Gas Pipe Installation: Regulations and Best Practices
Places where gas pipes should never pass:
- Flue chimneys or products of combustion flues.
- Garbage or waste product areas.
- Elevator or hoist shafts.
- Rooms containing power transformers that contain liquid fuel.
- Ducts for aeration or ventilation, except those serving local ventilation for computer facilities using the supplied gas itself.
Steel and Copper Pipe Connections
Steel pipe connections can be made using steel fittings with adequate curvature, welds to the pipe, or cold-bent seamless steel tubing up to a 2″ diameter. Copper pipes in a hard state and stainless steel accessories are connected by capillary welds.
Pipe Sheathing and Protection
Pipes inside a sheath or conduit must be continuous or joined by welding and must not have any joints to maneuver through the cladding or duct. Where copper pipes run through exterior walls, they must be mechanically protected with sheaths or ducts to a minimum height of 1.8 meters from ground level.
Piping must be protected from accidental knocks or impacts, especially in circulation or parking areas. Mechanical protection can be achieved using sheaths, metal structures, or profiles. Steel tubing with an outer diameter of at least 40mm, U-shaped and bent, can be built into the wall to form protective arches.
Vent Piping Requirements
Vent piping is required, except for mop piping exceeding 50mbar. Gas less dense than air should flow through adequately ventilated basements with at least two openings directly communicating with the outside, each measuring 200 square centimeters.
Pipes may not pass through rooms where gas is not supplied.
Sheath and Duct Requirements
Sheaths and ducts must be continuous and attached using appropriate securing elements. Metal sheaths should not contact the building’s metallic structures or other pipelines and must be compatible with the pipe material to prevent corrosion. Similarly, metal ducts should not contact the building structure or other pipelines and must be compatible with the pipe material.
When using vent ducts, both ends of the duct should communicate with the outside. Any pipe leading into the sheath should never touch the gas pipe within the sheath; they must be separated.
Buried Pipes
Pipes cannot be installed directly buried in the floor of indoor housing or for non-domestic uses. The minimum depth for buried pipes is 0.5 meters.
When using a sheath, the depth is measured from the upper generatrix of the sheath. If maintaining a 0.5-meter depth is impossible, a concrete slab or metal plate should be placed to reduce the load on the pipe.
Pipe Crossings
When pipes cross, maintain a 20 cm separation. If this distance cannot be maintained, a metal plate should be placed between the pipes.