I am sure if some plumber stumbles across this page he could find fault with my skills as a balck pipe installer, but I sure had fun doing it and am proud of the way it turned out. I am sure if I was a plumber I would have long ago decided it wasn't as much fun as the first few projects, but for me it was a challenge to put it together considering that I did not have a pipe vise, cutter, or threader. The equipment I had planned on was given away to other family members (Sandy's dad had one but gave it away since he had no use for it). So I bought standard lengths of pepe and was very lucky to get things to fit as good as they did. I started at the valve where the gas comes in the building. I had rigged up a temporary set-up last winter for heat, but now it was time to clean it up. I used a union above the shut-off valve so that I can disconnect the inlet should I need to replace the outdoor regulator. I was fortunate that a 6 foot pipe was just the right length to go up the wall, and I made sure to attach the elbow to the top of the pipe before attaching the upright pipe.
I had planned on having a pipe threader on hand for the section funning across the ceiling, but as mention that plan fell through so I used a 10 foot pipe, a six footer, and finally an 18" piece through the wall. I marked the starting point with an arrow as well as pointed out a couple of the supports on the ceiling. I was very fortunate that the 6 foot pipe left the horizontal pipe about 3/4" below the ceiling so a piece of 1 X 2 and a strap made quick work of hanging the pipe. Before attaching the pipe to the elbow I coupled the 6 foot and 10 foot piece together so that I would minimize the amount of ladder work with a pipe wrench. And finall I cut a hole through the wall and installed the last piece of pipe into the shop. The last picture shows the path of the 3/4" pipe behind the furnace. I installed a 3/4" shut-off that I had from last winter, but think I will change pipe size to 1/2" with a new valve as I make the final connection to the furnace. But that will wait for another time.
