Month: April 2023

Gas line bonding/grounding

“4.7.3 – All interior metal gas piping that may become energized shall be made electrically continuous and shall be bonded in accordance with the requirements of the local electrical code or, in the absence of such, the Canadian Electrical Code, Part I.”

CSA B149.1

Any metal pipes,tubes or conduit in your home have the possibility to carry electrical “potential”. When this potential is present, it can cause shock, sparks or fire damage to equipment. In order to mitigate these risks, all metal pipes should be connected to a grounding point in the home.

Years ago, the process of grounding the gas supply line was to “jumper” the gas line to the copper water supply line of your hot water tank.  Since all water lines were copper, the potential carried right through into the ground at the water meter.

With the introduction of plastic or PEX tubing, this copper line may be interrupted for repair or a new branch. When PEX is introduced into a water supply line, it is no longer continuous.  Plastic cannot carry current as metal would.

For this reason, all gas supply lines require bonding/grounding directly back to the grounding source.  The most common bonding point to the house is the base of the water meter.

A 6 AWG copper wire must be added with 2 clamps to the gas line.  The first clamped to the gas supply line and the 2nd clamped to the base of the water meter.

Often Enbridge or gas fitters issue warning tags to correct this condition.  Contact us to have it fixed in your home.

Underground (Polyethylene) Gas Line.

Is it safe to run a gas line underground?  Absolutely! In fact, having the gas line buried has many benefits.

1. It minimizes the maintenance required for the typical iron pipe.
2. There are less fittings on the gas supply line which minimize points of failure or potential leaks.
3. Aesthetics – having an iron pipe gas supply line running along the exterior of your home can be unsightly.  Once buried, it will be visible at the entry point and where it exits the ground.
4. Dedicated gas supply lines branching off of the gas meter take the added load off all the appliances internal to your home.

Pool heaters, higher output boilers and natural gas generators often require dedicated gas supply lines.  This means we have branch off of the gas meter to obtain the required amount of flow to the appliance.

When the trench is opened up, it must be a minimum of 16″ deep.  If the gas line is passing under a driveway, the trench must be at least 24″ deep.  These are minimum code requirements and in this situation you would want to exceed code to prevent accidental future digging.

When installed, they must be accompanied by a tracer wire or metallic tape, which allows us to perform locates in the future.