Gas Line Services in Aurora, CO

Clues that the gas piping needs attention

• Rotten-egg smell. Odorant is added to natural gas so you notice it. Treat it as a reason to leave, not to investigate.
• A thin hissing sound near the meter, a shutoff valve or the back of an appliance
• Burners that light slowly or carry tall orange tips
• Black streaks on the wall above a water heater or furnace vent
• A pilot that keeps going out on an appliance that used to be reliable
• A patch of dead grass over the route of a buried yard line

Only the smell calls for leaving the house. The rest are reasons to book a visit soon, before a loose fitting becomes a larger repair.

What gas work looks like in Aurora

Aurora is huge and spread across Arapahoe, Adams and Douglas counties, so the houses vary a lot. The northwest side, which grew from the original Fletcher townsite, holds the older homes, where black iron pipe may have been tapped and extended several times as furnaces and water heaters were swapped. Out along E-470 the master-planned subdivisions are much newer and more likely to use flexible tubing run through attics and joist bays. Areas like Heather Gardens and the blocks near the Anschutz Medical Campus have their own mix of building types.

Xcel Energy supplies natural gas to the city. Permits for plumbing and gas appliance work go through the City of Aurora Public Works Building Division, and the city's building permit application asks for a water heater's BTU rating, which tells you the city looks at gas load, not just the tank.

What drives the price of gas line work

• How far the new appliance sits from the meter or from a trunk line with spare capacity
• Whether the route runs through an unfinished basement or behind drywall and ceilings
• Whether the existing pipe is large enough for the added load or needs upsizing
• Black iron versus flexible tubing, plus the number of fittings and shutoffs
• Permit, pressure test and the inspection visit

What to expect when you call

Calling the number on this page connects you with an independent plumber who takes gas piping jobs in Aurora. It helps to know what appliance is involved, where it sits relative to the meter and whether the home is in the older northwest or a newer subdivision. The plumber will tell you whether the work needs a city permit and how the test and inspection are scheduled.