Most gas line calls are a new appliance line, a repair on old piping, or a question about who’s responsible for what. Here’s what each involves.
Where CenterPoint’s pipe ends and yours begins
CenterPoint Energy owns the service line from the street to your meter, and the meter itself. Its own safety page says the customer is responsible for maintaining the natural gas piping inside the home. Federal rule 49 CFR 192.16 adds that the utility does not maintain the customer’s buried piping either. So the pipe from the meter in, any buried line across the yard, and every valve, fitting and connector up to the appliance are yours to maintain.
That’s where our work starts; we don’t touch the meter or the service line. If a new appliance needs a larger meter, that change goes through CenterPoint, and we tell you before you commit.
A new gas line for a range, cooktop or water heater
In January 2026, a homeowner in 77429 needed gas line work before a new gas range could be connected. We did the gas piping so the range could be hooked up. Texas law lets an appliance dealer connect only to an existing opening with a code-approved connector; a new line is plumbing, and so is any work on a water heater, even a straight swap.
A range or cooktop run covers the route from your existing piping to the kitchen, pipe sized for the range plus everything else on the line, a shut-off valve and stub-out at the range, a pressure test, and the relight.
Ask when you call whether we connect the appliance itself, and tell us if you’re switching from electric, so the technician checks the full load. A water heater that moves, grows or goes tankless gets the same gas-side work; the heater itself is covered on our water heater and tankless water heater pages.
Thinking about a standby generator?
When Hurricane Beryl hit on July 8, 2024, CenterPoint reported more than 2.26 million customers without electricity at the peak and no significant impact to its natural gas system. The February 2021 freeze took Bush Intercontinental to 13°F. That’s why northwest Houston homeowners ask us about natural gas standby generators.
A generator project has two trades in it. The gas supply from your house piping to the generator pad is plumbing: pipe sized for the generator plus every other appliance on the line, a shut-off valve and a pressure test. The transfer switch and wiring are electrical work for a licensed electrician; we don’t do electrical.
Ask us when you book whether we can take on the gas side of your project. Running a portable generator in the meantime? The Consumer Product Safety Commission says outside only, at least 20 feet from the house, with battery-powered or battery-backed CO alarms on every level.
Old connectors and old pipe in older Houston homes
About 40% of Houston’s homes were built between 1940 and 1979, by U.S. Census Bureau figures. In a house that age, the piping may be original black iron, and the connector behind the range, oven or dryer may be an older uncoated brass type.
CPSC has warned about those since 1996: the solder joint can fail and leak, and CPSC tied its reports to 35 deaths and 59 injuries. Its advice is to replace any uncoated brass connector with a stainless steel or plastic-coated one and have a professional inspect it, since moving the appliance can break it. Ask us to look at the connector while we’re at the appliance for a gas line job.
A gas leak is not a carbon monoxide leak
These two get mixed up. Natural gas is colorless and odorless on its own; it’s given a rotten-egg smell so a leak can be noticed. Carbon monoxide is different. It comes from a burner, furnace, water heater or generator that isn’t burning or venting right, not from a leaking pipe. A rotten-egg smell means gas, and the steps at the top of this page apply. For CO, CenterPoint recommends CO detectors and a yearly inspection of gas appliances; our heating page covers the furnace.
Why Texas requires a licensed plumber for gas piping
Texas defines plumbing to include the piping that carries gas to and through a building (Occupations Code §1301.002), and nobody may do that work for you without a plumbing license and a Responsible Master Plumber over the work (§1301.351). Ours is held by Ricky Mills; you can check his license, or any company’s, at tsbpe.texas.gov. When the pipe carries gas, we want a held pressure test and a licensed name on the invoice.
Sources: CenterPoint Energy, if you smell natural gas · CenterPoint Energy, Houston residential gas safety · 49 CFR §192.16 · Tex. Occ. Code §1301.002 · §1301.351 · §1301.053 · CPSC, flexible gas connectors · CPSC, generators and CO (2024) · CenterPoint Energy, Hurricane Beryl update · NWS February 2021 summary (PDF) · U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024, year built (Houston). Checked November 2026.
