I had my backyard done about 6 years ago. I put in lawn and a large patio of pavers. I also had an island built that has a built-in grill and sink, and storage underneath. The island was built of cinder block, finished with a stone veneer, with a tile counter top. There is a natural gas line and electric power. Concrete was poured into the bottom of the island to make a "floor."
The guys who did this didn't use the correct pipe for the gas line, so it began to leak. I'm lucky I caught before it became a catastrophic event, and needless to say, I shut off the gas and the whole thing has sat unused for a couple of years.
The guy who did the work is long gone, so there is no remedy there. But now I'm thinking about selling the house. I'd rather deal with this in some way than leave it for the next owner, because it's a safety issue and a red flag for potential buyers. Plus, it's not even useful anymore.
I'm curious as to how you would handle this. I've come up with a few options:
-
Run a new gas line. This seems like the most logical choice, except that the gas line would have to run under much of the patio, which is pavers on top of a base of mortar. But the biggest obstacle is the concrete "floor" in the base of the island. I don't know how I would get through that. A small child could get inside the island, but that's about it.
-
Knock it down. Pull out the grill and sink. Demo the island and the concrete floor. Cap the electrical line. Fill in the hole with pavers to make it look like it was never there. This would be a lot of work doing the demo and hauling it away, then finding replacement pavers, which might only be available by the pallet.
-
Convert the grill from natural gas to propane. That would make it fully functional again with a refillable propane tank. This is theoretically possible, because the grill manufacturer makes the same model in natural gas and propane variants. I have a parts list for the model, so I know what parts I need, but I can't seem to figure out where to order the parts or what they cost. It's a Turbo Elite grill which is sold only by Barbeques Galore. I went back to the store and asked about doing a conversion and was told that is a subject they cannot discuss for some reason. Then they did a kind of wink, wink, nudge, nudge thing and slipped me the card of a plumber who could supposedly do the conversion. I actually lost the card, so I never talked to the plumber.
I'm curious if anyone has any other advice, suggestions or comments.
Best Answer
Converting to propane is probably the only viable option. I don't know what the code is in your area but the gas line being in contact with the concrete suggests that it's not to code. Gas lines underground should be in a chase and buried to a set depth. It should never touch the concrete. My code states a minimum of 18" depth, it can't exit the building underground through the foundation and it must be flexible. Plastic gas line is approved for direct burial but uses pre sleeved risers to penetrate the ground. Your gas line is leaking so it should be rendered inoperable by disconnecting it at the valve and capping it. A propane conversion is relatively easy to do. If you can't find the appropriate kit, universal burner kits are available.
I'm not sure if this applies to you. It's aTurbo conversion PDF. If you reference the model number it would be helpful. It's on there somewhere. Sometimes the built in barbecues have information on a tag attached by the regulator.
Another potential option is to repair the pipe. Assuming that the line is "to code" up to the break, the line could be repaired by breaking the concrete around it and continuing the chase higher after a joint in the pipe is made. This would only apply if the "floor" was poured above the original "to code" gas line install and caused the damage.