Replies

1. 
   hasbeen | Jan 25, 2004 11:02pm | #1

   Evidently practices vary according to region, but I wouldn't have gas in soft copper inside a building, ever!  Buildings vibrate, soft copper can rub through.  A friend lost his entire shop and almost all his tools to a cracked soft copper gas line.  He was just walking up to the door when it blew.  He was very lucky!  It knocked him down, but he wasn't hurt.  If he'd been a few seconds earlier....

   Any jackass can kick down a barn, but it takes a carpenter to build one.

2. 
   WayneL5 | Jan 25, 2004 11:21pm | #2

   I sure hope it's tapped into the line and not taped into it.  If it is taped into it there would be a real danger!

   In my area soft copper is permitted (and installed by professionals) for LP gas but not permitted for natural gas.

   It is probably safe though.  I worked in a manufacturing plant that used natural gas to operate production furnaces.  We used soft copper and compression fittings on small lines for decades.  We ran at around 30 psi.  In the home the pressure is much less than one psi.  I think the primary danger is someone driving a nail through the soft copper line.  If the fittings are properly made up they will not leak.

3. 
   YesMaam27577 | Jan 26, 2004 01:09am | #3

   I'm in North Carolina, and it is common here also. The head of the local building inspection department told me that it was fine. He can't understand why my old town (Ohio) insisted on black iron.

   Vast projects should not be founded on half vast ideas.
4. 
   rjw | Jan 26, 2004 01:13am | #4

   Check with your local gas company as to their requirements.

   Apparently hydrogen sulfide levels are the concern and they vary from area to area, I guess.

   One copper trade assoc. site says:

   QUOTE

   Is copper approved for use in fuel gas system by any national and regional building codes?

   The National Fuel Gas Code (NFPA 54/ANSI Z223.1) and all of the major model building codes have approved copper for the use in fuel gas systems. In fact, in states like Minnesota, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, etc, copper is the dominant, if not the primary choice, for flexible fuel gas piping systems in homes and multi-family units. IAPMO approved copper for use with fuel gas in 1999 - you may want to read the announcement related to this by clicking here.

   ENDQUOTE

   http://www.copper.org/applications/fuelgas/Cu_gas_FAQ_Main.html#codeaprvl

   But it also notes there are limitations in MA.

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   In my area there are special rules for when it passes through walls; that probably varies from place to place

   
   

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   Edited 1/25/2004 5:14:12 PM ET by Bob Walker