Gas Line Installation and Repair in Gainesville, FL

Licensed for gas, permitted, pressure tested, and priced before we start.

Rather text? Send a photo of the problem to 352-377-9447 and we’ll tell you what it sounds like.

Licensed Florida Plumbing Contractor CFC1430748

Locally owned, out of Hawthorne. Permitted and inspected work. 24/7 emergency plumbing

To come out, waived on larger jobs

$ 69

Parts and labor warranty on our work

2 yr

Of the holes we cut get professionally patched

100 %

Do I need a permit to run a gas line in Alachua County? Yes. In Florida a permit is required any time a gas system is installed, enlarged, altered, repaired, removed, converted or replaced, and that includes running a new line to an appliance. First Choice Plumbing pulls the gas permit, submits the scope with appliance BTU ratings and pipe lengths, performs the pressure test, and meets the inspector. Gas line installation in Gainesville is not a permit you should pull yourself.

What actually happens when you run a gas line?

Most people picture one pipe. It is really three parts, and knowing which part you are dealing with tells you who to call and what it costs.

Part one is the supply. If you are on natural gas in town, that is the utility’s meter at the side of the house. If you are out in the county, that is a propane tank in the yard with a regulator on it, owned or leased through your propane company. Everything upstream of that point belongs to the utility or the propane supplier. We do not touch it.

Part two is the house piping. That is ours. Black iron pipe, or corrugated stainless steel tubing where it makes sense, sized by how many appliances you are feeding and how far the gas has to travel. Undersize it and your range flame drops every time the water heater fires. This is where a lot of do it yourself and handyman work goes wrong, because sizing is a calculation, not a guess.

Part three is the appliance connection. A shutoff valve you can actually reach, a sediment trap where the code calls for one, and a listed connector to the appliance. Small parts, and they are the ones an inspector fails you on.

We handle parts two and three, and we coordinate with your utility or your propane company on part one so nobody is waiting on anybody.

What gas line work do you do?

New gas line installation

Running a new line to a range, cooktop, dryer, fireplace, pool heater or a second appliance you are adding. Sized for what you have now and for what you are likely to add later.

Gas line repair and replacement

Corroded or damaged pipe, a failed fitting, a line that will not hold a pressure test, or old piping that needs to come out during a remodel.

Gas leak location and repair

We find it and we fix it. Finding hidden leaks is the thing this company is known for.

Outdoor kitchens, grills and fire features

A stub out to the patio so you stop hauling propane bottles, sized for the grill and for whatever else ends up out there.

Standby generator gas connection

The gas side of a generator install, including the load calculation so your generator and your water heater are not fighting each other.

Gas water heaters and tankless

Tankless units are hungry. Most of them need a bigger gas line than the tank heater they replace, and that is a big part of why a tankless quote is what it is. Water heaters

Commercial gas piping

Restaurant kitchens, older buildings and light commercial work.

New construction and remodel gas rough in

Gas piping run with the rest of the plumbing before the walls close.

Farm and outbuilding gas

Shops, barns and outdoor kitchens on rural property.

What will you tell me not to hire you for?

Plenty, and we would rather say it here than after you have paid a trip charge.

If your dryer or range just needs a new listed connector swapped on an existing, correctly sized line, that is a small job and you may not need us at all. Ask us on the phone and we will tell you straight.

We do not set, fill or service propane tanks. That is your propane supplier’s equipment and their license. We handle the piping downstream of the regulator, and we are glad to coordinate the timing so your tank set and your piping happen in the right order.

We are not electricians and we are not an HVAC company. On a standby generator we do the gas. The transfer switch and the wiring belong to a licensed electrician. On a gas furnace, the gas piping to it is ours and the equipment is the HVAC contractor’s.

And we are not a general contractor. If your gas project is part of a bigger remodel, we price the plumbing and gas and work alongside your builder.

Do I need a permit to run a gas line in Alachua County?

Yes. In Florida a permit is required any time a gas system is installed, enlarged, altered, repaired, removed, converted or replaced, and that includes running a new line to an appliance. First Choice Plumbing pulls the gas permit, submits the scope with appliance BTU ratings and pipe lengths, performs the pressure test, and meets the inspector. Gas line installation in Gainesville is not a permit you should pull yourself.

Which office issues it depends on where you live, and people get this wrong constantly. If your address is in unincorporated Alachua County, the permit goes through the Alachua County Growth Management Building Division. If you are inside the City of Gainesville or another municipality, it goes through that city’s building office. Same for Marion, Putnam, Clay, Bradford, Union and Levy County addresses, each with its own building department.

A gas permit application generally asks for the scope of work, the appliances being connected with their BTU ratings, approximate pipe length and size, and the location of shutoffs. If a propane tank is part of the project, the tank size goes on the application too, and exterior work usually needs a site plan showing the point of delivery and required clearances.

We handle all of that. You do not need to learn any of it. Book Online

Unincorporated Alachua County

The permit goes through the Alachua County Growth Management Building Division.

City of Gainesville addresses

Inside Gainesville or another municipality, the permit goes through that city's building office.

Marion, Putnam, Clay, Bradford, Union and Levy

Each county has its own building department. We figure out which one you are and pull it.

What the application asks for

Scope of work, appliances with BTU ratings, pipe length and size, shutoff locations, and the tank size and a site plan when propane is part of the project.

Natural gas or propane, which one are you working with?

In town, most gas homes are on natural gas from the utility, and the meter on the wall is the giveaway. Out in the county, where the gas main does not run, it is propane in a tank in the yard. Both are fuel gas, both fall under our license, and both get permitted and pressure tested. What changes is the pressure, the pipe sizing and the appliance orifices.

That last one matters more than people expect. A range or a water heater built for natural gas will not run correctly on propane, and the other way around, until the burner orifices are changed out and the regulator is set. If you are moving from a house in Gainesville to a place out toward Hawthorne, or you bought an appliance secondhand, ask before you connect it.

On propane, the tank, the regulator and the first stage belong to your propane company. Our work starts downstream of that. We are used to coordinating with propane suppliers around here, and we will tell you plainly what to ask them for so you are not standing in the middle of two contractors pointing at each other.

Call Now: (352) 377-9447

What should I do if I smell gas?

Do this first, before you call us.

Get everyone out of the building, including pets. Go outside and stay outside.
Do not flip switches, unplug anything, or use a phone inside. Do not light anything.
If you can reach the shutoff safely from outside, at the meter or at the tank, turn it off. If you cannot reach it safely, leave it.
From outside, call your gas utility’s emergency line or your propane supplier. If the smell is strong, call 911.
Then call us at (352) 377-9447 and we will get you scheduled for the repair.

Signs worth taking seriously even when the smell is faint: a rotten egg or sulfur odor near an appliance, a hissing sound at a connection, a gas bill that jumped with no change in use, dead grass in a line along a buried run, or a pilot that keeps going out. Any of those is worth a look.

See our 24/7 emergency plumbing

What goes wrong when gas piping is done cheap?

The obvious risk is a leak, and that is reason enough. But the quiet costs are the ones that catch people.

Unpermitted gas work does not disappear. It shows up at resale, when a buyer’s inspector finds piping that never had a permit and the closing stalls while somebody scrambles to get it inspected after the fact. It shows up on a claim, when an insurance adjuster asks for the permit on the work and there is not one.

Undersized piping is the other common one. The line technically works, so nobody catches it, and then every appliance on it underperforms. Your tankless heater cannot hold temperature. Your range flame drops when the dryer kicks on. That is not a bad appliance. That is a gas supply problem, and the fix is repiping the run you already paid somebody to do.

Then there is the incomplete work. A missing shutoff. No sediment trap where one is required. A flexible connector run through a wall where it is not allowed. Small items, and every one of them is a failed inspection.

The Difference Is in the Details

What matters	First Choice Plumbing	Typical handyman or big-name call center
License for fuel gas work	Florida Certified Plumbing Contractor CFC1430748, printed on every page of this site	Often no license number published anywhere
Price to come out	$69, published, waived on larger jobs	No price published, quoted on the phone or at the door
Permit and inspection	We pull it, we pressure test, we meet the inspector	Sometimes skipped entirely, or handed to the homeowner
Pipe sizing	Calculated for every appliance on the run, current and planned	Matched to whatever pipe is on the truck
Drywall and holes	Every hole we cut gets professionally patched	Holes left open, patching is "not included"
Who shows up	A small local crew, and the owner still runs estimates	Whichever subcontractor the call center dispatched
Warranty	Two year parts and labor, plus the manufacturer warranty on equipment	Ninety days, or nothing in writing
Scope honesty	We tell you when you do not need us	Every call becomes a job

Talk to a licensed plumber, not a dispatcher reading a script. See our license and insurance

How does the job actually go?

Call or book, and tell us what you are connecting.

The appliance and roughly where it sits is usually enough for us to tell you what the job looks like. If you can text a photo of your meter or tank, that helps.

We come out, size it, and give you the number.

$69 to come out, waived on larger jobs. You get the price before any work starts, and financing is available on jobs over about $500. Financing

We pull the permit, run the line, test it, and get it inspected.

Pressure test, shutoffs and traps installed, every hole we cut professionally patched, and the inspector meets us, not you.

Who is actually doing the work?

First Choice Plumbing is Will Harrod’s shop, run out of Hawthorne. Will holds Florida Certified Plumbing Contractor license CFC1430748, he still runs the estimates himself, and he is usually the one you talk to about a gas job before anybody touches a pipe.

That is the whole pitch. There is no call center, no rotating list of subcontractors, and nobody collecting a fee behind a curtain. When a licensed contractor’s own name and license number are on the work, the work tends to be done a certain way.

Homeowners adding gas

A range, a grill, a tankless heater or a standby generator, sized, permitted and pressure tested.

Rural propane owners

The piping downstream of your regulator is our work, coordinated with your propane supplier.

Light commercial kitchens

Restaurant kitchens, older buildings and light commercial gas piping.

Smell gas right now?

Get everyone outside first. Then follow the steps above and call us for the repair.

Where do you run gas lines?

We are based in Hawthorne and we work across north central Florida. Gainesville and the rest of Alachua County, plus Hawthorne, Melrose, Micanopy, Waldo, Windsor, Newberry, Archer, Jonesville, High Springs, Alachua, Keystone Heights, Interlachen, Starke and Williston.

In town that usually means natural gas work. Out east and south of Gainesville it is almost always propane, and that is exactly the territory most gas contractors in this market do not bother with. We live out there. See the full service area

What does a finished gas job look like?

The line is sized for everything on it, so the range holds its flame when the water heater fires. There is a shutoff valve you can actually reach without moving the appliance. The permit is closed and the inspection passed, so it never becomes somebody else’s problem at closing. The drywall we opened is patched by a professional. The pressure test held, and you watched it hold.

And you have the phone number of a licensed contractor who will pick up next time, whether it is gas, a water heater or a leak somewhere you cannot find.

Leaks don’t stand a chance.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is legally allowed to install a gas line in Florida?

Fuel gas piping falls under a licensed plumbing contractor's scope in Florida, which covers natural gas and LP gas piping inside and around a building, from the point of delivery to the appliance connection. First Choice Plumbing works under Florida Certified Plumbing Contractor license CFC1430748. Ask any contractor for their license number before they touch gas piping.

How much does gas line installation cost in Gainesville?

It depends on the length of the run, the pipe size, whether we are working in an attic, a crawl space or a trench, and how many appliances the line has to feed. National cost guides put gas line work in a wide band per linear foot, which is why nobody can quote you honestly over the phone. We charge $69 to come out, waived on larger jobs, and you get a firm price before any work starts.

Do I need a permit to run a gas line?

Yes. Florida requires a permit any time a gas system is installed, altered, repaired, removed, converted or replaced. Unincorporated Alachua County addresses permit through the County Growth Management Building Division, and City of Gainesville addresses permit through the City. We pull the permit and meet the inspector.

Can you run a gas line to my grill or outdoor kitchen?

Yes. A patio stub out is one of the most common gas jobs we do, and it means no more hauling propane bottles. We size the line for the grill plus anything else you are likely to add out there, like a side burner or a fire feature.

Do I need a bigger gas line for a tankless water heater?

Usually yes. A tankless unit fires at a much higher BTU input than the tank heater it replaces, and the existing line often cannot feed it. That gas line upgrade is a real part of a tankless conversion, and it is one of the reasons a tankless quote is higher than people expect.

Do you handle propane, or only natural gas?

Both. The piping downstream of your propane regulator is our work, permitted and pressure tested the same as natural gas. The tank, the regulator and the fill are your propane supplier's equipment and their license, and we coordinate with them so the sequence works.

Does gas piping have to be bonded?

Metallic gas piping is required to be bonded to the electrical grounding system, and corrugated stainless steel tubing carries an additional manufacturer bonding requirement beyond the electrical code minimum. It is a small item that inspectors check and that a lot of unpermitted work misses.

Do you fix gas leaks, or just install new lines?

Both. Finding hidden leaks is what this company is built on, and gas is no different. If you smell gas right now, get everyone outside, call your gas utility or propane supplier from outside, call 911 if the smell is strong, and then call us at (352) 377-9447 for the repair.

Gas work is one of the few things around a house worth doing exactly right the first time.

Licensed, permitted, pressure tested and priced up front, by a locally owned shop that lives out here. $69 to come out, waived on larger jobs. Book Online

First Choice Plumbing | 6940 SE 221st St, Hawthorne, FL 32640 | FL Certified Plumbing Contractor CFC1430748

Tell us what's going on and we'll take it from there

You get a real person, a $69 visit, a flat price before we start, and a company that patches what it cuts and answers the phone when you call back. If a smaller fix is the right call, we’ll tell you that too.

First Choice Plumbing is a locally owned, owner led plumbing company working Gainesville, Hawthorne and Greater Alachua County. Leak detection, repipes, water heaters, drains, trenchless lining, well water filtration and septic. We find it, we fix it, we guarantee it.

Florida Certified Plumbing Contractor CFC1430748

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