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My (rather old) washer blew up on me a few weeks ago (Apparently it's been unbalanced for a while. Came with the place and I never thought too much of the vibration until it was too late.) and am getting a brand new set delivered on my new set (Washer HERE, GAS Dryer HERE) from Sears on Thursday.

They wanted about $80 plus parts to install them (I forget if it was each or for both) and I declined having just disconnected everything myself, I figured it would be easy enough to set up the new ones. I'm not particularly handy but I'm at about replace-my-own-ceiling-fan, remove-and-reinstall-my-own-garbage-disposal level.

I'm not overly concerned about the washer, but I was reviewing the manual for the dryer online and it's got me a little nervous. It talks about needing to purge the gas line of air twice, using teflon tape (I didn't see any evidence of that on the old install), etc.

So I wanted to pose the question- is this something that someone at my level can handle myself or are there enough gotchas that I should cough up the money?

EDIT: I succeeded today thanks in large part to the answer here- thank you.

I wound up buying 'yellow' gas-approved teflon tape and a new flexible gas line (to be safe... It was $30 though!). And a new dryer vent hose (also pricey) since apparently I needed a metal one and the existing one was foil.

It was about as easy as I hoped.

To recap:

  1. I connected the (new) exhaust vent hose using the pressure coupling rings (not sure the correct term) that came with it on both sides- wall and appliance. The manual demanded not to use a foil vent, so I used a metal one. (Unfortunately, the most flexible metal one I found pushes the dryer out too far from the wall for my needs- I can't close the door to my laundry cabinet now!... Subject of another post I guess. I'm going to try a "periscope" dryer vent.)
  2. I connected the new gas line to the valve on the wall, using a layer of yellow teflon tape on the threads (although the Home Depot guy seemed to think I'd only need it on the appliance side)
  3. I connected one of the removable couplings from the gas line to the back of the dryer (again, used tape even though perhaps not necessary)
  4. Turned on the gas for a moment to purge the line
  5. Loosely threaded the gas line into this coupling, also using tape as recommended; purged again
  6. Tightened with a (newly purchased) pipe wrench.
  7. Turned on the gas and listened & smelled for gas at both connections - silent and odorless :)

Took maybe 30 minutes, most of that time was spent wrestling the pressure couplings and trying to get the threads to take- was trying to be very gentle.

Dryer started right up no problems and it (and we!) survived two test loads.

So, went well, I found it relatively easy and would do it again. Thanks for helping me build my skillset!

(Adding the requested photo here although it's a bit late. Note that I covered the hard-gas-line's opening with painter's tape and stuck it on/around the valve so you can't see it, but it's there. Wanted to protect it from all the lint and dust floating around down there.)

gas line; valve covered

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    Are you even *allowed* to do a gas hook-up yourself in your jurisdiction? – DJohnM Jan 25 '17 at 04:51
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    The old dryer was gas, right? – ThreePhaseEel Jan 25 '17 at 05:06
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    Can you post a photo of the gas piping as it stands with nothing connected? – Tester101 Jan 25 '17 at 12:11
  • @DJohnM Are you *not* allowed in your jurisdiction? If you have a dryer installed where you live, do you have to hire a plumber/gas fitter? – Tester101 Jan 25 '17 at 12:19
  • If you are asking, it's pretty much a given that you should **not** attempt gas plumbing on your own. Aside from the risk of losing your homeowner's insurance (due to nonlicensed install), you probably won't do it right. – Carl Witthoft Jan 25 '17 at 16:10
  • @Tester101 ummmm,.... yeah they are, or else they're breaking the law at least in MA, since any change to gas config requires signoff by the building inspector. – Carl Witthoft Jan 25 '17 at 19:47
  • _Are you even allowed to do a gas hook-up yourself in your jurisdiction?_ Good question. I didn't know that there could be a rule against that. Sears gave me the option so I assumed it was permitted. I'll see what google finds for me. I live in Orane County, CA _The old dryer was gas, right? _ Yes :) _Can you post a photo of the gas piping as it stands with nothing connected?_ I didn't get this until now, will later. If you're trying to figure out if it's hard or flexible gas line- it's flexible. –  Jan 26 '17 at 15:49
  • _If you are asking, it's pretty much a given that you should not attempt gas plumbing on your own._ Was waiting for this question.... –  Jan 26 '17 at 15:52

1 Answers1

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  1. Turn off gas to dryer.

  2. Disconnect old line.

  3. Take off teflon on old line.

  4. Add new teflon. (some will tell you to use a new connector but that is your choice depending the crimping of the old one and shape it is in)

  5. Connect to dryer.

  6. Turn on gas.

  7. Check for gas leaks.

  8. Run dryer and verify the gas working via flames on bottom burners.

DMoore
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    This may or may not be accurate, depending on what the existing connection method is. If the dryer was connected using a flexible gas connector, then you may have to install a new connector. Which means you might be dealing with flare connections, that may also have to be replaced (and which you wouldn't use dope on). – Tester101 Jan 25 '17 at 12:16
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    Also. If you do use tape dope, you have to use the stuff listed for gas piping. – Tester101 Jan 25 '17 at 12:24
  • @Tester101 - why do you need to replace the flexible gas connector? I use several reliable plumbers that never replace the old flex connector as long as it wasn't crimped too much and in good shape. – DMoore Jan 25 '17 at 15:07
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    See my answer to this question [Can you disconnect and reconnect a gas flex pipe?](http://diy.stackexchange.com/a/48064/33). If you have the knowledge and skill to properly inspect the connector, and you are sure that it's still good. Then sure, you can probably reuse it. However, the OP specifically says "*I'm not particularly handy*", which leads me to believe that they would not posses the knowledge to inspect the fitting themselves. Therefore, the connector should probably be replaced. – Tester101 Jan 25 '17 at 16:06
  • @Tester101 - I guess my point is with all of the advice given on the site this seems overly cautious compared to other things we "allow" a person who isn't handy to do. A brand new flex pipe can have problems, and actually I would trust something that was working more than a new out of the box connector. Yes you clean off debris, make sure there are crimps, inspect... I don't see this being a overly high functioning task that an average person couldn't do. – DMoore Jan 25 '17 at 16:22
  • Just following code, and manufacturer's installation instructions. – Tester101 Jan 25 '17 at 16:59
  • @Tester101 - there are many codes in the book that are more about manufacturers making money than common sense. Unless the code has some sort of reasoning and research about why they are making a requirement this obtuse I tend to think the people creating the code are getting influenced. – DMoore Jan 25 '17 at 17:23
  • Just because you don't understand the reasoning behind the code, doesn't make the code invalid. I seriously doubt that manufacturers influenced the numerous code councils, just so they could make a few extra dollars on flexible connectors. – Tester101 Jan 25 '17 at 18:27
  • @Tester101 - Whoa. Maybe if you are privy to some sort of secret knowledge about gas flex lines you should improve your answer that just repeats the code. Until then I will believe that manufacturers have a little incentive on this as the $2 flex line at the big box cost $20+. If you think manufacturers have nothing to do with code then obviously you haven't worked much on the west coast. There is no way reinstalling a flex line is more dangerous than the thousands of DIY electrical questions on this site. – DMoore Jan 26 '17 at 15:46
  • @DMoore and all commenters, thanks for the reassurances. I'd like to note that the flex line is apparently in good shape, although the manual for the dryer "requires" a new one (that said, it also "requires" professional installation). Notably, it did not have Teflon tape (gas rated or otherwise) on the dryer-side at least. I was going to stop by Home Depot today to see how much a new one cost and pick up appropriate tape. I was originally planning to just re-use it on the notion that if my washer hadn't gone bad, I wouldn't have changed it out for years probably, but it's a cheap assurance. –  Jan 26 '17 at 15:58
  • @DMoore I did notice you went straight from connection to turning on gas- in your experience is purging the line more of a formality at this point in technological evolution / etc? –  Jan 26 '17 at 16:00
  • It would be normal to purge the line if there was no shut-off valve for the dryer and you cut gas off for the whole house. Having a shut-off is code so assuming yours is done by code - and since the gas companies usually check this almost all gas connections for dryers meet code. So given you have maybe 3-8 feet of air in your lines there is no reason to purge them. If you want you could open the shut-off valve before attaching flex to dryer but IMO this only introduces an amount of danger when all modern dryers will handle this perfectly fine. – DMoore Jan 26 '17 at 16:08
  • @DMoore I was simply pointing out that this job might not be as simple as you've made it out to be. I'm not trying to criticize you, or start an argument. I'm just trying to point out caveats that the OP might encounter, which if you included in your answer, would make it better. Whether you agree with codes or not, answering based on the codes is the safest option. – Tester101 Jan 26 '17 at 16:19