boil and nothing seemingly going right.

Irish Steve

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121800733#Comment_121800733

Pretty much, the work happening here is a major flood prevention scheme that affects a whole chunk of Ashbourne, and we have the misfortune to be the lowest house in the area, and to have the most complex work that had to be done, effectively, a stream that can have a substantial flow goes through our garden, and several other pipes join it by us, it was an open channel. it's now been piped, and they were not small, the pipe beside the garage is going through a gap that's about 12 foot from our boundary, and the pipe that went in that gap is nearly 7 Foot wide, so there was a lot of disruption and extra work to make sure the garage didn't fall into the trench when they were digging it, and the crane to lift the pipes in wasn't small, so by the time they'd finished, there wasn't a lot of garden left, and there will be more manholes on our site than on some sewage treatment works, the last count was nearly 30, it's not been a lot of fun!

The scheme was approved in 2016, and supposed to be finished in 2017, the last stages are supposedly being finished at the moment, and then OPW are out of here, but the number of monumental screw ups there have been along the way are just unbelieveable, and I'm not even going to mention thing like cost inflation, the final bill will be horrific, there's been an OPW crew on site for close on 5 years, among other issues, and the consultants that have been advising the council have made a fortune out of this job, but there is at last an end in sight, one way or another, they WILL be off site before the end of the year, and that's the first time we've been able to say that for 5 years, unless something completely unexpected happens.

And yes, then there's things like the daughter's power issues in recent days, and the wife's 24 year old car failing the NCT, and fixing it really wasn't worth doing, so we've had to go and look for a replacement.

It will be nice to get some of these issues finally sorted, and to have proper tarmac back on the drive, and a garden we can use, rather than looking out at the dark side of the moon, and at last, we won't be constantly dragging hard core dust into the house, and having to work out how to get in and out, in terms of where the fences are today, and the thought of having no construction machinery and other plant within feet of the house will be absolute bliss.