Speedfit for Gas

[Owain Lastname]

I wouldn't normally repost from Twitter but thought some people would like this one.

It's Speedfit plastic pipe and fittings used for mains gas.

Owain

[SH]

I once came across a GasSafe fitter who fitted some new gas pipe from the gas meter to the kitchen to feed both a boiler and a cooker.

This involved 25mm tube which then split to 2 x 22 mm to the cooker and the new boiler.

He then used two speedfit stop ends to leak test the newly fitted gas pipe.

Once he was satisfied it was gas tight, he then removed the two speedfit stop ends and connected up the cooker and the new boiler!

[John Rumm]

I wonder if the "rouge builder" is red faced now :-)

[Owain Lastname]

He will be if he ends up in goal.

Owain

[Rob Morley]

Oh well played sir.

[Brian Gaff]

As a matter of interest, not having gas, since I declined it when the new pipes were being put in, how do they fix to the yellow pipes of plastic they push through the old iron ones inside the house for existing systems and meters? Brian

[Owain Lastname]

Plastic is allowed outside underground; they convert to steel pipe at ground level. Some form of compression fitting I think.

Owain

[SH]

high frequency frictional heating or electrofusion

[Andy Burns]

At the meter end, they fit a special adapter, this tightens over the old iron pipe, allows the narrower plastic pipe to run through it, then the shut-off valve is fitted to that. The adapter has a nipple to allow injection of a foam/resin to fill the space around the plastic pipe.

You don't actually see the plastic pipe emerge anywhere, just the iron pipe, various brass adapters and the valve then the anaconda or whatever where it goes to the regulator/meter, looks a bit ugly compared to a normal meter connection.

[Andrew]

Could be a red Indian ?.

The cat looking shocked is 'red'(-ish), can we blame him ?.

[Andrew]

But if there is a 90 degree bend in the iron pipe, there is no way that 25mm yellow plastic will go round the bend.

[Andy Burns]

The inner pipe is 17.5mm, it seems it can cope with swept bends, but not elbows.

[Andy Burns]

I remembered to take a photo at my parents' house when I popped-in for meter readings ...

[alan_m]

This is what they did in my mother's house a few months back. The gas main in the street was lined (a new build estate in the 1960s). The pipe from the main to everyone's house was replaced with yellow MDPE and in my mothers case the meter was re-positioned just inside the front of the garage. The bit of yellow pipe that came out of the ground appears to be sleeved and then straight through the wall (photo 2)

I believe they used a mole of some kind to get the pipe across the driveway from the trench they dug in the pavement. There ws no visible disturbance to block driveway or evidence to any repairs apart from that tiny bit of concrete seen in photo 2.

In photo 1 that bend in the output pipe from the meter was to clear a existing tap positioned above the new meter position. It would have taken them all of 10 minutes to move the tap to avoid any water dripping on the meter. I spent the 10 minutes moving the tap a bit later. The tap is attached to plant watering timer which drips slightly when switched on and approx and inch of water had to be emptied every 6 months from a bucket previously positioned to catch the drips.

[Tim+]

I suspect that the plastic pipe must end outside the property. The yellow plastic you see in the garage is just being used to sleeve an iron or copper pipe.

Tim

[Andy Burns]

I net she loves bending down to read the meter?

[alan_m]

On reflection, probably yes - the yellow MDPE wouldn't be able to bend at 90 degrees that sharply. The short vertical fitment on the outside of the garage is probably a transitional fitment.

>

[alan_m]

My brother does the readings but he is coming up to retirement age :) The electricity meter is the other extreme, mounted high up on the wall at the back of the garage and behind a (slowly diminishing) mountain of junk :)

Despite being given regular meter readings Scottish Power wanted to raise my mother's DD to an amount that would probably have put her close to £1k in credit at the end of the winter months (based on last year's consumption figures). This proposed rise in DD payment was after the Truss announcement on the price caps and before the U turn on what will happen after April.

[SH]

is this property two flats as I can see two sets of what appears to be yellow pipe transiting through the garage wall?

[charles]

That's what mine has. 20+ years old.