Commercial Gas Installation, Testing and Purging in Bristol

What Commercial Gas Work Do We Carry Out in Bristol?

Commercial Gas Certificate installs, repairs, tests, purges and certifies gas systems in commercial and industrial premises. We do not carry out domestic work.

Typical jobs include a new kitchen supply for a restaurant, a boiler replacement in an office, a tightness test for a landlord, a nitrogen purge on a factory main, or the safe removal of plant that is no longer needed.

From Avonmouth to Filton: Industry on the Edge of the City

The heaviest gas users in Bristol are on the outskirts. Avonmouth and Severnside hold port operations, food and drink production, recycling, chemicals and very large distribution sheds. To the north, Filton and Patchway are home to aerospace design and manufacturing.

Work on these sites includes process pipework, warehouse heating, buried polyethylene supplies between buildings and connections to live mains. See underground gas pipework and gas hot tapping.

Closer in, St Philip's Marsh, Brislington, Bedminster and Fishponds have smaller trade and industrial units with the same need for safe, tested pipework.

Installing New Commercial Gas Pipework

A good installation starts with the load. We add up the appliances, allow for future plant, and size the pipework so the pressure at each appliance is correct with everything running. See commercial gas installation.

Steel is used for larger sizes and plant rooms, copper for smaller runs, and polyethylene below ground. Pipework is supported, sleeved through walls, fire stopped, and identified. Isolation valves go where they can be reached in a hurry.

Why Is Tightness Testing Needed After Every Alteration?

Because any change can create a leak. A new joint, a disturbed fitting or a replaced valve may be fine, but nobody knows until it is tested.

A tightness test pressurises the pipework and watches for a drop over a set time. The method and the pass criteria come from IGEM/UP/1, or IGEM/UP/1A for smaller low pressure systems. New pipework is strength tested first. We issue a certificate for every test. See gas testing and purging.

Gas Purging and Nitrogen Purging Explained

Purging replaces one gas with another inside the pipework. When a system is brought into service, air is replaced with fuel gas. When it is taken out of service, fuel gas is replaced with air or nitrogen.

Small systems are purged directly. On larger pipework, nitrogen is used as a barrier between the air and the gas, which avoids a flammable mixture forming in the pipe. Purge gases are vented outdoors at a safe point and monitored until the readings are right.

We calculate the pipework volume beforehand, so we know how much nitrogen and gas the purge will need and roughly how long it should take.

Decommissioning Gas Plant as Buildings Move to the Heat Network

Bristol is building a heat network through the city centre, and a growing number of buildings are connecting to it in place of their own gas boilers. Others are moving to heat pumps.

Either way, the gas plant left behind has to be dealt with. We isolate the supply, purge the pipework, remove or cap it and label what remains. If the building no longer needs gas, the meter and service are removed by the supplier and the network. We provide a record of the work for the building file.

Harbourside Kitchens and Historic Buildings

Restaurants and bars around the Harbourside, Wapping Wharf, King Street, Clifton and Gloucester Road make up a large part of the Bristol hospitality trade. We install and test kitchen pipework, fit gas interlocks to BS 6173 and carry out annual catering inspections. See commercial catering.

Many venues are in listed buildings or conservation areas. External pipework and flues may need consent from the council, so we plan discreet routes and raise this early.

You can read more about our full range of commercial gas services, including commercial gas installation and gas testing & gas purging, or see the other areas we cover, such as Plymouth and Southampton. Commercial Gas Certificate works nationwide.

Commissioning and Handover

Once pipework is tested and purged, each appliance is commissioned. We check working pressure, burner settings, combustion, flues, ventilation and safety devices, and record the results.

Contractors receive the records needed for practical completion. Building owners receive a clear starting point for future maintenance.

For hospitals and universities, including the large estates at Southmead, Frenchay and the city centre, commissioning is usually phased so that heating and hot water stay on.

Annual Gas Safety Inspections

Employers and landlords must keep gas appliances and pipework in a safe condition under the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998. An inspection every 12 months is the accepted way to do that.

We inspect boilers, water heaters, catering equipment and pipework across Bristol, and issue a gas safety record after each visit. Records are sent digitally, so they are easy to keep and easy to share with an insurer, a landlord or a managing agent. See commercial gas certificates.

Which Organisations Are Involved?

Wales and West Utilities runs the gas distribution network here. It owns the pipework up to the emergency control valve, and handles new connections, upgrades and disconnections.

Bristol City Council is the highway authority within the city. South Gloucestershire Council covers Filton, Patchway, Emersons Green and Yate. North Somerset Council covers Portishead and Clevedon. Excavation in a public road needs a street works permit from the relevant council.

The city centre Clean Air Zone charges older, more polluting vehicles, which is worth allowing for when arranging deliveries.

Areas and Postcodes We Cover Around Bristol

We cover all BS postcodes, including Clifton, Redland, Southville, Kingswood, Bradley Stoke, Portishead, Clevedon, Nailsea and Weston-super-Mare.

We also work in Bath, Keynsham, Thornbury, Chepstow and across the South West and the rest of the UK.

Need an Urgent Repair?

If you smell gas, call the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999 first. Our emergency gas repairs team covers Bristol and the surrounding area 24/7. We find and repair the fault, then test and purge the system.