HEAT PUMP SPECIALISTS

Connecting Your Own Gas Hob

Things You Need To Know Before You Connect Your Own Gas Hob

Gas & Electric hobs are the choice of convenient cooking for most households, gas hobs are chosen by the professional kitchens due to their reaction time and controllability.

The Different Parts of a Gas Hob

Gas hobs are purchased as a natural gas hob or an LPG gas hob. It is imperative that you purchase the correct hob that matches your gas type. Mixing these up can be very dangerous.

The valves (or control dials) control the amount of gas allowed to pass to the injector. This provides high, medium or low heat. Beside the injector, underneath the burner ring, you will find the igniter, this is what is used to light the gas.

Can I DIY/Install my Gas Hob?

If you want to fit a gas hob yourself, always remember that you are not allowed to connect the hob unless you are a Gas Safe registered engineer.

According to the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, you must be competent before working on a gas appliance. Regulation 3 (3) it states that anyone who is rewarded for gas work (whether fitting or otherwise) should be registered with Gas Safe. While a lot of inqualified/DIY persons debate the meaning of “competence” under the regulation, we believe that you must have the knowledge and experience to fit gas appliances before installing your own.

This regulation protects the public and the customer from dangerous activities. Should some catastrophe result from your work, you are most likely going to face legal action,even imprisonment.

When looking at instructions fitting your gas hob may look simple and straightforward. However, this four-step process needs to comply with different standards that your installation manual may not mention. Gas Safe Registered Engineers normally run many checks before, during and after their work. Though tedious, the process is necessary. Before carrying out any gas work, it’s important to know and understand the regulations and standards for every aspect of your task.

A good compromise we recommend is to call a registered fitter and work together in a mentor-student type of fashion. The fitter can act as your adviser when dealing with finer points of the regulations, approves the final plan before starting and checking the work once finished. While you may have a difficult time finding registered fitters who are willing to do this, this is still a better way to install your new gas hob without breaking the law.

What are the Regulations for Gas Hob Connections?

Before you start fitting your gas hob, here are some things you should be aware of:

Distance: The Gas Hob installation instructions must be followed at all times, in the manufacturers instructions it will detail that you must keep a safe distance from anything that could be a fire risk. For this reason, consult a gas engineer for specific regulations.
Ventilation: While you’re keeping a safe distance from any fire risks, make sure that the room you’re in is also ventilated. Should a gas leak occur before or after installation, it is better to place the gas appliance where there is a window or door nearby. With this in mind, there are also guidelines when it comes to positioning your hob:
If the hob is placed under a window, the window should be at least 500mm away from it.
If it is by a door, it should be at least 500mm away.
The hob should always be against a wall and at the end of a worktop.
Hot Zones: When installing your cooker or hob, take note of the hot zone on top of and on either side of the appliance. Make sure that there is nothing fixed for 760mm above it, including the extractor hood. On both sides, the hot zone is at 150mm where nothing is placed up to a height of 460mm. Once you have your hot zone laid out, there should be no plugs, kitchen units or wares placed here that could burn or melt.
Gas and Electricity Supply: Your gas and electricity supply should be placed within 1.5m from your appliance’ location. Check what kind of feed your hob will need. Normally, most gas appliances only need 13A. In some cases, however, you will need a 32A fused spur.

Fitting a gas hob into your home is not as simple as it sounds. While you may have these regulations and standards down pat, we still recommend having an expert on board. Our engineers at M&E Services are Gas Safe registered and can install and test your gas hob. Book an appointment with us today.

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