All you need to know about natural gas lines

Today, natural gas lines have developed verythe iron pipes is much more difficult and
much. Thus, you may have the surprise that thecomplicated to do, as it requires professional
pipelines installed in your house may not be theprecise measurement, cutting, and threading of all
usual heavy black iron ones, but new flexible pipesnatural gas lines, taken each in its turn. In addition,
made of stainless steel. The new piping systemsall of these steps are time consuming and if you
install very easily with very little mess, similarly toconsider adding natural gas lines later, you will
electrical wires installation. Such natural gas lineshave to deal with a lot more mess. However, the
contain corrugated stainless steel tubing, alsogood thing about the old method is that you do
known as CSST. This material has receivednot need to anticipate the addition of more lines
worldwide approval for residential use and thewhen installing the original system.
system used consists of an ingenious method ofAnother very important advantage of using
supplying natural gas to different devices, such ascorrugated stainless steel tubing is that it
fireplaces, furnaces, stoves, dryers and any otherminimizes potential gas leaks. The old iron pipeline
appliance that works on gas.system is much more complicated, as it has
Moreover, adding natural gas lines on a later datemany ninety degree, tee and coupling fittings. All
is very easy to do as long as you plan for thisthese fittings are useful whenever a change of
possibility when installing the original installation.direction is necessary and they are quite a
Nowadays, state and local authorities throughoutcommon source of gas leakage. In addition, the
the world permit the use of these natural gasthreaded joints also constitute potential leakage
lines and more and more contractors start topoints. On the other hand, the corrugated stainless
embrace it, as it is a much safer and functionalsteel tubing is much more flexible and instead of
method.needing cutting, it simply winds around corners
This material first appeared as useful during theand obstructions in one piece. Thus, you will not
late 1980s and, in the beginning, people werehave to deal with more fittings, just one at each
afraid to use it, as even some contractors ofend of the natural gas line. Moreover, in case of
natural gas lines considered the method ratherleakage, the CSST fittings are very easy to
unsafe. However, the arguments sustaining theaccess for adjustments.
lack of safety of these pipelines have neverHowever, the idea that corrugated stainless steel
benefited from support. The professionaltubing is a do-it-yourself type of installation is not
contractors realized that they have been alreadyaccurate. It is true that the installation of this
using similar brass appliance connector tubing inmethod is much easier and less time consuming,
situations when adding natural gas lines wasbut it still needs professional installers accustomed
necessary for clothes dryers or gas ranges. Thus,with the small nuances of this new gas tubing
the method was not all that new, just that itssystem. The person who attempts installing such
introduction functioned as a replacement of thea system should have an authorized license to
old iron natural gas lines.practice. There are two methods of installing the
The corrugated stainless steel tubing is muchCSST system: the series and the parallel ones.
more advantageous than the older method. OneThe first method is the same as the one used
of the biggest advantages of the CSST methodfor installing the iron gas lines and it is usually the
is the labor savings. The traditional lines take aeasiest method, as a larger pipe supplies natural
much longer period to cut and thread. The newgas to other smaller branches that feed different
material is much lighter in weight and a lot easierappliances. The parallel method is, however,
to install, as the system functions the same assuperior, as it installs as a wire system, all lines
the one associated with the electrical wires. Thestarting from a central distribution point. Adding
material only needs pulling between two pointsnatural gas lines in such a system requires extra
and then cutting to the necessary length, by usinggas ports located on the manifold within the panel.
simple tubing cutters. On the other hand, installing