There are a few connection areas in a home that may play a role in the operation of several different appliances, and one of these is your home’s gas line. The gas line may feed its supply into several of your home appliances throughout a given day, but depending on the size of your gas line and the number of major appliances you have working from it, there may be some situations where overloading the gas line will be both unsafe and inefficient for the system, plus will risk premature wear-down of both the line itself and various appliances.
At All Pro Appliance Service, we’re here to help with numerous areas of appliance service and repair, including for dryer repair and several other types involving appliances that may utilize your gas line – plus assistance with any gas line issues your home may be experiencing, as well. What are the various appliances that may apply here, and what are the standard sizes for gas line setups in homes today? This two-part blog series will go over this, plus offer some tips on how to determine how many appliances your gas line can handle based on its size and your gas needs.
Appliances and Gas Lines
Firstly, what are some examples of appliances in your home that sometimes or always will pull from your gas line? Here are several:
- Stove and oven: Many stove and oven setups today are gas, which offer rapid heating and fantastic cooking capabilities. They heat faster than electric coils and are easier to adjust temperature for, plus often offers cost savings compared to electric.
- Fireplace: Gas log fireplaces and fireplace inserts are very popular today due to their efficiency and safety.
- Dryer: Gas-powered dryers produce great heat and work very efficiently, plus tumble clothes less than electric options and create fewer wrinkles.
- Water heater: Rapidly heating water on-demand.
- Furnace: Efficient and popular, furnaces are by far the most common form of heating in homes today.
- Outdoor items: Things like grills, pool heaters and more.
Standard Gas Line Setups
The most common gas line size is the ¾-inch diameter option, and in many homes this will be the only gas line size utilized. Some homes, on the other hand, will use a combination of 1-inch, half-inch, and ¾-inch lines. Check with your power supply company if you’re unsure which setup your home uses.
Once you know this information, you can determine whether your home’s gas supply will be adequate. Our next several sections will go over how to do this.
Check Appliance BTU Ratings
Firstly, you will need to evaluate your appliances connected to the gas line for their BTU, or British Thermal Unit, rating. This number measures thermal energy, and each appliance that uses gas should have a sticker or nameplate that shows its BTU output. Note this for each appliance connected to the line, then add the numbers up to get a full demand.
Part two of our series will go over further steps. For more on this, or to learn about any of our appliance repair services, speak to the staff at All Pro Appliance Service today.
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