Installing A Gas Range Where An Electric Range Once Stood Can Be Challenging!

Converting the 220V connection into a 110V plug

I am not an electrician, nor am I entirely comfortable in dealing with electricity. I am, however, capable of some basic electrical work around the house but I was not about to convert the 220V hardwired connection into a standard 110V plug for the new range so I hired Mr. Electric to come out and take care of that for me. It is a pricey affair but it had to be done and done right.

Mr. Electric has flat rate pricing so Allen (the electrician) shows me their price guide and that it will run $268, or $228 with member pricing, or what they call their customer protection plan. I decided to also have him install a whole house surge arrester to protect all of our electronics in the house while he was here, so I paid $89 for the membership (good for discounted pricing for a year) and paid an additional $206 for the surge arrester and that pretty much paid for the membership price. I've got a few things I want to do (electrically) around the house so I'll be sure to get that done within the year, hopefully, to get the discounted rate.

Allen gets started and makes his way to the electric panel (a.k.a. breaker box) in the basement and promptly replaces the 50 amp breaker with a 20 amp breaker. He tells me that most of the time when a 220V range is hooked up you'll find a 40 amp breaker down in the panel. But for some reason we had a 50 amp fuse but the wiring was only designed for a 40 amp fuse, which is overkill for the new plug so that's a good thing, but not such a good thing with our previous electric range. Luckily, we never had a problem. He then heads upstairs and dismantles the hard-wired connection to the old electric range and converts it into a standard 110V plug that the new range will plug into. He asks me exactly where I want to have the new plug secured behind the range, he tests the circuit for proper ground and polarity and he's done. This all takes about 30-45 minutes.

Taking delivery of our new Kenmore gas range

Sears pulls up on delivery day and three guys bring the new range in. This is no easy feat due to the stairs to our front door. The guy that is going to actually connect the gas to the range informs me that the valve (that I installed) is the wrong type.

Gas dryer valve, at left, and gas range valve on the right.

He tells me that what I have installed is a dryer valve and not a range valve. Setback #1

Great!!!...Not!

The only thing they can do now is level the range for me and leave. They are not allowed to hook it up if the valve is not the right type. I'm a little steamed because the valve I picked up at the Home Depot was approved by the associate that worked in the gas pipe aisle and, I thought, was giving me flawless advice.

What's the difference between a gas range valve and a dryer valve?

The dryer valve reduces the inside diameter of the pipe about an 1/8", thus reducing the proper amount of gas needed for the range, should you ever want to EFFECTIVELY cook with all four burners going and use the oven simultaneously.

I head back to the Depot and discover that they don't have the valve I need so I head a 1/2 mile down the road to Lowe's and get a perfect match...a gas range valve. I go back home and turn off the gas to the house and promptly replace the dryer valve with the correct one. Don't forget to use pipe joint compound (type T2) at each and every connection on the male threads only! I then came to an abrupt halt because apparently the Sears guy only left behind one of two connectors that came with the range. Setback #2

(UPDATE!!!: Please see Bob's April 24, 2007 comment regarding pipe dope/teflon tape on the flare threads of the flexible line connectors)

I go back to Lowe's (8 miles one way) and get the part that should have come with the range to begin with. I head back home and finally...finally...I'm able to get the darn thing hooked up. YEA!!! We slide the new range back in position and I turn the gas back on. We have flame!

Our kitchen is small but it's set up efficiently (stove, sink and refrigerator form a triangle). We've always said that our house is 2 feet too small in every direction. In this case, it is about 2" too small because I quickly discovered that we were not able to fully open the dishwasher door due to the oven door handle on the new range sticking out further than our old range. Setback #3

So now I am forced to cut away the part of the counter behind the range that extends 4 inches up the back splash and push the range back just far enough to make it all work. It might look a little ugly when I'm done but we have plans for a new counter in the near future and we will just deal with it for awhile. Besides, no one will see what's behind the range anyway.

Preventing Problems with Combustion Equipment

Use a properly sized range hood fan if you use a gas range.

"All kitchens should have exhaust ventilation to remove odors and excess moisture associated with cooking. While there are various ventilation strategies for kitchens, a range hood is the most common. When using a gas range, a range hood directly vented to the outside should be used to capture the combustion products. These range hoods should be sized correctly. For a typical kitchen range the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) and the Home Ventilation Institute (HVI) recommend 100 cfm. Larger fans may need to have makeup air provided to avoid excessively depressurizing the house, causing backdrafting or other problems.

After installation of combustion and/or ventilation equipment, combustion equipment should be tested to be sure that it functions properly.

It is important that your installer conducts a worst-case depressurization test. This combustion safety test determines if any non-sealed combustion appliances will backdraft or spill combustion products into the living space. Tell your installer this test should use an established procedure such as Appendix D of the International Fuel and Gas Code or ASTM E1998 "Guide for Assessing Backdrafting and Spillage from Vented Combustion Appliances"

The above was quoted from the EPA on Indoor Air Quality in Homes/Residences.

Disclaimer: I am NOT a licensed plumber and this is not a How-To website. I am simply sharing my experience with installing a gas range. Ask advice from professionals before considering this type of project and add my practical experience for good measure. If you have ANY reservations about attempting this type of project, call a professional to handle it for you. This is NOT a project to be taken lightly. Check with your homeowners' insurance carrier for details on this project before attempting.

If you choose to follow the techniques, approaches and methods shown on this site, then you follow them at your own risk. In no way will the publishers of this website be held liable for any injuries or damages, direct or consequential, incurred by any person who attempts to follow the examples shown herein.

The information in this article assumes that you have natural gas previously available in your home.

Related:

• How I Added to the Gas Pipe To Supply the New Range.
• Why We Chose A Natural Gas Range Versus Electric