Outside Natural Gas Run

[MBG]

I need to run a natural gas line to my swimming pool heater (and later to my grill). I saw Menard's has coated stainless corrigated pipe but it's pretty expensive ($3/foot plus $10/fitting). I called a supply house by work and they recommended flexiable plastic pipe. They said it is the same material the gas company uses and it's really cheap ($0.50/ft).

Does anyone have experience with these types of gas lines?


Mike

[Kristofor]

I need to run a natural gas line to my swimming pool heater (and later to my grill). I saw Menard's has coated stainless corrigated pipe but it's pretty expensive ($3/foot plus $10/fitting). I called a supply house by work and they recommended flexiable plastic pipe. They said it is the same material the gas company uses and it's really cheap ($0.50/ft).

Does anyone have experience with these types of gas lines?


Mike

Just be careful on your connections, one of the local gas companies around here did use plastic several years ago. In the past couple years they've been replacing parts for thousands of locations because a particular style connector leaked, blew up a building, killed a few people, and generally had people concerned.

I believe the cause here was using connections that were not supposed to be used with plastic, rather than the plastic itself though.

Kristofor.

[crokett]

How many feet are you talking about? Personally for gas I'd go for the metal and piece of mind over plastic. Why can you not use black pipe?

[Popeye]

Down here in South Georgia the gas company ran heavy walled copper tubing as a supply line into my house. Pat

[Crash2510]

I personally would have someone that is liscenced do the gas line it is very dangerous and any screwups are bad plus you can't be held liable if something happens. It is just safer to leave it to the pros no matter how easy it is. It could also be cheaper in the long run if you use black pipe and have to keep going back to get it cut and threaded.

[greencat]

In Michigan they use the plastic. Maybe it stands up better to the ground freeze. I have my BBQ hooked to gas and I hope I never have to go back to propane. It seems to burn hotter and you won't miss the trips to refill the tanks.

[ThomasW]

I hope I never have to go back to propane. It seems to burn hotter and you won't miss the trips to refill the tanks.

FYI....

1 cu.ft. of Propane yields 2,700 BTU's.
1 cu.ft. of Natural gas yields 1,075 BTU's

[bigsteel15]

FYI....

1 cu.ft. of Propane yields 2,700 BTU's.
1 cu.ft. of Natural gas yields 1,075 BTU's

True, but you will notice that you burn more CuFT of NG due to the larger orifice in the BBQ. The only reason it will run hotter is if the guy who did the conversion beefed up the output by making the holes a little bigger than necessary. That's what we used to do when we did conversions. If the customer had a 40,000 BTU LP we would generally modify it to about 50,000 when we changed to NG. The burners are the same regardless.

BTW, industry standard is 2500 and 1000 BTU/CuFt. It does depend on the area you live in though and what the gas company publishes.

Regarding the running of pipe, I'm assuming you are going underground. The underground lines here are all plastic, but as mentioned by Kristofor, the fittings used are best installed by a pro.
If you use the plastic coated SS product, the fittings are pretty much foolproof, but the cost is higher. You need to weigh the cost of a pro vs the cost of DIY materials.

[MBG]

Thanks for the help. (My run is about 35' and yes I want it underground.)

Looks like the stainless or coated copper is best choice. I have learned that they usually run these lines inside of PVC pipe as an extra precaution to protect the lines.

[onedash]

Does a Natural Gas grill not have a pressure regulator? My propane grill has 4 burners and it sure can get hot 600F + but it has such a small stinking flame. Im not trying to bake my food. Once it gets nice and filthy though the grease that falls stays on the the little seer covers and flares up pretty good. But when its clean its very hard to cook on. Has been like that since day one. I always wonder if its broke or has a problem with the regulator.

[bigsteel15]

Does a Natural Gas grill not have a pressure regulator? My propane grill has 4 burners and it sure can get hot 600F + but it has such a small stinking flame. Im not trying to bake my food. Once it gets nice and filthy though the grease that falls stays on the the little seer covers and flares up pretty good. But when its clean its very hard to cook on. Has been like that since day one. I always wonder if its broke or has a problem with the regulator.

Yes, all grills have a regulator. LP reduces the tank pressure down to 11" wc, NG to 7" wc.
Regarding the grill not cooking when it's clean, think about this pitch I used to give to sell replacements for Lava Rock...If you have a build-up of grease on your rocks, plates, etc, you are cooking with the grease from the last time you cooked (yuck). Whatever sear plate or brick you have should burn off the grease and just leave a charred residue by flashing whatever hits it.

Depending on the brand of BBQ, you will have different quality of system that will either hold the heat well (brick or ceramic, recommended) or just get as hot as the burner level allows (metal plates, not my favorite). These tend to get a build-up on.
My personal favorite has always been a product called CHAR-BRIC. Pyramid shaped bricks, about 1-1/2" square. They hold heat very well and basically flash off everything that hits them.

[DaveStL]

Licensed Gas Installers

I personally would have someone that is liscenced do the gas line it is very dangerous and any screwups are bad plus you can't be held liable if something happens. It is just safer to leave it to the pros no matter how easy it is. It could also be cheaper in the long run if you use black pipe and have to keep going back to get it cut and threaded.

Issues for me are to do it safely and to code and not have to redo it.

I ran 110 ft to the BBQ in the last house, buried it w/ a shovel. (I was younger then, and the dirt wasn't bad.) The original installer (for the previous homeowner) went too shallow and the line was punctured when slice-seeding the lawn.

For this house I went 215 ft through clay to a new pool heater. I checked on code, used the plastic, rented a Dingo w/ trencher attachment, and paid the gas co to do the final connections and test. This was in compliance w/ permit authority and was a whole lot cheaper than paying them to dig. For 35 ft it might not be as big a deal to pay someone to do the whole thing.

[vaking]

I don't know about which pipe is best but I do know this. I have an inground pool and it is heated. That is the way it came when I bought the house 9 years ago. In the first year I used that heater twice. Since that time I turn it on and test when opening the pool at the beginning of the season to make sure it works, then I turn the gas valve off and never use again till next year. Having not needing that heater for practical purposes for eight years I firmly believe that heated pool is a waste of money. Think of it logically:
If the weather is warm - who needs a heater? If the weather is cold - who needs a pool?
The same gas line also goes to my BBQ on the deck and that one is used all the time.
Just my 2 pennies.

[onedash]

Yes, all grills have a regulator. LP reduces the tank pressure down to 11" wc, NG to 7" wc.
Regarding the grill not cooking when it's clean, think about this pitch I used to give to sell replacements for Lava Rock...If you have a build-up of grease on your rocks, plates, etc, you are cooking with the grease from the last time you cooked (yuck). Whatever sear plate or brick you have should burn off the grease and just leave a charred residue by flashing whatever hits it.

Depending on the brand of BBQ, you will have different quality of system that will either hold the heat well (brick or ceramic, recommended) or just get as hot as the burner level allows (metal plates, not my favorite). These tend to get a build-up on.
My personal favorite has always been a product called CHAR-BRIC. Pyramid shaped bricks, about 1-1/2" square. They hold heat very well and basically flash off everything that hits them.

I have a kenmore with 4 burners. each covered with a sear plate and your right they dont really hold any heat. Might have to figure out a way to get some rocks in there.