leaking NG connections

[Petrr]

Hi all, new to the forum. We moved into this house with a freestanding natural gas heating stove. After using it all last winter I discovered a tiny leak in these L shaped supply line connections. Found the leak with a bit of soapy water which bubbled up in the connection.

Any suggestions how I'd go about tightening them or repairing the leak? We'd like to use the stove for additional heat but don't want to get gassed out!

 

[DAKSY]

Is the connection on the outside of the unit accessible? If so, can you post a pic?

 

[Petrr]

Yes it is accessible, here's that picture.

 

[ABMax24]

Can you take a picture of that last fitting from another angle? Something doesn't look right.

 

[Petrr]

Sure, how about this angle?

 

[ABMax24]

Yeah looks good, there was an optical illusion I was seeing in the first picture.

That's an easy fix.
But you'll need to disassemble and reassemble all the pipe.
Turn off the gas
Pull of the fitting on the far right of last picture. The one right on the hose.
Un thread the hose fitting.
Use a pipe wrench to unthread the pipe, then the first 90, then the second. You'll likely wreck that close nipple in between the 90s in the process, so purchase a new one.

Re assembly is the reverse of removal, use thread tape on all the threads before reassembling, make sure the tape is wrapped the right way.

If you are uncomfortable with any of this call a plumber/gasfitter to repair the leak. Gas is dangerous and it's worth paying to have it done right.

 

[Petrr]

Yeah looks good, there was an optical illusion I was seeing in the first picture.

That's an easy fix.
But you'll need to disassemble and reassemble all the pipe.
Turn off the gas
Pull of the fitting on the far right of last picture. The one right on the hose.
Un thread the hose fitting.
Use a pipe wrench to unthread the pipe, then the first 90, then the second. You'll likely wreck that close nipple in between the 90s in the process, so purchase a new one.

Re assembly is the reverse of removal, use thread tape on all the threads before reassembling, make sure the tape is wrapped the right way.

If you are uncomfortable with any of this call a plumber/gasfitter to repair the leak. Gas is dangerous and it's worth paying to have it done right.

Got it, thanks for the feedback ABMax. I understand how dangerous gas is and will pay close attention to detail. Unfortunately like most tradesmen in my area, they're all busy and don't want to deal with this little job.

When I pull the fitting on the far right, I'm guessing I'll need to replace that yellow hose as that is a compression fitting?

 

[ABMax24]

Got it, thanks for the feedback ABMax. I understand how dangerous gas is and will pay close attention to detail. Unfortunately like most tradesmen in my area, they're all busy and don't want to deal with this little job.

When I pull the fitting on the far right, I'm guessing I'll need to replace that yellow hose as that is a compression fitting?

Most people will tell you it needs to be replaced, it's even written into some gas codes that those hoses are one time use.

If it was me I'd generally reuse it if its in good shape. But given that you've already found leaks it's probably best off to replace it.

 

[Petrr]

Yeah looks good, there was an optical illusion I was seeing in the first picture.

That's an easy fix.
But you'll need to disassemble and reassemble all the pipe.
Turn off the gas
Pull of the fitting on the far right of last picture. The one right on the hose.
Un thread the hose fitting.
Use a pipe wrench to unthread the pipe, then the first 90, then the second. You'll likely wreck that close nipple in between the 90s in the process, so purchase a new one.

Re assembly is the reverse of removal, use thread tape on all the threads before reassembling, make sure the tape is wrapped the right way.

If you are uncomfortable with any of this call a plumber/gasfitter to repair the leak. Gas is dangerous and it's worth paying to have it done right.

I've removed the pipe and the two 90s and have a replacement close nipple for the connection between the 90s. Do I need to remove this threaded fitting as well (another close nipple?) or is that part of the burner assembly?

 

[ABMax24]

Looks like it's part of the gas valve.

I'd re tape it and reuse it

 

[DAKSY]

If the threads are undamaged, leave that close nipple alone. When you assemble the next fitting to it, apply pipe dope or Teflon tape to the threads & tighten it as snugly as possible. Do the same with all fittings as you work your way to the flex connection.

 

[Petrr]

Got it all back together but used white PTFE tape since that's all I had on hand. Hope that's not going to be a problem.

As soon as I was done I turned on the gas and sprayed soapy water on the top fitting first. I thought I saw bubbles forming so like any rational person I started cussing and went to get a beer since it was almost 5 o'clock. After a few minutes I went back and sprayed more soap on it but did not notice any bubbles forming. Was I just misreading the first test? I've check it again after the beer and still don't see bubbles forming.

 

[ABMax24]

At work we exclusively use the white tape "Petro-Tape" is the brand we use, up to pressures of 5,200 psi. I have heard of inspectors and code mandating one or the other. Here they don't care.

I'd turn it off and check again in the morning, sometimes it could be the bubbles combining. You could try a different product too, we have a product called "Snoop" that we use, or Windex.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Yellow tape is made for gas. Not sure if there’s any real difference.