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PLUMBING SYSTEM INSPECT DIAGNOSE REPAIR

AGE of PLUMBING MATERIALS & FIXTURES
AGE of CHIMNEYS & FIREPLACES
AGE of AIR CONDITIONERS & HEAT PUMPS
AGE of HEATERS, BOILERS, FURNACES
AGE of PIPING
AGE of WATER HEATERS
AIR DISCHARGE at FAUCETS, FIXTURES
AIR INLET VALVE, WATER TANK
AIR VOLUME CONTROLS, WATER TANK
ANTI SCALD VALVES
ANODES & DIP TUBES on WATER HEATERS
APPLIANCE EFFICIENCY RATINGS
AQUASTAT CONTROL Functions

BACKDRAFTING HEATING EQUIPMENT
BACKFLOW PREVENTER VALVE, HEATING SYS
BACKFLOW PREVENTER, HEATER WATER FEEDER
BACKUP PREVENTION, SEPTIC
BACKUP PREVENTION, SEWER LINE
BACKWATER VALVES, SEWER LINE
BATHROOM MOLD
BATHROOM VENTILATION
BIOLOGICAL POLLUTANTS
BOD WASTEWATER TEST
Bisphenol-A, BPA
BLEVE EXPLOSIONS
BLOCKED DRAIN REPAIR METHODS
BOILERS, HEATING
BUILDING SAFETY HAZARDS GUIDE

CARBON MONOXIDE - CO
CHECK VALVES, WATER SUPPLY
CHEMICAL CONTAMINANTS in WATER
CHIMNEY INSPECTION DIAGNOSIS REPAIR
CHINESE DRYWALL HAZARDS
CHLORINE IN DRINKING WATER
CHLORINE IN SEPTIC WASTEWATER
CISTERNS
CLEANOUTS, PLUMBING DRAIN
CLOGGED DRAIN DIAGNOSIS & REPAIR
CLOGGED SUPPLY PIPES, DIAGNOSIS
CLOGGED SUPPLY PIPES, REPAIR
CLOGGED SUPPLY PIPES, HOT WATER
COMPRESSION FITTINGS
CONDENSATION or SWEATING PIPES, TANKS
CROSS CONNECTIONS, PLUMBING

DEBRIS in WATER SUPPLY, Water Heater
DEPTH of DRAIN & SEWER PIPES
DEPTH of SEPTIC TANK
DIAELECTRIC PIPE FITTINGS
DRAIN & SEWER PIPING
DRAIN LINE DEPTH
DRAIN NOISES
DRAIN a WATER HEATER TANK
DRYER VENTING

FILTERS, WATER
FLARE FITTINGS
FLOOD DAMAGE ASSESSMENT, SAFETY & CLEANUP
FLOODED HEATING EQUIPMENT REPAIR
FLOODED SEPTIC SYSTEMS, REPAIR
FLOODED WATER HEATER REPAIR
FLOOR DRAIN / TRAP ODORS
FLUSHOMETER VALVES for TOILETS URINALS
FREEZE-PROOF PIPES

GAS DETECTION INSTRUMENTS
GAS FIRED WATER HEATERS
GAS LP & Natural Gas Safety Hazards
GAS LP & Natural Gas Pressures
GAS PIPING, VALVES, CONTROLS
GALVANIC SCALE & METAL CORROSION
GALVANIZED STEEL PIPING

HARD WATER - SOFTENERS
HEAT TAPES, Heat, Insulation prevent Freeze-Up

KITCHEN VENTILATION

LEAD POISONING HAZARDS GUIDE
LEAK TYPES, Water Supply/Drain Pipe

MANUALS & PARTS GUIDES - HVAC
METHANE GAS SOURCES
MIXING / ANTI-SCALD VALVES
MIX VALVE SCALD PROTECTION, Best Practices
MUNICIPAL WATER PRESSURE IMPROVEMENTS
MOLD INFORMATION CENTER
MVOCs & MOLDY MUSTY ODORS

NOISE / SOUND DIAGNOSIS & CURE
NOISE CONTROL for HEATING SYSTEMS
NOISE CONTROL for PLUMBING
NOISE, PLUMBING DRAIN DIAGNOSIS
NOISE, PLUMBING DRAIN REPAIR
NOISE, PLUMBING CHECKLIST
NOISE, WATER HEATER
NOISES, WATER PUMP

ODORS GASES SMELLS, DIAGNOSIS & CURE
ODORS IN WATER
ODORS, SEPTIC or SEWER
ODORS SEWER GAS in COLD WEATHER
ODORS, SULPHUR SMELL SOURCES
ODORS, URINE REMOVAL
OIL FIRED WATER HEATERS
OIL-FIRED BOILERS, HEATING
OIL FUEL TYPES & CHARACTERISTICS
OIL TANK PIPING & PIPING DEFECTS
OIL TANKS
OUTHOUSES & LATRINES

PIPING IN buildings, Clogs Leaks Types
PLASTIC PIPING ABS CPVC PB PEX PVC
PLASTIC PIPE INSTALLATION ERRORS
PLASTIC PIPE LEAK CAUSES
PLUMBING FIXTURES, KITCHEN, BATH
Plumbing Materials & Fixtures, Age, Types
PLUMBING NOISE CONTROL
PLUMBING VENT DEFINITIONS & CODES
PLUMBING VENT DEFECTS & NOISES
PUMPS, SEPTIC PUMPS
PUMPS, SEWAGE EJECTOR / GRINDER PUMPS
PUMPS, SUMP PUMPS
PUMPS, WATER PUMPS
PUMPS, WATER REPAIR

RANGE BOILERS
RELIEF VALVE LEAKS
REPAIR BURST LEAKY PIPES

SEWER GAS ODORS
SEWER LINE LEAKS & ODORS
SEWAGE BACKUP, WHAT TO DO
SEWER BACKUP PREVENTION
SEWAGE & SEPTIC CONTAMINANTS
SEWAGE CONTAMINATION in buildings
SEWAGE EJECTOR / GRINDER PUMPS
SEWAGE PATHOGENS in SEPTIC SLUDGE
SEWAGE PUMPS
SEWAGE PUMP CLOG DAMAGE
SEWER GAS ODORS
SEWER LINE REPLACEMENT
SHUTOFF VALVE LOCATION, USE
SOUND CONTROL for PLUMBING
SULPHUR & SEWER GAS SMELL SOURCES
SUMP PUMPS GUIDE
SUPPLY PIPING
SWEATING (CONDENSATION) on PIPES, TANKS

TANK TYPES: WATER, OIL, EXPANSION, ALL
TANKLESS COILS
TANKLESS WATER HEATERS
Temperature Pressure Relief Valves - Water Heaters

TOILETS, INSPECT, INSTALL, REPAIR
TOILET ALTERNATIVES
TOILET FLUSHOMETER VALVES
TOILET INSTALLATION PROCEDURE
TOILET OVERFLOW EMERGENCY
TOILET PLUGS, SEWER BACKUP
TOILET REPAIR GUIDE
TOILET TISSUE CHOICES
TOILET TYPES
Toilet Types, Flush Methods
TOILETS, DON'T FLUSH LIST
TRANSITE Pipe Water Supply Piping
TRAPS on PLUMBING FIXTURES

VALVES, PLUMBING
VENT PIPING

WATER CONTAMINANT LEVELS
WATER FILTERS
WATER HAMMER NOISE DIAGNOSE & CURE
WATER HEATERS
WATER HEATER SCALE - De-Liming Procedure
WATER ODORS, CAUSE CURE
WATER PIPES, Clogs Leaks Types
WATER PRESSURE & FLOW MEASUREMENT
WATER PRESSURE LOSS DIAGNOSIS & REPAIR
WATER PRESSURE PROBLEM DIAGNOSIS TABLE
WATER PRESSURE PUMP REPAIR GUIDE
WATER PUMPS, TANKS, TESTS, WELLS, REPAIRS
WATER PUMP REPAIR GUIDE
WATER PURIFIERS
WATER QUALITY TESTS, CONTAMINANTS, TREATMENT
WATER QUANTITY IMPROVEMENT
WATER SHUTOFF VALVE LOCATION, USE
WATER SOFTENERS & CONDITIONERS
WATER SOURCE ALTERNATIVES
WATER SUPPLY & DRAIN PIPING
WATER TANK: USES, TROUBLESHOOTING
WATER TESTS, CONTAMINANTS, TREATMENT
WATER TESTING ADVICE
WATER TEST CHOICES & WATER TEST FEES
WATER TEST INTERPRETATION
WATER TREATMENT EQUIPMENT CHOICES
WELLS CISTERNS & SPRINGS
WINTERIZE A BUILDING

More Information

Photograph of a natural gas or piped in gas meter in a basement in New York Inspection of Natural Gas Meters for Home Inspectors & Owners
     

  • Safety & Inspection of Natural Gas Meters for Home Inspectors & Home Owners
    • How to report defects found in oil or gas piping inspections
    • Home inspection report language examples for gas meters
  • Questions & Answers about residential gas meters, inspection, diagnosis, repair
  • References

Click to Show or Hide Related Topics

  • BACKDRAFTING HEATING EQUIPMENT
  • CARBON MONOXIDE - CO
  • FORMALDEHYDE Foam Insulation UFFI
  • GAS BURNER Flame & Noise Defects
  • GAS DETECTION INSTRUMENTS - home
    • Drager GAS DETECTORS
    • COLORIMETRIC GAS DETECTION TUBES
    • GAUGE, REFRIGERATION PRESSURE TEST
    • TIF 5000 GAS DETECTOR
    • TIF 8800 GAS DETECTOR
    • GAS DETECTOR WARNINGS & GAS DETECTOR TUBE WARNINGS
  • GAS EXPOSURE EFFECTS, TOXIC
  • GAS EXPOSURE LIMITS & STANDARDS
  • GAS EXPOSURE SCREENING TEST
  • GAS FIRED WATER HEATERS & GAS HEATERS, HIGH EFFICIENCY
  • GAS LEAK DETECTION, LP / NG
  • GAS LP & Natural Gas Safety Hazards
  • GAS LP & Natural Gas Pressures
  • GAS PIPING, VALVES, CONTROLS - home
    • GAS BTUH & Cubic Feet
    • GAS CONVERSION LP / Natural Gas
    • GAS FLAME & NOISE DEFECTS
    • GAS IGNITER DEFECTS, REPAIRS
    • GAS LIGHTING PIPES FIXTURES
    • GAS METERS
    • GAS PIPING DEFECTS
    • GAS REGULATORS for APPLIANCES
    • GAS REGULATORS for LP TANKS
    • GAS REGULATORS, TWO STAGE
    • GAS SHUTOFF VALVES
    • LP GAS TANKS
    • LP & NATURAL GAS SAFETY HAZARDS
    • LP & NATURAL GAS PRESSURES
    • TYPES OF FUEL GAS SOURCES
  • HYDROGEN SULFIDE H2S GAS
  • METHANE GAS SOURCES & Methane Gas Safety Hazards
  • Mycotoxin & MVOC Exposure
  • NATURAL GAS COMBUSTION PRODUCTS
  • OIL TANK PIPING & PIPING DEFECTS - home
  • OZONE GAS WARNINGS
  • PROPANE or LP GAS
  • SEWER GAS
  • SPILL SWITCHES - FLUE GAS DETECTION
  • UREA FORMALDEHYDE FOAM Insulation UFFI
  • VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS VOCs
InspectAPedia tolerates no conflicts of interest. We have no relationship with advertisers, products, or services discussed at this website.

Gas meters in homes: inspection, troubleshooting, leaks, reporting: This article explains how to visually inspect natural or piped-in gas meters for defects and safety concerns. This document provides free sample draft home inspection report language for reporting defects in oil and gas piping at residential properties. Here we provide descriptions and photographs of unsafe gas piping, indications of unsafe or improperly operating gas appliances, gas meters, and other gas installation defects are provided.

Green links show where you are. © Copyright 2013 InspectAPedia.com, All Rights Reserved. Author Daniel Friedman.

Safety & Inspection of Natural Gas Meters for Home Inspectors & Home Owners

Photograph of  this obsolete natural gas meter located indoorsImmediate LP or natural gas safety hazards: if there is evidence of an LP or natural gas leak at a building, gas odors, for example, you should:

  • Do not do anything that is likely to cause a gas explosion, such as lighting a match, operating an electrical switch, or even using a telephone in the building
  • Leave the building immediately
  • Notify other building occupants of the safety concern
  • Contact the local gas company and/or fire department

Indoor Gas Meter Inspection, Defects, & Recommendations

Gas meter location: gas meters are located outdoors except when special permission is given by the gas company. Indoor gas meters increase the risk of an indoor gas leak, require special venting, and can make it more dangerous to shut off gas in an emergency.

If your gas meter is located indoors you should discuss this matter with your gas company. In this photo the gas meter shown is an obsolete model (so perhaps at higher risk of dangerous natural gas leaks into the building (an explosion hazard), and we saw no gas regulator and no vent from the meter to outside. This meter needs to be inspected by the local gas company. It may need to be relocated outside or vented to outside for safety.

Readers whose homes are served by bottled or LP gas should see LP Gas Tanks and can read about LP gas tank gauges at LP Gas Tank Gauges. Also see the US DOE publication "How to Read Residential Electric and Natural Gas Meters".

Natural gas or piped-in gas safety warning: improper installation and even improper inspection and testing methods involving natural or "LP" gas can involve dangerous conditions and risk fire or explosion. If you smell gas you should leave the building immediately and should do so without doing anything that could create a spark such as operating a light switch or telephone. From a safe location, call your gas company's emergency line and/or your fire department. The text provided here is a working draft and may be incomplete or inaccurate.


Photograph of a gas meter located next to a heating system return air inlet



If the gas meter is located close to a heating system, such as in this photograph where the piped-in natural gas meter and its control valve were located next to and nearly touching a hot air furnace, you should review the safety and building code compliance installation with your gas company. Gas piping or meters which could leak gas into a heating system or duct system are dangerous.


Gas meter needing repairsPhotograph of a gas meter with corrosion and risk of a leak


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If the gas meter is close to or touching the ground outdoors or touching a building surface indoors, such as in the photographs above where the piped-in natural gas meter is outside partly buried and inside the gas meter resting on and touching brick in a wet basement, there is a danger of gas meter corrosion and dangerous gas leaks.

Outside the soil needs to be removed so that the meter is not touching dirt. If this corrective measure means that we've created a low area by the foundation it's important to keep roof spillage out of the low spot or we may invite building foundation leaks and basement water entry. A window well can be installed around such an excavation to help keep surface runoff away from the building.

You should review the safety and building code compliance installation with your gas company as soon as possible. Gas piping or meters which could leak gas are dangerous. In this photograph (click the photograph to enlarge it) corrosion is visible on the bottom of the gas meter where it's supported by wet brick.

Gas Meter Capacity or Adequacy

Safety Suggestion: gas meter adequacy: If additional gas equipment has been added to this building since the installation of the original gas service meter, it is possible that the added demand can result in low gas pressure or unsafe operation. The meter itself may need to be replaced with a higher capacity unit for safety. Please review this question with your gas supplier.

Gas Meter Venting Requirements

When a gas meter is used indoors good practice and plumbing codes require that the meter regulator be connected to a vent pipe extending to the outdoors so that in the unlikely event of a leak-failure of the gas pressure regulator, leaking gas will not accumulate in the building where it would form an explosion hazard.

Safety Recommendation: gas regulator vent: We did not find a vent pipe venting the gas regulator (located inside the building) to outside. Such vents are recommended and may be required by local or state codes for safety. Please review this question with your gas supplier.


Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

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Technical Reviewers & References

Related Topics, found near the top of this page suggest articles closely related to this one.

  • U.S. Energy Information Administration - eia.doe.gov/
  • U.S. Environmental Protection Agency - epa.gov/solar/energy-and-you/affect/natural-gas.html
  • At Natural Gas.Org www.naturalgas.org/environment/naturalgas.asp#emission you’ll find a table of combustion products
  • At geocities.com/rainforest/6847/report1.html is an interesting and detailed though not “neutral” report on the components and contaminants in the combustion of natural gas. You’ll see a long long list of emissions products, but look again – most of the contaminant levels listed are in the picograms.
  • apvgn.pt/documentacao/iangv_rep_part1.pdf lists the components in natural gas exhaust from vehicles
  • The Need Project, Manassas, VA: need.org/needpdf/infobook_activities/SecInfo/NGasS.pdf
  • Kroschwitz, Jacqueline I., and Mary Howe-Grant (eds.). "Gas, Natural." In Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology. 4th ed., vol. 12. New York: John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1993.
  • Tussing, Arlon R., & Bob Tippee. The Natural Gas Industry: Evolution, Structure, and Economics. 2nd ed. Tulsa, OK: PennWell Publishing, 1995.
  • "How to Read Electric and Natural Gas Meters", U.S. DOE original source: www.energysavers.gov/your_home/water_heating/index.cfm/mytopic=13120?print

Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair

  • Our recommended books about building & mechanical systems design, inspection, problem diagnosis, and repair, and about indoor environment and IAQ testing, diagnosis, and cleanup are at the InspectAPedia Bookstore. Also see our Book Reviews - InspectAPedia.
  • Home Reference Book - Carson DunlopThe Home Reference Book - the Encyclopedia of Homes, Carson Dunlop & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, 25th Ed., 2012, is a bound volume of more than 450 illustrated pages that assist home inspectors and home owners in the inspection and detection of problems on buildings. The text is intended as a reference guide to help building owners operate and maintain their home effectively. Field inspection worksheets are included at the back of the volume. Special Offer: For a 10% discount on any number of copies of the Home Reference Book purchased as a single order. Enter INSPECTAHRB in the order payment page "Promo/Redemption" space. InspectAPedia.com editor Daniel Friedman is a contributing author.

    Or choose the The Home Reference eBook for PCs, Macs, Kindle, iPad, iPhone, or Android Smart Phones. Special Offer: For a 5% discount on any number of copies of the Home Reference eBook purchased as a single order. Enter INSPECTAEHRB in the order payment page "Promo/Redemption" space.
  • Carbon Monoxide Gas Toxicity, exposure limits, poisoning symptoms, and inspecting buildings for CO hazards
  • HOT WATER HEATERS - a detailed guide to all types of hot water sources, problems, inspection, repair
  • Sewage Odors in Wet or Cold Weather - Septic Odors or Sewage Odor Diagnosis & Repair Guide for diagnosing and eliminating cold weather sewer gas odors
  • Water Pressure Loss - Diagnosis how to determine why water pressure has been lost or why there is no water at all in a building
  • ...

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