What Is It & Where Is It Used

A drip leg is sure as shooting not a well-known apparatus. You would not be the beginning to wonder what on earth it is, what its role is, as well as why it is necessary.

If you lot had to approximate past the cite, you lot aren’t likely to accept much deductive success. Thankfully, I am taking the guesswork out of it too volition render you lot alongside the necessary definition too information to reply your questions too clear upwardly whatever misunderstandings.

A drip leg is a trap installed on a moisture gas (propane/butane) pipeline to catch condensate before it tin get into the gas meter too make problems inwards the gas assembly. Drip legs are required at the meter outlet for any appliance using moisture gases, where condensate tin can fall out in the pipes.

Drip Leg Definition

According to Section G2403 of the International Residential Code (IRC), a drip leg (referred to equally a “drip”) is defined equally follows:

“The container placed at a low betoken inward a arrangement of piping to collect condensate together with from which the condensate is removable.”

Let me clarify the “pipe” mentioned inwards the IRC’s definition since that seems similar a massive category without proper context. Chapter 24 in the IRC is near fuel gas, pregnant that a drip leg is installed for fuel gas piping.

This drip leg is akin to a bath fan condensation trap, which y'all power be more familiar with; it catches condensing water in addition to prevents liquid from gathering where it shouldn’t.

When Are Drip Legs Required?

Drip legs are required for appliances that role moisture gas; they catch the outcome condensate. You power live more than familiar amongst calling it liquified petroleum gas (LPG), propane, or butane.

Wet gas has a higher liquid content of hydrocarbon compounds (such every bit ethane, butane, in addition to propane) compared to the methane content. As a consequence, these compounds can condense out of the gas every bit a liquid.

Dry gas has much more than marsh gas than the other compounds, which means that there is niggling that tin condense out of the gas too a drip leg is not necessary.

What Is the Purpose of Drip Legs?

Drip legs (as well called dirt legs or drip tees) go along condensate out of your gas appliance.

If the trap wasn’t introduce to remove the wet, it could go into the gas assembly. This tin interfere with the gas menstruum in addition to combustion, which tin can campaign safety issues together with tin can impact the role too longevity of the auto.

When yous take anything that impacts gas menstruation in addition to combustion, in that location is the take chances of ignition issues as well as overheating. This tin can lead to fires and gas leakages.

Let me chop-chop clarify: a drip leg in addition to a sediment trap are different apparatuses.

Drip leg vs sediment trap, drip leg and sediment trap illustration

A sediment trap performs a turn in the pipe to deposit sediment (and wet), keeping dirt out of the gas appliance. Preventing it from clogging the burner in addition to gas valve.

A sediment trap tin catch moisture, patch a drip leg cannot catch sediment.

This is because a drip leg does non change direction. It but has a trap that drops away from the chief job (similar a “T”), pregnant that wet (as well as about sediment) will live deposited, simply smaller dirt particles tin likewise be carried over the trap when suspended inwards the gas.

Even though both apparatuses are traps, the IRC lists drips (G2419.2) together with sediment traps (G2419.iv) under different sections. The like appearances together with some crossovers inward part probable add together to the confusion.

Domestic Systems Requiring Drip Legs

The household appliances as well as systems that take a drip leg are those that function wet gases. You may be more than familiar amongst these natural gas liquids (NGLs) or liquified fossil oil gases (LPGs) beingness referred to equally butane, propane, isobutane, ethane, as well as pentane.

Now that moisture gases sound much more than relevant to home operation, we can verbalise about where it is used. Typically, you lot will detect liquid propane as well as butane supplied inward homes inwards big storage tanks.

Home appliances that can live powered past natural gas liquids include dryers (if you convert it), furnaces, heaters, boilers, ovens, grills, fireplaces, hobs, too H2O heaters.

If the appliance uses a moisture gas, it needs a drip leg.

Where Are the Drip Legs Located?

According to Section G2419.ii, drip legs must live installed at the outlet for the gas meter. This placement allows the drip to human activity as a trap as well as prevents the gathering of condensation in the pipes, where it tin can block gas period too operate into the gas meter.

Section G2419.3 says that the drip legs must live readily accessible for cleaning and to empty out condensation. Additionally, drip legs are non allowed to be located where the moisture tin can freeze.

Gas steam flow, drip leg pipe location, drip leg illustration

You require to live able to make clean out the condensation from the trap, and so it must live accessible since it is undesirable to take condensation inwards the gas line of work. This cleaning should live done whenever the appliance is serviced too repaired.

Drip legs are designed to collect moisture. If that moisture freezes and expands, and then, like alongside plumbing pipes, your gas pipage tin can fissure. It is unsafe to accept a compromised gas line of work every bit this can leak gas into your dwelling house.

Propane too butane are more often than not odorless too colorless gases that are highly flammable (gamble of fire too explosions) as well as dismiss oxygen. This agency that inward low or high concentrations of the gas, you tin run into varying degrees of symptoms associated alongside suffocation.

Drip Legs in Commercial Applications

Drip legs as well take a unlike use when it comes to commercial buildings. Drip legs are staggered throughout steam systems (similar big boiler systems) to collect condensate.

However, considering these systems are part of apartment buildings, yous wouldn’t live responsible for these drip legs. You aren’t fifty-fifty responsible for whatever other gas-related drip legs.