Mystery Pipe

[Rathilion]

We have a mystery pipe in our house. The pipe is circled in red in the photos. Wondering if it is an old gas pipe. Comes up from downstairs in a boxed in area with the soil stack then goes into the wall in the bathroom then pops out and is capped off. Just before it goes into the wall the pipe also shoots off under the floor in the opposite directions.

Our gas supply is fed from the street to the gas meter and runs around the outside of our house to the boiler. So there is no live gas supply inside the house. I would like to know if I can remove the pipe (angle grind) from out of the wall so that tiling can be laid flush to the wall without the pipe being in the way.

Any help or advice on what this pipe might be would be appreciated.

Untitled

• Rathilion
• 5 Nov 2014
• 1

Untitled

• Rathilion
• 5 Nov 2014
• 1

Untitled

• Rathilion
• 5 Nov 2014
• 1

 

[45yearsagasman]

That certainly looks like black iron which was commonly used to carcass a gas supply to houses. It may well be live, and the only way is to get a Gassafe man to confirm it. Any pipe that cut back must be capped and sealed correctly, and in the case of iron, capped or plugged properly. Not a diy job I'm afraid.

 

[Rathilion]

Thanks for your reply.

The pipe is not connected to any gas supply at the other end. The meter was originally in a cupboard under the stairs and has been moved outside as part of a metal pipe to plastic pipe upgrade. The boiler is now connected to the meter with pipe that runs outside the house. No gas from the meter enters the house other than to the boiler. The pipe where the gas was connected to the meter in the cupboard has now been cut. There is another capped pipe next to this cut pipe in the cupboard which is probably the other end of the pipe from upstairs in the bathroom. If the pipe in the bathroom is not connected to anything is there a problem if I cut it back?

 

[45yearsagasman]

If you intend cutting back the pipe to say, plaster over it then it should be sealed correctly and it is not acceptable to leave any open end, even though it is dead. Who's to say that a future owner would not reconnect that pipework making it live again?