Gas Line Plumber in Houston

Gas work is the part of plumbing where "close enough" doesn't exist. Every gas line we touch — a new run to a standby generator, a repair on aging black iron, a pool heater or outdoor kitchen hookup — is sized by a master plumber, pressure-tested before gas flows, and inspected by the City of Houston when a permit applies. That's not us being fussy. That's the only way this work should ever be done.

Smell gas right now? Do this first

Before anything else: if you smell gas in your home, leave. Don't flip light switches, don't unplug anything, don't start your car in an attached garage. From outside the house, call CenterPoint Energy's emergency line or 911, then call us at (832) 520-2623. CenterPoint will make the scene safe and shut off the meter; we handle the repair, the pressure test, and the city paperwork to get your gas legally restored.

Signs worth taking seriously even when they're subtle:

• The rotten-egg smell — natural gas is odorless; that sulfur smell is added specifically so you'll notice it
• Hissing near a meter, appliance connection, or wall
• A patch of dead grass over a buried line when the rest of the yard is healthy
• A gas bill that climbed with no change in usage

What we build, repair, and test

Houston's finer homes keep asking more of their gas systems. A house that was piped for a furnace, a water heater, and a cooktop in 1965 is now expected to also feed a standby generator, a pool heater, a six-burner range, and an outdoor kitchen. The original line usually can't carry all of it — undersized gas piping shows up as appliances that starve each other, burners that won't hit temperature, and generators that stumble under load.

• Standby generator connections — sized for the generator's full-load demand, not just its idle draw, with CenterPoint meter upgrades coordinated when needed
• Outdoor kitchens and fire features — new permitted runs, pressure-tested and city-inspected
• Pool and spa heaters — high-BTU appliances that almost always need a dedicated line
• Appliance relocations — moving a range or dryer during a remodel
• Leak repair and repiping — replacing corroded black iron and failed fittings in older homes
• System pressure testing — the definitive answer on whether your existing piping is sound

What does gas line installation involve in Houston?

A legitimate gas job in this city follows a sequence, and every step exists for a reason. Here's what the process actually looks like — and roughly how long each kind of project takes once the permit is in hand.

What does a gas line cost in Houston?

Honest answer first: gas work is priced by run length, pipe size, trenching conditions, and permit scope, so a firm number over the phone is a guess — and we don't guess. But you deserve market context before you start calling plumbers, so here's how the Houston market typically shakes out.

Appliance hookups — connecting a range, dryer, cooktop, or grill to gas that already runs nearby — generally land in the several-hundred-to-low-four-figure range, depending on how far the new line travels and whether it can route through the attic or has to be trenched. Standby generator connections run higher: the pipe is larger, the trench is usually longer, and the load calculation often reveals that CenterPoint needs to upsize the meter before the generator can breathe. A whole-house gas repipe — replacing decades of corroded black iron end to end — is a multi-day project priced accordingly, scaling with the home's size and how accessible the original runs are. Homes in Memorial and the Heights built in the fifties and sixties are the usual candidates — and since the water supply lines in those houses are usually the same vintage as the black iron, it's worth reading our repipe cost guide before any walls open, because walls only need to open once.

The factors that move the number: distance from the meter, trenching versus attic routing, how many appliances the sizing math has to carry, and whether inspection scope pulls in corrections to older work. The factor that never moves it: time. Every gas project gets a fixed written quote before work begins, and the price you approve is the price you pay — if we find something unexpected once we're in, you get options in writing, not a bigger invoice.

Why the license matters more here than anywhere

Most plumbing mistakes cost you water. Gas mistakes are a different category. Texas restricts gas piping to licensed plumbers because sizing math, joint makeup, and testing procedure aren't things to learn on your house. Every gas job we deliver is run under our master plumber's license, pressure-tested to hold before the meter opens, and — where the code requires it — signed off by a City of Houston inspector. You're welcome to verify our license with the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners; the number is at the bottom of this page.

If a bid for gas work arrives without a permit, without a pressure test, or without a license number on the paperwork, it isn't a lower price for the same job. It's a different job — and not one you want under your home.

How do I know if my gas line is undersized?

This is the most common gas problem in Houston's finer neighborhoods, and almost nobody names it correctly. The house was piped in 1965 for a furnace, a water heater, and a cooktop. Sixty years later that same trunk line is expected to feed a standby generator, a pool heater, a six-burner range, and a fire pit. The pipe didn't shrink; the demand quadrupled.

The symptoms are distinctive once you know what you're looking at:

• Appliances starve each other. The furnace kicks on and the range flame visibly drops. The water heater recovers slowly whenever something else is burning. Each appliance works fine alone — run together, they're rationing.
• The generator stumbles under load. It purrs through its weekly exercise cycle, then bogs, surges, or shuts down when a real outage puts the whole house on it. We see this constantly on generators connected to existing lines without a fresh load calculation — and the February 2021 freeze taught Houston exactly when a starved generator chooses to quit. (Our freeze-prep guide covers the rest of that week's lessons.)
• Burners that never quite get there. A 60,000-BTU wok burner on an undersized line is a 30,000-BTU burner with better marketing.

The diagnosis is arithmetic, not mystery. Every appliance carries a BTU rating; every pipe diameter has a known capacity at a given length, and the code sizing tables work off the longest run in the system. We total the real connected load, measure the actual runs, and the tables answer plainly whether your trunk line can carry the house you have now. Sometimes the fix is one upsized branch; sometimes it's a new trunk from the meter. New construction in Tanglewood tends to get generator-ready sizing from day one — older homes earn it by retrofit, and either way you see the math before you see a price.

Electric-to-gas conversions and outdoor appliances

A growing share of our gas work is conversion — homeowners who want the range their kitchen deserves, or outdoor projects that need real BTUs rather than an extension cord.

Electric range to gas. If gas already serves the kitchen wall, this is a short permitted run, a pressure test, and an inspection — often folded into a larger kitchen remodel so the walls only open once. If the nearest gas is across the house, we route the cleanest path and re-run the sizing math for the whole system, because a 60,000-BTU range added to a maxed-out trunk line just creates the starvation problem described above. Your electrician retires the old circuit; we handle everything on the gas side.

Pool and spa heaters. A 400,000-BTU pool heater draws more gas than every appliance in most houses combined — it almost always needs its own dedicated line, sized off its rating, never teed into an existing branch. Pool builders sometimes leave this line as an afterthought; we'd rather size it while the trench is already open.

Tankless water heaters. Going tankless is a gas conversion too, even when the fuel doesn't change: a tankless unit draws roughly four to five times the BTU of the tank it replaces, and the existing branch frequently can't feed it. Our tankless guide covers when that trade is worth making — when it is, we size the gas as part of the same permit.

Outdoor kitchens and estate projects. Full outdoor kitchens, fire features, and whole-property generator installations are their own scale of work — multiple appliances, long runs, and meters that need upsizing. We do a good deal of this in River Oaks, where a single backyard can carry more connected BTU load than a small restaurant, and the sizing has to be done as one system rather than one hookup at a time.

What to expect when you call us

Gas work rewards method, so our process doesn't improvise. When you call (832) 520-2623 — day or night, since gas emergencies don't book appointments — here's what happens:

1. We listen first. Active leak, planned project, or a vague worry about old pipes — each starts a different playbook, and the leak playbook starts with getting you safely off the phone and out of the house.
2. Site visit and real numbers. A licensed plumber walks the route, totals the BTU load, checks the meter capacity, and identifies the permit scope — City of Houston for most of our service area, or the separate West University Place and Bellaire permit offices for homes in those cities.
3. Fixed written quote. Scope, price, and timeline on paper before anything is scheduled. It doesn't drift.
4. The work, tested and inspected. Line set, joints made, system pressure-tested to hold — then the city inspector signs off before gas flows. We stand our own inspections.
5. Walkthrough. You see the test gauge, the inspection sign-off, and the paperwork you'd want in a file the day you sell the house.

Gas line FAQ

Can a handyman run a gas line in Texas?

No. Texas law requires gas piping work to be performed under a licensed plumber, and for good reason — an improperly sized, joined, or tested gas line is a genuine hazard. Every gas job we do is run by a master plumber, pressure-tested before the meter is turned back on, and inspected by the City of Houston where a permit applies.

Do I need a permit for a new gas line in Houston?

Almost always, yes. New gas runs — for a generator, pool heater, outdoor kitchen, or relocated appliance — require a City of Houston plumbing permit and a city inspection. We pull the permit, schedule the inspection, and coordinate with CenterPoint when the meter needs to be upsized or unlocked. You don't handle any of the paperwork.

How long does a standby generator gas hookup take?

Most residential generator connections take one to two days of on-site work: trenching and running the new line, setting the connection, pressure testing, and the city inspection. The calendar time depends mostly on permit and inspection scheduling, which we manage. If your meter needs a capacity upgrade from CenterPoint, that adds lead time — we flag it at the quote stage.

Can you test my existing gas lines for leaks?

Yes. We isolate the system and pressure-test it, then trace any drop to its source with electronic leak detection. It's the same test the city requires after a leak repair, and it's the definitive answer — no guessing based on smell alone. If you smell gas right now, don't wait for a test: leave the house and call from outside.

How much does it cost to run a gas line for a generator in Houston?

It depends on trench length, pipe size, and whether CenterPoint needs to upsize your meter — but as Houston market context, simple appliance hookups typically land in the several-hundred-to-low-four-figure range, and generator connections price above that because everything about them is bigger. We do the load calculation, walk the route with you, and hand you a fixed written quote before any digging starts. The number you approve doesn't drift.

Can you convert my electric range to gas?

Usually, yes. If gas already serves the kitchen wall, it's a short permitted run, a pressure test, and an inspection. If the nearest gas is across the house, we route the cleanest path and re-run the sizing math for the whole system so the new burner doesn't starve your water heater or furnace. Coordinate with your electrician on retiring the old circuit — we handle everything on the gas side.