In the US, what are the usual code requirements governing where you can put a gas clothes dryer relative to the gas line, and governing length and clearance for the flexible gas line between wall and dryer?
Specifically, is there usually a code requirement that the gas line for a clothes dryer is immediately in back of the dryer? I noticed this "must be in back" requirement when Home Depot installs a dryer and was wondering if this is a code requirement or Home Depot's requirement.
I'm asking because our current dryer is recessed into a "nook" in the laundry room but the gas line comes out of the wall to the right of the nook. The flexible gas tubing is attached to the gas line, snakes back and left about 12 inches, goes through the 2-inch gap between dryer and right wall of the nook, and finally hooks up to the dryer. See below (apologies for ASCII art).
||============||
|| ||
|| "nook" ***||
|| * *||
|| ---------*||
|| | |*|=====||
|| | |* ||
|| | dryer |*****--|| <- gas line comes out here (* = flexible gas tubing)
|| | | ||
|| | | ||
The nook is clearly a do-it-yourself add-on from house's previous owner (e.g. walls in back of the nook are plywood!). There are built-in shelves over the area where the gas line is so no one is going to step on the gas line, but that doesn't mean it's up to code! 😉 Judging by (poorly) filled-in holes in the linoleum floor, the original dryer location was did indeed have the gas line directly in back of it, as Home Depot recommends, but I'd prefer to keep the current location because it yields more room in our small laundry area.
Best Answer
The International Fuel Gas Code does not mention any line routing requirements. (See section 613.)
If it were me, I would fasten some wood blocking to protect the gas line from being pinched by the dryer should it walk or be moved. It should probably go along the right edge of the nook, especially at the front, and at the front of the right side of the original space. 2x4 flat against the wall should be more than enough.