Old House/New Gas Range - Moving gas line question

[Jo User]

Hi All,

This weekend I pulled out our ancient drop-in gass range for replacement with a freestanding gas range. As with everything in this

100+ year-old-house, seemingly simple tasks tend to snowball... The riser to feed the oven comes up through the floor about 8 inches away from the wall, so I don't think the freestanding unit will fit in there now. I'm guessing the line will have to be moved into the wall pocket (about 9 inches one direction, 10 inches another) for this. The pipe is accessable from the basement and it looks like it would be a simple operation.

Question is: will the Sears installer guy do this for me (for additional cost), or do I need to bring in a plumber? In either case, will this mean getting a permit, an inspection, a whole-house upgrade, and a full horror-story ordeal? The run is no more than 5 feet. What is a reasonable price for this? I can barely afford the (cheap) stove, and adding another several hundred $ for this pipe would be extremely painful.

Thanks.

PS: In case anyone wonders - the reason we're going from drop-in to freestanding is that all the drop-ins are much more expensive than the freestandings. Also, I haven't seen a gas drop-in. Maybe they aren't made anymore?

PPS: I think I could DIY this, but I'm worried about the insurance repercussions.

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Chances are, the Sears guy is some pimply kid with one wrench and a strong enough back to carry in the new appliance. You need a plumber.

I don' tknow the regulations in you area. Permit may not be needed for a simple move. Ask the plumber.

What insurance repercussions? Assuming you know how to run pipe and shut off the main, it is not a big deal. I don't know your skill level though.

[Colbyt]

Most likely Sears will not do it.

Most free standing gas ranges have about 4" of space at the back of the unit to allow the pipe to come up through the floor and not hit the stove. As long as the pipe is behind the stove a flex connector is used to connect the stove to the pipe.

I can't see your stove or piping from here but it might be possible to shorten the riser pipe, add an elbow and angle the pipe back to the allowed space.

A plumber is going to charge time and materials. I doubt you can get an estimate for a small job like this. In most areas no permit or inspection would be required for such a small project.

Colbyt

[I-zheet M'drurz]

Agreed.

This is a job for a "Handyman" if ever there was one. Look for ads in your local paper or free weekly "bargain gazzette" if you have something like that (It's called "The Pennysaver" in my neck of the woods.) These guys know what they're doing in most cases (you're allowed to ask for references if in doubt) but they're not licensed electricians, plumbers, etc. Their motto usually includes the phrase "no job too small", and you certainly qualify .

[Jo User]

I just mean if something went wrong some time in the future, I would guess the insurance company would try to void my insurance due to unlicensed work on the gas lines - even if it was a very small job. That's the main thing I'm worried about.

The scope of work, I'm confident I could handle: It's just 1 hole, 1 cutoff valve, 3 elbows and 2 short lengths of 3/4" black pipe, and some pipe sealant.

[I-zheet M'drurz]

Two things you need to take a look at, not necessarily in this order:

1) Your Homeowner's policy (for any reference to work mandated to be done by licensed professionals) and

B) Your local (*local*) code laws, for your municipality, township, borough, etc. (whatever the lowest body is that you pay taxes to.)

There are still some things in this country that are legally able to be done by a "handy homeowner" and the only way you'll get a true answer on whether this is permissable is to do the research. This is an extremely personalized answer, nobody here can cross-match those two sources and figure it out for you. Take a look, you may be pleasantly surprised.

[Jo User]

This is exactly what is there now... very nicely done, low profile, with the horizontal extender only 1/16 or so off the floor. Unfortunately, the riser protrudes from the floor only about 1/2 inch from the edge of the cabinet (and 8 inches from the wall), which places it directly in the path of any incoming freestanding range. Whoever placed this pipe put it in the optimally worst place. I can't understand why, either, since access to the wall pocket (from the basement) is much better than where he ended up placing it! Guess he got sloppy because the old drop-in had lots of room underneath it?

Because I've had a few, you all get to see my ASCII art. Proportional-font enthusiasts, beware:

=====CABINET====|-------WALL--------|====CABINET====== | O | | O | | O | |O A plumber is going to charge time and materials. I doubt you can get an

I interpret this to mean it is too small to warrant a separate trip for an estimate, etc? I'm hoping this means the price won't exceed $100 or something. What do plumbers in Chicago get nowadays.. $50/hr? Clueless here after decades of carefree apartment living...

Ah, thanks. That is very comforting, actually. There is no way on God's Green Earth I could afford right now to bring the gas whole system up to modern code. I would just have to go without a stove.

[Dave]

I would get a licensed plumber, not a 'handyman'. I would give a plumber a call and ask him what he thinks it would cost, call around if you think the quote is high. Last month I hired a plumber to do a similar job and it cost about $100. Pretty cheap overall. Also, my wife and I have slept better knowing that it was done according to code, by someone who does that kind of thing all the time. The challenge of doing something new is not worth the implications of a mistake. I really doubt they would want to upgrade the whole system.

Dave

[Colbyt]

Ok! If money is really tight here is a temporary last ditch solution for you. Use Lumber (something like 1x4's or 2x4's ) laid parallel to cabinets to rise above the top level of the pipe. Then set the stove on the boards. The height won't be a perfect match for your countertop but it may not be anyway.

I suspect a plumber in Chicago proper is going to charge a lot more than the $100 or so you could get that done for here.

Colbyt

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