Odd Gas Line Routing Problem

[possum_jenkins]

Found this one a little strange and was wondering if anyone had any thoughts on it.
Started a new job yesterday, spanking new htg system in a first floor flat. Was just scoping it out to see where i was going to run my pipes when i came across 15mm into the meter before the ECV.

Strange, tracked it back to find it ran into the cellar,which was only accessible from the cafe downstairs.

Even stranger, the gas pipe ran into the cellar in MI, went into a lever valve, then converted to 15mm copper. My assumption was this was done without gas board consent.

Anyway, had them out today, and they are going to re-route up the front of the building. Question is, who pays for this, as the guy that came out was unsure, but i thought the gas board would take the bill.

 

[heatingman]

Do you mean it was an illegal connection into service before meter and governor or service to secondary meter.
If it was an illegal, when I did incident investigations for the old gas regions, In a case like this the person using the gas would end up with an overinflated estimate for gas usage. Public records would have been used to establish a time scale, or see you in court or both. Either way you wont be footing any bills, you did the right thing. Hope you did a RIDDOR.

 

[possum_jenkins]

No no no, not as serious a problems as that. I didn't word the first post very well.

Basicly, what drew my attenion to it was the gas pipework feeding the meter was 15mm copper, which I thought was undersized, although was getting 32 mbar standing at meter ( when the first turriff guy came out he replaced the governer) standing now at 25mbar.

No connections made before the meter. The gas pipework came into the building in the cellar in 3/4 MI, into a female 3/4 gas lever valve, other side of the valve comp 15 copper. Up through a cupboard in the cafe, up through the close and in through the wall straight into the meter.

The concern mainly was that if any escape was to occur before the meter the other property would have to be accessed, and also a shut off valve for upstairs is in their building.

It is a dentist surgery I am working in, and i have tried to explain to the dentist as they have bunsen burners which obv have have no ffd, someone shutting off and turning on their gas is a major safety issue. He however, is more concerned about the bill than his own safety.

Now turriff are sending a squad to dig up the road tommorow to disconnect the gas to the surgery, and re-route up the outside wall, straight into the surgery and into a new meter, or possibly re-use the old one. The turriff guys were learning toward the customer paying for this, which really reflects badly on my company as this should have been picked up in the survey. However i think it should be the gas board paying for this. Any ideas?

 

[giblets]

Sounds like the meter was originally in the basement and has been illegally resited. Probably the customer will have to pay Turiff.

 

[possum_jenkins]

b u g g e r. looks like my head is on a plate the morrow. Will be avoiding him like the plage when he has his drills going!

 

[giblets]

Can't see why your head should be on a plate TBH. Just ask the dentist if he had the services fully checked out by a qualified person before he purchased as would probably have been recommended in his survey. Access to the downstairs property should have been tidied up in the lease if this problem had been found prior to purchase.

You had a duty to report the standing pressure in excess of 30mb. The rest was down to Turiff.

 

[possum_jenkins]

yeah i know you are right, and im sure he will see sense in the end, just can't be arsed with irrate customers, when really the job is being carried out as it should be.

 

[possum_jenkins]

Just an update for anyone who might be interested.

Turriff finished the new gas line on friday, and the meter guy was on site today. Got chatting to him and he reckons the gas meter had been moved illegally aswell, no evidence to prove it was illegall however as they had no records for that building!!

So really in their eyes they were supplying an undersized pipe to the building, which should have been picked up in 98 when the meter was changed.

Me thinks they were happy to cop the bill and sweep it under the carpet as they even ran a pipe from the new meter to the old meter position, leaving me just to couple it up.

Result!

 

[giblets]

Nice one m8.

No more fear of the dentist's drill for you now then.