Smell gas right now?
Don't switch lights or appliances on or off, and don't light anything. Open doors if it's safe, get everyone outside, and call for help from there. Our gas leaks page explains what to do next.
Gas work in South Australia: the local rules
Plumber and gas fitter are separate registrations
SA workers can register for plumbing, gas fitting and electrical work in any combination, from one field to all three. Ask whether the person coming is registered for gas fitting, not just plumbing.
Bottles count as well as mains
Consumer and Business Services licenses contractors for work on gas pipes or equipment downstream of gas meters and gas storage tanks or cylinders. An LPG setup needs a licensed gas fitter just as natural gas does.
A certificate within 30 days
Gas fitting needs its own electronic certificate of compliance, due within 30 days. It covers gas pipe work, installing or replacing appliances such as hot water units and cooktops, and converting from LPG to natural gas.
One technical regulator
The Office of the Technical Regulator administers SA's Gas Act 1997, the Gas Regulations 2012 and the gas installation standard, AS/NZS 5601.
Common gas jobs in Adelaide homes
Gas fitters install and replace cooktops, fit bayonet points for heaters, connect and service gas hot water, carry out LPG conversions, handle disconnections when an appliance comes out, and do gas safety checks.
Gas hot water has an extra SA rule. A new water heater in an established house, gas included, must comply with the standard made under section 66 of the Water Industry Act 2012. If you're replacing a gas unit, see our Adelaide hot water replacement page.
Booking gas work, start to finish
Describe the job and the gas type
Mains natural gas or LPG bottles, which appliance, and where it is.
Check the licence
Ask for the contractor's licence number and confirm with Consumer and Business Services that it covers gas fitting.
Agree the scope in writing
Appliance model, pipe work, any disconnection, and whether a plumbing certificate is needed as well as a gas one.
Get your gas eCOC
It's due within 30 days of the work being completed. Keep it with the appliance manual.
Questions to ask an Adelaide gas fitter
- Are you, and anyone you send, registered for gas fitting in SA?
- Does your contractor licence cover gas work?
- Is this appliance suited to natural gas, LPG, or both?
- Will you test the installation, and when will I receive the gas eCOC?
- If plumbing work is involved too, will that have its own certificate?
What we would do
Treat gas as licensed work from the first phone call. Confirm the person holds a gas fitting registration, as well as any plumbing one, and that the business's licence covers gas. Agree the scope in writing, and don't consider the job finished until the gas eCOC arrives. If anything smells wrong afterwards, leave the house and call for help from outside before ringing the fitter.