Gas permits and safety inspections
Gas work in BC requires a licensed gas fitter and, in almost all cases, a permit and an inspection.
We pull the permit, do the work, and attend the inspection — as part of the job, in the quoted price, rather than as an extra.
What the inspection actually checks
Not paperwork. A specific list:
Venting. ⚠️ The important one. Whether combustion products are leaving the building properly. This is a carbon monoxide question, and it's the single reason the inspection exists in the form it does.
Combustion air. Whether the appliance has adequate air supply — frequently an issue where a space has been sealed or insulated since the appliance went in.
Pipe sizing and materials, against the connected load.
Pressure and leak testing results.
Shutoff valves — present, accessible, correct.
Clearances to combustibles.
Appliance certification — that what's installed is approved for use here.
Why unpermitted gas work costs you
At resale. It can surface in a title or permit search or a buyer's inspection, and it becomes a negotiation. The buyer's number is usually higher than the permit would have cost.
On an insurance claim. If unpermitted gas work is involved in a loss, an insurer may have a view. You don't want that to be a live question during a claim.
On safety. The venting check is a CO question. It's rare for it to go wrong and severe when it does.
⚠️ A quote noticeably cheaper than the others is often a quote without a permit. Ask directly: *"Is the permit included, and will the work be inspected?"* A legitimate company answers yes without hesitating.
Safety inspections and system assessments
Separate from permit inspections, and worth having in specific situations:
Buying a property with gas appliances. ⚠️ A standard home inspection does not include a gas system assessment, and unpermitted or poorly vented work is exactly what a general inspector won't catch. Sewer scope covers the same gap on drainage.
A house you've just inherited or bought, where the gas history is unknown.
Older housing with multiple generations of appliance. ⚠️ The most common finding: a furnace upgraded to sidewall venting leaving a water heater alone in a chimney sized for two appliances. An oversized flue affects draft, and draft is a CO question. This is widespread in post-war housing across Burnaby, Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and New Westminster.
Before a renovation, so the gas system is assessed before decisions depend on it.
A landlord or property manager wanting documented condition across a portfolio.
What you get: appliance-by-appliance assessment · venting inspection · combustion analysis with CO readings · leak testing · a written report with findings and recommendations.
Which jobs need a permit
Generally: new gas lines · appliance installations and connections · fireplace installation · furnace and boiler replacement · meter and regulator relocation · alterations to existing systems.
If past work wasn't permitted
Common, and not a crisis. You don't have to retroactively permit old work.
What matters is that the next piece of work is done properly — at which point anything incorrect gets found and corrected. That's occasionally why a job in an older home costs more than a phone quote suggested, and we'd rather tell you before we start.
Our scope: Gas appliances up to 120 kW (about 400,000 BTU/h) input. All residential and most light commercial. Larger central plant needs a Class A gas fitter.
What it costs
Permit fees are included in our quoted price for work we're doing.
portfolio assessments quoted per property.
