Branching to a New Gas Appliance

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Jgwalter

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This is an alternative to the project plan that I referred to in my recent post about testing back to the gas meter.

I need to add a branch line to a new gas cooktop. My initial plan was to cut into a 1" pipe near the start of the current gas distribution system, and create a new 1" branch feeding the new cooktop, as well as allow for future expansion to a fireplace and possibly a Weber grill.

This plan would require either the inclusion of a union as part of the mid-run cut, or if that would not be allowable because of possible closing of the wall (not currently planned), then use of a left-right coupling.

An alternative would be to branch off of an existing tee which is about 5 feet downstream on the current 1" pipe. It has a 3/4" branch which currently is only feeding a dryer through a 1/2" reduction.

The dryer is going to get moved as a result of the next remodel project, so this branch could be configured to feed both the cooktop and dryer, provided of course, if the capacity math allows.

My question is:

Since this branch point is about 3 feet higher than the floor where the cooktop resides, it would require branching out horizontally about 7-8 feet, then down about 4 feet, then horizontal under the floor for about 12 feet, then up to the cooktop.

As the branch point is already 7 feet above the entry point, the resulting pipe path is up and down, and back up again.

Is that something that is not allowed, or just bad practice, or not a problem?

It is a split-level house, so the pipe comes through the outside wall a foot or so above the floor, up to the ceiling, then over to the wall of the adjacent split floors, down 4 feet to the ceiling of the adjacent basement, across its ceiling, and then up through the kitchen floor.
 

Gary Swart

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Sometimes the best DIY advice we can offer is get professional help and I think this is one of those times. You can screw up a plumbing job that involves water and while it could be messy and expensive to repair, people don't generally die because of it. Screw up a gas job and not only might things not function right, there can be a very loud boom. It really appears to me that you are in to a project that you do not have the knowledge or skills to do.
 

Jgwalter

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Sometimes the best DIY advice we can offer is get professional help and I think this is one of those times. You can screw up a plumbing job that involves water and while it could be messy and expensive to repair, people don't generally die because of it. Screw up a gas job and not only might things not function right, there can be a very loud boom. It really appears to me that you are in to a project that you do not have the knowledge or skills to do.

Gary....I appreciate the warning, but the purpose of coming to this forum, is to gain some knowledge beyond what I would already consider myself to have, which is a competent level far above the average DIY'er. Part of that knowledge gain might lead exactly to what you recommend, hiring a professional. Saving money is not really my goal, as I actually enjoy plumbing.

I don't lack confidence in the basic skills of cutting, threading, assembling and testing pipe, and have plenty of experience in doing so. What I don't have is experience with enough variety of jobs to solve specific problems with regards to best practices and basic code requirements.

I hope you understand?
 

Terry

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You can go up and down with gas pipe.
Sizing is mainly determined by the distance and the required BTU units.
The code book will have charts for that.
 

Jgwalter

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You can go up and down with gas pipe.
Sizing is mainly determined by the distance and the required BTU units.
The code book will have charts for that.

Thanks, Terry. I figured that was the case. I understand how to size the pipe, and I am pretty sure that the current 3/4 tee can adequately feed both dryer and cooktop via separate 1/2" branches. Since the tee is about 4 feet above the floor that it will go under and up to the cooktop, I wanted an opinion. Drip cap at the bottom, I would imagine?

Also, it needs to penetrate a block wall at the bottom of the joists, so I was thinking to just open up a small section of block, and cut away the 2X8 cap? Any penetration rules, such as sleeving the pipe, in this case. Maybe I should take a photo?
 

SacCity

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I am pretty sure that the current 3/4 tee can adequately feed both dryer and cooktop

Me too, I think that you should be fine, however it would be nice to run through the calculations.
Do you want to provide the lengths and sizes of the gas lines along with what appliances are on them and I can try and do the calculations.... I've only done a few and would be good for me to practice. After all I am here to learn
Michael
 
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