Gas Line Services in Riverdale, MD

Signs your gas lines need a plumber

• A rotten-egg odor anywhere in the house: leave, then call from outdoors
• A hiss near the meter, a valve or behind the dryer
• Burner flames that flicker yellow or don't light evenly
• A water heater or furnace that won't stay lit
• Soot on a wall or ceiling near a vent
• An old pipe stub left where an appliance used to stand

Gas service, permits and housing in Riverdale

Riverdale is a postal name. The 20737 mailing area covers the Town of Riverdale Park, which was the Town of Riverdale until 1998, plus unincorporated county neighborhoods such as Riverdale Heights. The town lists Washington Gas under its emergency utility contacts. For homes outside the town, the utility on the gas bill is the one to call, since BGE also serves parts of the county.

Gas permits don't depend on which side of the town line you're on. WSSC Water issues and inspects plumbing and gasfitting work, and most of it, including gas water heater and furnace replacement, must be done by a plumber or gasfitter holding a WSSC license. Building permits are a county matter through DPIE; if you're inside Riverdale Park, ask the town whether a larger remodel needs any town approval as well.

The median home in Riverdale Park was built in 1957, part of an older streetcar-suburb stretch just south of College Park. Gas piping in these houses has usually been extended for newer appliances, so the plumber checks capacity before tying in anything new and looks for valves and connectors past their prime.

What changes the cost

• Fitting repair versus new branch versus rerunning a section of main
• Route through basements, plaster walls or finished ceilings
• Upsizing a line that now feeds more appliances than it was built for
• WSSC permit and inspection
• Replacing old valves and connectors while the system is shut down

When you call

An independent plumber who works in Riverdale will ask about the appliance, the meter location and anything you've noticed, such as an odor or weak flames. After the work, new piping is pressure-tested, inspected and put back in service, with pilots relit and flames checked.