Gas cooker bayonet fitting - how hard is it to get the right angle?

[Jón Fairbairn]

To forestall any thoughts that I might be talking about doing this myself, I'm not. So it's OT, but I'm sure someone here will know:

While we had some friends staying in our flat, the gas cooker was condemned, so we had to have it replaced at a time when we were away, fitted by someone from the vendor. When we got back to it, aside from the usual pieces of brassware discarded under cabinets and so on, what stood out was that the cooker stuck out further than it should. The back of the cooker has two "feet" to space it off the wall (one of them has been bent upwards, which hardly inspires confidence) and there is a fair distance between these and the wall. Closer inspection reveals that this is because the hose connector isn't vertical.

If you picture the gas pipe running horizontally parallel to the wall, the bayonet connector forms a right angle, one arm of which should be vertical, but instead is angled out from the wall, making the hose arrangement take up more space than it should. So far as I could see by peering down the back of the cooker, there is a threaded part soldered onto the supply pipe and the bayonet fitting screws into this. So, finally, to my question: is it difficult to fit these things so that the hose comes out vertical? How big a job is it for someone to put it right?

Apologies for the verbosity, but I'm not too awake right now.

[YAPH]

If I'm visualising this correctly it depends whether the pipe up to the bayonet can be sprung away as it'll probably be necessary to unscrew the bayonet connector, clean/check the threads and apply fresh PTFE tape, thread-sealing cord or jointing compound, then screw it back in leaving it set at a suitable angle. Just twisting it in situ could result in the joint leaking.

[Jón Fairbairn]

copper?

from the wall? Probably. I'm not there at the moment, so I can't check.

Yes, I expected that part. What I don't quite follow is how one can reliably get a good seal with the bayonet in a particular orientation -- I guess you don't have to screw it in all the way, but fill any space with thread-sealer or what have you?

But anyway, I get the impression that it's a fairly short job, so someone qualified should be able to do it without charging the earth.

Thanks.

[YAPH]

If using (suitable) jointing paste it's gooey enough to seal provided the joint's done up fairly snug, and tends to harden over time setting the joint tighter. PTFE tape (gas approved, thicker, unsintered) requires you to screw as far as it'll go leaving it at the right orientation, which'll generally be pretty tight (since the threads are tapered). Locktite thread sealing cord likewise but if you get the right amount of thread on you can get it pretty damn tight, and if you find you've turned too far you can back it off to the desired orientation.

[Jón Fairbairn]

Interesting. Thanks.