Compost Mentis

The property I'm buying has a rudimentary kitchen at the back, with a hob set into a worktop, and the piping and connection for a gas bottle. I am a bit concerned about having a gas bottle indoors, I'm not sure if I will need planning permission to put it outside in some kind of housing, as I don't have a garden, and I'm not sure how far my boundary goes. I will check that out. I was wondering whether it's common and safe to have a gas bottle indoors. I know that nothing of that sort is totally safe, and there have been mains explosions as well as the odd bottle going up, would just value your thoughts.

mikelincs

We have a gas fire, and that requires TWO gas bottles to be attached and containing gas at all times when it is in use, and the bottles are indoors, and a lot of people round here do have gas hobs, but the bottles are stored in cupboards next to the cooker

jonsol

Well if France is anything to go by having a gas bottle indoors, next to the stove , is not a problem, its very common there ,( I once had a place there ) and I am sure someone will tell you its the same in Spain, from the research I have done looking for properties on the net ( photos )it seems to be the norm .in fact you need to keep a spare bottle for when the one you are using runs out ! !Also do a search on this forum regarding the pipes used and there legal life span..

Compost Mentis

Thanks for that. I feel reassured. Will make sure all the pipe work and connections are new.

jdr

Yes its normal to keep the bottles indoors, you will have to sign a contract when you get the bottles, they usually deliver or you will find most garages keep them.
A refill is around 12 €`s now, almost doubled in price the last few years.
If they have the silver ones near you get those as they are much cleaner and a lot lighter than the red ones.

poollounger

Brenda it is quite normal to have the bottle indoors. Ours, for the hot water, lives under the sink with the spare next to it. To have a gas hob we would have needed a further botle located under the hob, so went for a ceramic hob as we wanted the space for storage.
We had the boiler fitted as part of the kitchen, and it was certified by the installer, and we had to show the certificate the first time we registered for the gas at the local Cepsa office. No problems at all.
However we had the Junckers engineer out to adjust the boiler recently and he informed us that 1. The flexible pipe leading from the top of the boiler to the vent in the wall no longer conformed to the regulations, that were altered I believe in 1998. A rigid tube is required. 2. On the outer wall we have a simple plastic cap and he said this did not conform either, and a right angle verticle pipe was specified. While neither was dangerous, he said at some time in the future it might be worth getting them changed, especially if we were ever trying to sell the place.

mikelincs

You will also find that they are checked every few years as the connectors and pipes are dated. Usually the people you have a contract with will come round and check, replace the rubber pipes and bottle connectors, and then you are OK for another 5 years. If you don't have a contract, don't worry, they will give you one.

jdr

Its cheaper to buy them yourself though, also there are scammers who come round in kosher looking uniforms and do it and charge well over the top.
The people you have the contract with will let you know by letter if their guys are coming round to check the hoses for the date, it is stamped on the hose, so if no letter then tell them you are phoning to check them out or to "go away" ;-)

brisca

Hi Brenda,
As others have said, it is perfectly normal for gas bottles to be kept in the kitchen, next to the cooker!
It is a bit of a strange concept at first, but you soon get used to it.

Please be aware that you can't just ask the man who delivers the gas bottles to supply you with them! You have to arrange the contract with the company first (here it's Repsol) - and they won't supply you with any gas until you've had your property inspected by a "Technico" first.
This is to ensure that your kitchen is adequately ventilated to current standards and laws, which is obviously a good thing and gives you a bit more peace of mind

We arrived here last February, and it took us over two weeks to arrange the Technico visit!! That meant we were absolutely FREEZING for that amount of time, because no way was the gas man going to let us have a precious bottle!
I would suggest you get your local gas company to visit as soon as it's practical for you, because it can be colder indoors than outside, at this time of year!

We live in a rented house at the moment, and although there WAS a contract for this address, it was more than 5 years old (owner deceased) so it was invalid.
Hence we had to arrange one in our own names, and get the safety check carried out. (If you are going to rent, your landlord should pay for this - about 50 Euros - because the contract relates to the property)
You will be asked how many bottles you require (based on how many appliances you need gas for - i.e cooking/hot water, gas heater)
You have to buy the initial (full) bottles (around 15 Euros) and then as jdr says they are around 12 Euros to refil each time.
Don't forget to allow for a spare! There's nothing worse than your bottle running out, and you haven't got a spare! (Cold showers and no heating at this time of year is no fun! )
Luckily for us, even if both our bottles run out at the same time, we've got a very friendly Churreria friend opposite, and she'll always lend us a bottle until the next delivery. You'll no doubt find the same sort of generous people wherever you settle.
I don't know what it's like in other places, but we get two deliveries of gas every week. Listen for the loud "honking" of the horn - that tells you the gas man cometh!

For additional peace of mind, we have also invested in a carbon monoxide detector.

Hope this is helpful to you.
Best wishes,
Sam.

poollounger

Procedures are obviously different in other areas of Spain as always !
We went to the Cepsa office in the next town with our certificate of installation from the plumber, complete with the hoses that conformed to the previous regs, registered, and paid somewhere around 30 or 40 EU for the aluminium bottles. The refills are cheaper, as said around 12 Eu. No on was required to come over and check the installation. They told us next time we were over to come and collect some other form, and gave us a tel number in case we wanted them delivered. When we went back some 3 months later, the office had closed down and moved, no one can tell us where to, so a year later we are merely buying our replacement bottles from the local garage with no problems at all. I do know others who never went anywhere near the office, but just showed a garage or other supplier their first certificate and got the initial bottles.

brisca

Wow! And to think we were made to jump through hoops for a fortnight - all the time shivering, and wearing 3 layers of clothes indoors!!

The beauty of Spanish life - such diversity in all areas!!

noelrosie

We have had a contract with Repsol since 2004 to supply the gas bottles needed for our central heating. We have ten bottles in a separate gas house, with only 5 in use at any time so we can maintain a supply of gas. Five of these large orange bottles (each about 4 feet high) cost 158 euros last spring. This price has now increased to 212 euros in less than twelve months Given that 5 bottles is only about 3 weeks supply in the coldest weather we would be interested in knowing more about the 'silver' bottles.
What is the name of the company that supplies them, is it Cepsa, do you need a contract, and do you know if they do the large bottles as opposed to the smaller ones which are used solely for cooking...
Any help/advice anyone can give would be much appreciated. We are in the Denia/Oliva area. Thanks.

noelrosie

OK ... I have just looked up the Cepsa site, in English, which I believe is a competitor to Repsol, and it seems that gas prices are centrally controlled by Government taking into account seasonal demand amongst other factors ... so looks like there is nothing to do but grin and bear it!

gallerie9

On a small urb near us they have a central tank and the gas is piped to the houses, I wonder if that would be cheaper for you, my parents had one of those in the UK and had it filled once every couple of months.

helenba

i dont know were you all live we are in almeria we dont have are bottles in side the house one it is not safe no ventalation iit is needed. ares are kept out side in a cupboured and piped into the house .water heaters should be out side as well on a wall with a cage round them .last year a expat died as his gas was in side the house no ventalation .my husband used to be a caravan machanic would not dream of having the gas inside. be safe every one get your gas outside sorry helen.