Gas Pipe Replacement

WheresSnoop

Hi, I have just had the Gas Service company knock at my door as they are replacing the old metal gas pipes to plastic in the road.  They have checked my house and said the pipework to the meter needs replacing as well.  As my meter is in a cupboard under the stairs they have said they cant replace it there but will relocate the meter to my outside wall and then run copper back to the meter?  I have a few queries:
If this happens will I now take responsibility for the pipework from the new meter back to the old?
The installer has told me he has no idea how they will run the copper, they may need to rip up my flooring?
My house is Victorian and has an original pathway and porch complete with tiling, they said they will try and go through my garden wall, through the garden and then face fix the meter to the outside of my bay window then surface run the pipe around the house and through the porch.  Not only is this going to look horrendous if they damage anything where do I stand with regard putting right?  The operative told me if they had to dig up any path/ porch they would just screed repair?  Not replace like for like?
The same query goes for damage inside my property?
Lastly, I am away this weekend leaving early Friday morning and they said they will try and work around this but if not they will cut the gas connection until I return and then start again.  Leaving my house with no hot water or heating until after I return and with my 17 year old son home.
I am happy to work with them and am not trying to be awkward but apparently I have no option, if I don't agree they will just cut off my supply.
Many thanks in advance for any help.

tacpot12

Yes, if the pipework they run from the meter into your property is your responsiblity. Don't worry about this. 

If they damage anything portable (i.e. break it), they are liable to repair it, but you should move anything like garden ornaments/flower pots out of their way, otherwise you're just causing them problems. 

As to the subjective 'damage' that might happen to finishes where they undertake a cheap reinstatement, I don't know,Perhaps someone who does will be able to answer this question. If it were me, I would tell them NOT to reinstate the finishes. Get your own contractor in to do it how you want it done (OR lose the gas supply).

I would tell them which finishes you are not prepared to have them disturb (mark them up with tape and take photos to prove that they were marked up). They will then have to see if they can route the pipe where you can accept it, but if they can't find a route, then you will lose your gas supply. 

I would be considering what you do if there is no acceptable route (it is your job to agree an acceptable route with them and they have a responsiblity to try to find an acceptable routem but if there isn't one because you are being too restrictive, they will give up and be correct to do so). 

Have you looked at heat pumps? There are government grants available at the moment that won't be there forever.  

 

WheresSnoop

Hi, thank you for your quick response.
I have advised that I don't want the original features damaged, I understand they may need to disturb them but they advised if this were the case they would just screed over the pipe, not replace the existing finishes.
I am honestly not trying to be obstructive but they have appeared with no warning this morning with a view of completing the works by Friday (the road and all houses) which means it will be quick not neat.
I just don't understand how this can happen with no warning and no options.  

tim_p

Have they given you contact details of the company or job manager?

WheresSnoop

Hi, no details of any sort.

tim_p

WheresSnoop said:

Hi, no details of any sort.

Might be a good place to start - give you a point of contact over and above the ground workers on site. 

FreeBear

Many years ago, British Gas installed a meter on the outside of *this property along with a Baxi back boiler at the rear. Floorboards needed to be lifted to lay in the pipe from gas meter to boiler. Looks like they used the biggest crowbar they had to get the boards up. Made a right mess, and there was a nasty cold draught coming up through the resulting gap for ever more.

Question - Where is your boiler located in relation to the existing meter (and do you use gas for cooking) ?

It may be better to run a new 22/28mm pipe under the floor directly to the boiler - This would entail lifting floorboards, but with the right tools, can be done neatly. Although, if you have carpets or laminate down, it complicates matters. On top of that, the gas company is unlikely to want to spend time doing a proper job neatly, so will leave you to employ a gas engineer to do the work.

Don't suppose your home is a listed building or in a conservation area ?

If so, that would place a greater duty of care on these workmen to reinstate any paving to an acceptable standard. Even if the house is not listed or in a CA, I wouldn't accept cement screed as being adequate.

WheresSnoop

Hi, my boiler is unfortunately in my loft but they are not worried about any pipework from the meter onwards just to the meter which is under the stairs.
Again unfortunately the house is not listed or in a conservation area.
The more I think on this after the shock has worn off I don't understand how they can do this without notification.  If I was given notice and a detailed plan I then have the option of removing the tiled front path, lifting the flooring and replacing it all without damage.  On top of this I have a weekend away booked which I will not get a refund for if I cancel now but if I don't cancel then my son could be without hot water and central heating for the weekend with no definite date on when it will be back on.

HillStreetBlues

WheresSnoop said:

Hi, my boiler is unfortunately in my loft but they are not worried about any pipework from the meter onwards just to the meter which is under the stairs.
Again unfortunately the house is not listed or in a conservation area.
The more I think on this after the shock has worn off I don't understand how they can do this without notification.  If I was given notice and a detailed plan I then have the option of removing the tiled front path, lifting the flooring and replacing it all without damage.  On top of this I have a weekend away booked which I will not get a refund for if I cancel now but if I don't cancel then my son could be without hot water and central heating for the weekend with no definite date on when it will be back on.

I thought under the Gas Act 1986 they have to give 7 (clear) days notice as it's not an emergency. So notify today then earliest would be the 19th March.

chapea

we he had this done 6 months ago but roughly  6 weeks before they sent a leaflet giving general details and a phone number for any queries   2 weeks before they started marking out the street but then heard nothing.  We were told there would be another 2 cards and if we weren’t in after a third card we would be charged. We were on holiday shortly after and my daughter who was dog sitting at our house came home from work to a card saying our gas was cut off as they had come to dig and no one was home (no card to say they were starting that day). 

they had dug up the side of my neighbours garden and our house is turned sideways just passed this with a slate area to the side of our house with the meter being approximately 10ft inside from there 

my daughter rang the number and they said someone would be there shortly (6pm). 9pm someone turned up parked sideways across the bottom of the drive and broke down and said they couldn’t do the work but someone else was on the way. They were towed away about 11pm and someone turned up at midnight, yes midnight.  Not happy but wanting hot water she let them in to sort the join to meter 

They then couldn’t get the heating to work and after a Quick Look in the loft where boiler is said that bit wasn’t their job and she would have to get someone out at our expense 

she let me know in the morning. I rang up obviously very unhappy and insisted they sent someone out to sort it and I wasn’t paying  took them another day but they sent someone to fix it

we were lucky garden wise they pushed something through underneath our bit of garden to meter so nothing was disturbed. Other neighbours had pieces concreted and the pathways in street where they had dug big holes were tarmaced so there is lots of maybe 2sq mtr patches. 

Also my neighbour other side was also on holiday they had 2 cards  put through door saying as weren’t there they would also have to pay to get someone to turn gas back on after joining. They weren’t happy but needed heating so paid someone when they got back  until I told them I had refused to pay. They rang up and managed to get their money back. 

WheresSnoop

Hi@HillStreetBlues I had not heard of this but have logged calls with Cadent so will ask about this when they get back to me.

Hi@Chapea - there is a website cadentgas.com/under-your-feet which basically says this!  If I am not in they will just turn off the gas and do the work anyway.  No one seems to be able to give guidance on the internal portion of the work (as obviously they can't just do this without me home) and also running the copper pipe externally around my house?  Not only is this unsightly surely its not safe either.  

Sorry if my responses seem a little all over the place I am quite stressed over this and also new to the forum and can't work out how to respond to each post individually.