Would you say a natural gas line is combustible???

Yesterday’s inspection. Gas line resting on B-vent. New construction.

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Yesterday inspection, gas fireplace flue not connected in attic.

Question is ( A natural Gas line Combustible . The answer is no .
Put a light a match and you can not get it to burn.
Is it proper for the gas line to be touching the chimney again no.
Gas flue open in to attic .
I would write it up as gas flue open into attic requires immediate repair by qualified person.
I see 81 people have looked and said nothing.
Roy Cooke

Google search gives this answer. below .
Combustible
Definition

  • A combustible material can be a solid or liquid.
    The U.S. Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) defines a combustible liquid as “any liquid having a flash point](The MSDS HyperGlossary: Flash Point) at or above 100 deg. F (37.8 deg. C), but below 200 deg. F (93.3 deg. C), except any mixture having components with flashpoints of 200 deg. F (93.3 deg. C), or higher, the total volume of which make up 99 percent or more of the total volume of the mixture.”
    [LIST]
  • Compare this definition to flammable, which indicates a liquid that is even easier to ignite (flash point below 100 oF).

OSHA divides combustible (and flammable) liquids into several classes. If you’d like to see these, take a look at 29 CFR 1910.106.
Combustible solids are those capable of igniting and burning. Wood and paper are examples of such materials.
[/LIST]

We have had a few homes around here explode because of a natural gas leak, and all it took was a spark. So is it combustible?

No it was the leaking fuel mixed with the correct amount of oxygen that caused the explosion.
Even then it required ignition from some other place.
They put an oder in the gas so people will smell it . Sounds like some one must have damaged the line some how.
There is no way to protect our selves from idiots all the time
Roy Cooke

Forget about the fact that the line carries FUEL. Are you’re saying that the **plastic **lining on the gas line will not burn?

Is natural gas a liquid?

Different words Gas Line and plastic lining .
I said the gas line will not burn.
No one else answered . 106 lookers
What is your position ?
Roy Cooke

Good point Joe.
I doubt if anyone including HI’s would or should say that a plastic covered gas line is ok touching a B-vent.

Is it a major issue? No and it is an easy fix so it should be corrected.

I found sheetrock and carpet that had been up against a B-vent for 6 years with absolutely no signs of heat damage. I still recommended it be corrected. The issue (code intent and manuf. liability shield) is really with a runaway device that gets stuck on and therefore heats up the B-vent beyond what it normally would ever be.

Single walled pipe is a different subject and obviously much more of an issue.

Please read line three #3 my post
" Is it proper for the gas line to be touching the chimney again no. "
Roy Cooke

My position is simple. The gas line WILL burn because it is covered with plastic.

Assuming the line has no leaks I guess it will just burn the house down at a normal speed. At a certain temperature, the metal itself will burn and then the fuel inside the line, which you say is not combustible, will burn too.

If there is a leak in the line near the point of the initial fire, then there will be an *accelerated *fire.

It’s all very technical.

Sorry Joe but I have to disagree, the plastic if you are able to get it to burn will not get the steel hot enought to melt so back to square one The question was will the gas line burn. I said No
Will the plastic cover burn I do not think it by itself would burn but if the house was on fire I would expect you ,I and every one else would be far away watching.
Roy Cooke

I also found an installation manual tucked up nice and tight next to a B-vent right at the furnace. Looked like it had been there for a few years.
Combustible paper. No major sign of heat damage.

See my prev post for the reason.

Roy, so the manufacturer’s warning about maintaining certain clearances to combustible materials doesn’t apply because plastic won’t burn and natural gas is not combustible either. Hummmmmm. ](*,)

Joe you are trying to play on words the question again was
" Would you say a natural Gas line is combustible"
I stick with me original answer NO!
With help of a hot fire and much oxygen you can make the carbon in the steel line burn but no way can you under normal conditions get it to burn.
Roy Cooke sr

I think the intent of Joes orig question was to find which inspectors thought the issue should be reported based on the 1 inch clearance code.

I think we all agree that it should be reported.

Even if it is not the cause of a future fire and the house has an unrelated fire you can bet the fire investigator will report the issue as “one of the fire hazards present” to the local news.

[quote=rcooke]
Question is ( A natural Gas line Combustible .
The answer is no .
Put a light a match and you can not get it to burn.
Is it proper for the gas line to be touching the chimney again no.
Gas flue open in to attic .
I would write it up as gas flue open into attic requires immediate repair by qualified person.
I see 81 people have looked and said nothing.
Roy Cooke

Sort of strange so much was made of my saying no it would not burn .
As I said in line three above it should not be touching the chimney.
No one said any thing on the Gas flue discharging into the attic and I feel this was more serious then the line touching the B Vent.
Also 81 looked and said nothing until I remarked on this .
Saturday evening and we can have a little fun playing what if.
Got to love NACHI and all of us we sure do enjoy life to its fullest.
Sorry have to go to bed .
Stay around Nick could soon give out a prize.

Roy Cooke

If I seen a gas line next to the vent I’d push it to the side and move on.

Not that I really think it would be a problem anyway.

*** an added thought have you ever seen how they hook up a gas line to the home
They take a coupling and weld it to the high pressure line that runs down you street with the line under full pressure and no fire . They then screw in a valve into the coupling and have a special drill that punches a hole in the High pressure line . They then run the line to you home pressure reducing regulator open the valve that was installed in the coupling allowing gas to your home . and no fire was seen by me on all of these i have seen done .
The ark welder is in the region of 3,000± degrees when the weld to the high pressure line . Yes I have worked on gas line stations 24 inch high pressure . I am an electrician and put in controls .
Roy Cooke

Normally I would too. I try to avoid writing stuff up if it’s an easy fix. But this line could not be moved > 1" away without strapping it. I tried.