# Flex gas line



## Plumbbum0203 (Dec 14, 2011)

Lowes sells flex gas pipe. Now homeowners can do all our jobs.


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## cbeck (Mar 7, 2012)




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## jc-htownplumber (Feb 29, 2012)

Yeah I know I seen it a long time ago and that's what I said eek. How long till someone blows up a house. But it's ok you have to be certified to to install it or even buy it. so all you need to do is buy the book read it which is on on shelf for like 5$-_-


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## ditchdigger (Aug 12, 2012)

I'm sure the (guy or girl) in the plumbing dept at lowes has a license and has installed miles of it so they can walk the DIY folks right through the process lol


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## Mississippiplum (Sep 30, 2011)

That csst is some scary shiot, black iron is the only thing that should be used for fuel gas.

sent from the jobsite porta-potty


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## PLUMBER_BILL (Oct 23, 2009)

plumbbum0203 said:


> lowes sells flex gas pipe. Now homeowners can do all our jobs.


do a tag search "csst & blows"


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## RW Plumbing (Aug 16, 2010)

This is nothing new. Home stores around here have been selling it for years.


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## ditchdigger (Aug 12, 2012)

Not defending either product because both have issues but about a month ago had a cyclometer call about an explosion under his home. We crawled under found an arm to old disconnected floor furnace.The strap had rotted out and let the pipe touch the ground where of course it rotted the pipe out. Caused major damage to home luckily nobody hurt.


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## ditchdigger (Aug 12, 2012)

Cyclometer lol. Customer


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## Tim`s Plumbing (Jan 17, 2012)

The only csst that is approved here in Mass is Counter Strike unless you have it bonded by a licenced electrician.


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## affordabledrain (Nov 24, 2009)

I think csst is pure crap. Bring back the old days. of threading and cutting pipe


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## Tommy plumber (Feb 19, 2010)

http://www.subrogationrecoverylawbl...csst-is-a-defective-product-in-landmark-case/







If lightning strikes a home with CSST and causes a fire, the lawyers are ready and waiting. They studied hard in law school for cases like these.........:yes:


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## TallCoolOne (Dec 19, 2010)

In the city I live in they actually outlawed CSST pipe.

Then CSST manufactures had a lawsuit to allow it and they won.

So now what they have done in my city is to make the requirements so cost prohibitive that no one will install it. Black Pipe is the only thing I see in new construction around here as of late.....


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## TallCoolOne (Dec 19, 2010)

http://www.selectinspect.com/pdf/FRISCO Gas pipe ban.pdf


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## makinHW (Aug 25, 2012)

I had to fish some CSST yesterday for the first time for me. I'm an advocate for hard piping first and foremost! Seen way to much of this stuff misused and abused! I'll have to grab some pics of the situation to show it, but it's been over 24hrs now and I can't leave it, it's playing on me. Got the last piece of fiberglass showing up Wednesday (new house construction, but so outta sequence), so I'll do what has to be done to get that off my conscience and get that BBQ line hard piped!!


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## ditchdigger (Aug 12, 2012)

makinHW said:


> I had to fish some CSST yesterday for the first time for me. I'm an advocate for hard piping first and foremost! Seen way to much of this stuff misused and abused! I'll have to grab some pics of the situation to show it, but it's been over 24hrs now and I can't leave it, it's playing on me. Got the last piece of fiberglass showing up Wednesday (new house construction, but so outta sequence), so I'll do what has to be done to get that off my conscience and get that BBQ line hard piped!!


After reading some of these posts and looking at some of these links I'm thinking iron may be the best way to go. We use CSST in some tight spots to buy I may stop now we get a lot of lightning in this area.


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## robwilliams (May 6, 2011)

Tim`s Plumbing said:


> The only csst that is approved here in Mass is Counter Strike unless you have it bonded by a licenced electrician.


Here in WSSC territory, everything gets bonded. According to the Inspectors, it doesn't matter what type of CSST it is, even Counter Strike. No bonding, no pass inspection.


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## plumberkc (Jun 23, 2011)

There will always be people looking for a deal and willing to sacrifice quality and safety to save a buck. Fear not, these people are not the ones getting ahead in life. Find your customer base and serve them the best that you can. 

It's up to us as licensed professionals to educate our clients. I have a page on my website for gas lines that explains why we only hard pipe our gas lines.


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## theplumbinator (Sep 6, 2012)

While I was doing my 5 year apprenticeship my boss had me installing csst. I never liked it. First thing I bought when i got my licence was a Ridgid 300. My sister's house was struck by lightning last month burned a hole in the flexible appliance connector behind the stove. Lucky they were home and knew where the valve was outside at the meeter. Her whole house is black pipe. Imagine if it was csst.


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## Widdershins (Feb 5, 2011)

theplumbinator said:


> While I was doing my 5 year apprenticeship my boss had me installing csst. I never liked it. First thing I bought when i got my licence was a Ridgid 300. My sister's house was struck by lightning last month burned a hole in the flexible appliance connector behind the stove. Lucky they were home and knew where the valve was outside at the meeter. Her whole house is black pipe. Imagine if it was csst.


Sounds like your sisters gas piping needs to be properly bonded.


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## theplumbinator (Sep 6, 2012)

Thats exactly what I told her husband as I handed him my electricians business card.


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## HSI (Jun 3, 2011)

Has anyone found a documented case of CSST failing from lightning strikes when the system is properly bonded?


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## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

I'd like to know why it is called bonding instead of grounding.


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## Widdershins (Feb 5, 2011)

plbgbiz said:


> I'd like to know why it is called bonding instead of grounding.


http://www.managemylife.com/mmh/questions/107257-difference-between-grounding-bonding


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## rjbphd (Feb 5, 2010)

Widdershins said:


> http://www.managemylife.com/mmh/questions/107257-difference-between-grounding-bonding


 Ain't that shocking??


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## plbgbiz (Aug 27, 2010)

Widdershins said:


> http://www.managemylife.com/mmh/questions/107257-difference-between-grounding-bonding


Now I understand.

Here we are required to have the CSST grounded SEPARATELY from the electrical system. Ground rod and clamped on copper wire.

Schedule 40 steel installations are allowed to be "bonded" by simply connecting it to a properly grounded fixture (such as a furnace unit that is grounded with its electrical plug). In the absence of that (the only gas is for a water heater and/or floor furnace), it would be required to be grounded separately from the electrical system as well.


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## Will (Jun 6, 2010)

Flashsheild needs no bond, that is what I use when I install csst. A ground can be to the earth with a rod or to the panels bus bar. There just has to be a 6 gage wire at the stub out for the gas system tied to one of those two options. Most people don't know how to install csst right, most Inspectors don't either. I put the rod to the ground so I don't have to explain it is grounded at the panel.


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## Will (Jun 6, 2010)

If you got some time to kill here is some reading over "electrical service grounding electrodes" which is what we must tie CSST too when installing.

http://www.prospex.us/DOCS/ELECTRICAL/ELECTRICAL SYSTEM BONDING AND GROUNDING .pdf

Shorter read on the different types of Grounding Electrodes.

http://www.esgroundingsolutions.com...e-different-types-of-grounding-electrodes.php


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## ZL700 (Dec 8, 2009)

HSI said:


> Has anyone found a documented case of CSST failing from lightning strikes when the system is properly bonded?


No but as a past Volley FF, I responded to a house fire struck by lightning that blew out a black steel gas pipe and caused the intense fire. 

When it hits, it doesnt care what the material is, although CSST may require less of a hit.


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## whiskeytango (Jul 20, 2012)

In my apprenticeship i learned to measure and cut black pipe with a ridgid 300, dont even know how to run csst and dont want to learn. Saw a csst manifold at blowes that was 1/2 x 1/2 x 1/2 x 1/2 x 1/2, god forbid you want to bake some potatoes, grill some steaks, and cook up a pot of beans without using too much gas.


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## TallCoolOne (Dec 19, 2010)

whiskeytango said:


> In my apprenticeship i learned to measure and cut black pipe with a ridgid 300, dont even know how to run csst and dont want to learn. Saw a csst manifold at blowes that was 1/2 x 1/2 x 1/2 x 1/2 x 1/2, god forbid you want to bake some potatoes, grill some steaks, and cook up a pot of beans without using too much gas.


PSI is 4 to 5 times greater with CSST.

Another reason I dont like it...


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## Radium (Dec 25, 2010)

Ridgid is coming out with propress jaws to press black iron fittings. I think viega is the first to come out with the fittings.

Sent from my iPad using PlumbingZone


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## okcplum (Jul 16, 2011)

Radium said:


> Ridgid is coming out with propress jaws to press black iron fittings. I think viega is the first to come out with the fittings.
> 
> Sent from my iPad using PlumbingZone


Its already here, I was in winnelsons and they were showing me the set up for the propress.
I'm not so sure I trust the fittings though, give me a pipe threader.
Propress on water is one thing but gas lines, gotta be pretty sure they will hold.


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## theplumbinator (Sep 6, 2012)

whiskeytango said:


> In my apprenticeship i learned to measure and cut black pipe with a ridgid 300, dont even know how to run csst and dont want to learn. Saw a csst manifold at blowes that was 1/2 x 1/2 x 1/2 x 1/2 x 1/2, god forbid you want to bake some potatoes, grill some steaks, and cook up a pot of beans without using too much gas.


With sizing on csst they tell you that its possible to run the entire house in 3/8" pipe if you Jack up the regulator to a higher pressure. Not that I would do it. They also claim a piece of 1/2" csst will flow more than 1/2" black iron, so you can size smaller csst pipe than black for the same fixture. The certification for each brand of pipe comes with a different sizing chart. With all that said I still don't like it and would much rather thread black pipe, im happy running a threading machine all day long, its mindless work.


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## studmaster1 (Dec 10, 2011)

HSI said:


> Has anyone found a documented case of CSST failing from lightning strikes when the system is properly bonded?


Yeah if the csst is touching a pipe or duct that's not bonded it will happen


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## studmaster1 (Dec 10, 2011)

plbgbiz said:


> I'd like to know why it is called bonding instead of grounding.


Its a electrical term. The house has only one ground so everything else is bonded to it. Like the lines coming from the power company are hot neutral and ground, so you are bonding the line to the existing ground. That's how it was explained to me, I try and stick to plumbing though.


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## okcplum (Jul 16, 2011)

studmaster1 said:


> Its a electrical term. The house has only one ground so everything else is bonded to it. Like the lines coming from the power company are hot neutral and ground, so you are bonding the line to the existing ground. That's how it was explained to me, I try and stick to plumbing though.


The lines that come from the power company are two hots, and a neutral (return kick)
I would like to know why its called grounding or bonding, why not call it earthing. Lol.


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## theplumbinator (Sep 6, 2012)

mark kiernan said:


> The lines that come from the power company are two hots, and a neutral (return kick)
> I would like to know why its called grounding or bonding, why not call it earthing. Lol.


Probably the same reason they don't call a hot water heater a cold water heater, I mean common it heats cold water right? Whats the point in heating hot water its already hot... lol...


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## okcplum (Jul 16, 2011)

I always thought they were just called "water heaters" my bad.

That must be the one question I got wrong on my test.


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