Had water damage, unhooked dryer to have new linoleum installed. Re-hooking washer & dryer. Dryer' s copper piping is leaking gas, I did put plumber's tape on it. Am I not tightening the copper or do you think I wrapped the tape incorrectly? Also, not sure which way the tape is supposed to be wrapped. Clockwise or counter-clock wise?
Gas is not connected by copper pipe. Copper is used for water connections. Gas lines are typically black steel pipe or galvanized. When using Teflon tape, wrap it clockwise so the fitting you apply will tighten and not loosen the tape.
You are a lunatic! You have a gas leak and you want to repair it with tape! The pipe should NOT be copper to begin with, should be black pipe....I strongly suggest you turn off the gas and call a plumber before you kill everyone in the house, or worse, the gas explodes!
tape should be wrapped clockwise so it doesnt un-wrap when you screw it together.tighten it until it si good and snug.then mix up a little dish soap and water solution,and apply it to the conections,with a spray bottle if possible,if there are leaks it will make bubbles.some times you just smell residual gas while working with the pipes. and i agree,it should be black iron pipe.get it checked by a professional a.s.a.p.
The flex line has brass fittings (nuts) that tighten with either an open-end wrench or an adjustable wrench (crescent wrench). Gas fittings are designed to seal metal-to metal. If you look inside the nut on the end of the flex tube, you will see a very smooth machined surface. Likewise on the dryer, the gas stub-out will be a smooth machined surface that mates to the inside of the nut. You probably need to tighten it just a bit tighter with your wrenches. If you do use teflon tape, use the type designed for gas lines (yellow, not white). Wrap it clockwise. If you want to be extra safe, use pipe dope instead, and smear a little bit on the mating surfaces as well as the threads before you tighten them. But I think you can be able to tighten just the nuts and take care of the problem. Use a spray bottle with soapy water inside. Spray it on the connections, as well as along the line itself. That will tell you where the leak is coming from. Its possible you kinked the line and it has a microscopic crack in it somewhere, in which case the flex line needs to be replaced. Also, when you removed it originally, did you use two wrenches? One to hold the fitting on the dryer while using the second to undo the nut? You might have turned the pipe coming out of the dryer, and its actually leaking from where the pipe connects into the dryer, not on the line nut. I also agree about black iron pipe for gas lines.. Turns out the flexible lines are made from stainless steel or plastic coated brass. Older connectors before 1976 were made from uncoated brass, and are considered dangerous and should not be used. Mike
well i guess your in an area like me where the code allows copper lines for gas. first the fitting is flared and you should not put gas tape on it. it is the flare that seals the fitting not the tape to seal the threads, if anything goes on it it should be a small amount of pipe dopeon the two faces of the flare and tightened with TWO wrenches so you dont kink the pipe. if this has been done already it needs to be re flared with a flaring tool. depending on your gas code and where you are since dryer are constantly moved for cleaning ( i know here we are not allowed to pipe to the fixture in either black iron or copper) i would use an approved gas connector this is usually stainless steel with a male and female end on it. with a shut off on the wall side of the connector(not the dryer end) they do make an adaptor shut off from flare to black iron thread so you can screw your connector to it then soap it really good with soapy water any bubbles you have a leak call your local gasfitter or plumber he will have this put right in 10 mins and its his gas line and his insurance if anything goes wrong. remember insurance companies will void your insurance if they find out you are th cause of a gas leak and subsequent explosion.
