How to refuse gas in an apartment and private house: legal aspects

Despite the obvious economic benefits, many owners of apartments in apartment buildings and private houses are planning to give up gas and completely switch to electrical equipment. The reasons for this are different: the features of redevelopment, the safety of residents, soot and dirt from the operation of gas equipment, the need for constant maintenance.

When starting the withdrawal procedure, it is important to comply with the legal provisions. Next, we will tell you how to refuse gas in an apartment or country house without violating legal requirements.

Rules for turning off gas in apartment buildings

As the owner of gas equipment - stove, boiler, water heater - you need to know the rules for installation, operation and maintenance of equipment. But not all the nuances are the responsibility of homeowners; some issues are resolved by the service organization - the city or regional gas service.

If you have a desire to abandon gas equipment, you need to know who to contact, what documents will be required for this, and how long the dismantling work will take. Let's look at the basic provisions and laws that will help you go through all the stages correctly, without consequences.

Who is responsible for gas supply?

If you already have a stove or gas water heater installed, then you are obliged to monitor the condition of the internal gas equipment, promptly signal its breakdowns and the need for repairs, timely conclude or renew service agreement.

It is better to entrust installation and dismantling work to representatives of Gorgaz - it is safer, faster, and more professional. In this case, the gas service becomes a responsible contractor and guarantees the correct operation of the equipment

An HOA, housing cooperative, management company or other organization providing utility services can act on behalf of the owner, but supplier companies still more often enter into service agreements directly with apartment owners.

Intragas equipment that requires attention includes:

• stoves, boilers, boilers, convectors – any technical models that use natural or bottled gas;
• metering devices;
• gas pipelines multi-apartment buildings, located inside or outside, connected to gas distribution stations or cylinder installations.

Owners of apartments or management companies (HOA, housing cooperative) are responsible for the common property located on the premises of a residential building. As for gas, here they are responsible for the pipes and connecting fittings of the in-house engineering system.

The consumer’s responsibilities for concluding a contract for the maintenance of gas indoor equipment are specified in Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated July 21, 2008 No. 549 ed. dated (07/21/2008), paragraph 21 on “Rules for the supply of gas to meet the household needs of citizens.”

The supplier is obliged, in accordance with paragraph 3 of the same Rules, to fulfill the terms of the contract by supplying apartment owners in apartment buildings with natural gas from a gas distribution station or liquefied gas from cylinder units

Many residents are wondering whether it is possible to refuse to use gas in an apartment if the entire house is connected to the mains. When resolving this issue, you will have to contact all authorities - from the management company to the supplier.

Documentary and legal basis

When collecting documents to begin the gas shutoff procedure, controversial issues may arise with the supplier. You will find all the answers in the “Rules for the supply of gas to meet the public utility needs of citizens,” the link to which we provided a little higher.

If the problems relate to payment of services or debts, maintenance of common property - an intra-house gas pipeline, the main provisions are set out in Housing Code.

Any materials on gas supply, including transportation issues, price regulation policies, and supplier guarantees can be found in Federal Law “On Gas Supply in the Russian Federation” No. 69-F3 dated 03/31/1999.

Today on the agenda is the issue of banning the use of gas in apartment buildings. The initiative has been put forward and is being considered by experts, but no consensus has yet been reached.

The reason for the proposal for a ban was frequent accidents in apartment buildings associated with gas equipment and often ending in explosions and deaths.

It is proposed to install electrically powered appliances instead of gas-powered appliances. They want to make the replacement in all regions, except for places where, for climatic or other reasons, it is impossible to use any other type of fuel.

When else can the gas be turned off?

The supply of gas to an apartment can be stopped either at the request of the owner or through his fault. Let's consider both options.

If the owner of the apartment himself wanted terminate the gas supply agreement, and at the same time, work in all instances is well organized, the procedure does not take much time.

It is performed in two stages:

1. Collection of documents.
2. Dismantling works.

The Gas Supply Rules, paragraph 51, set out the conditions under which the home owner, who is also one of the parties to the gas supply agreement, can terminate the agreement.

So, to terminate the contract you will need:

• Full payment for services for the supply of fuel, confirmed by a receipt or check for the last month.
• Receipt for payment for services for disconnecting indoor gas equipment from the general gas network. The work must be performed by the company with which the contract is concluded.
• An act of dismantling work indicating the address, date and signatures of both parties.

It is not always necessary to shut down permanently; sometimes you just need to stop the fuel supply for a while. This happens if the owner of the apartment leaves home for a long time - for example, to work on a rotational basis or on a business trip abroad.

Major renovation of an apartment with complete redevelopment, installation of heated floors, replacement of electrical wiring, moving walls in some cases also requires turning off the gas main for safety reasons

There is also such a thing as mothballing an apartment - when the owner moves to another city and has not yet decided what to do with his previous housing.

Unfortunately, fuel is turned off not only at will. Sometimes consumers, knowingly or not, violate the rules for operating the equipment, and therefore the supply company suspends the gas supply by shutting off the pipeline before entering the apartment.

Here are just a few reasons for the suspension of gas supply due to the fault of the consumer:

• Non-payment - turning off gas is legal if there is no transfer of money for 2 months in a row.
• Preventing representatives of the service organization from performing scheduled inspections of equipment or metering devices.
• Violation of the rules for operating equipment - for example, illegal installation of propane cylinders in an apartment.
• The use of equipment that does not comply with the technical characteristics or standards set out in the legal documentation.

If there is no or incorrectly drawn up contract, the supplier can also shut off the gas. The consumer is notified about the suspension of gas supply 40 days before, and then again 20 days before the shutdown. The highway can be closed without warning only if an emergency occurs.

Sometimes, during an inspection or by chance, a gas leak is discovered at the entrance, in the local area or in the apartment. In this case, they can also cut off the fuel supply to the MKD

If the safety of the residents of the house is at risk due to faulty equipment, the gas is turned off immediately, without warning, and after the breakdown is eliminated, the entire house is reconnected to the mains.

Shutdown procedure

Let's assume that you have finally decided to get rid of gas appliances and replace them with electrical equipment, how to refuse connected gas in an apartment building? First you need to find out which organizations you will have to visit and what documents you need to provide.

Details can be obtained from the management company or another organization responsible for paying utility bills. Usually there is a certain procedure established by law

It is better to start from the territorial site of the Gazprom LLC company. To terminate the contract, you must submit a written statement established sample. The collected documents are attached to the application - receipts for payment for gas and disconnection servicesYou may also need copies.

Be sure to have it with you passport for personal identification. They may also require ownership documents.

A problem may arise if not all apartment owners agree with the decision of one of the residents. To obtain permission from the Criminal Code, you will have to persuade everyone who is in shared or common ownership.

The duration of the shutdown procedure depends on how quickly you collect and pay receipts, as well as on the efficiency of Gorgaz employees.

After submitting an application, they act in the following order:

• schedule a time to visit the apartment that is convenient for everyone;
• come and make a sketch on the spot;
• conclude a contract for dismantling work;
• issue an invoice for services.

After you provide the receipt, the craftsmen come, dismantle the equipment, cut off the gas pipe, and weld the hole.

The approval process is quick, but the team’s departure may be delayed - it all depends on how busy the specialists are.

You can turn off and remove the gas stove yourself, but you cannot carry out work on dismantling the gas pipeline yourself, much less carry out welding work

If you plan to use electrical equipment, we recommend dismantling and installing new equipment in parallel in order to maintain conditions for full-fledged living in the apartment.

Remember that according to Housing Code of the Russian Federation (Article 26) And Resolution of the City Construction Committee of the Russian Federation No. 170 dated September 27, 2003 Installation of household electrical equipment instead of gas equipment is considered a refurbishment of a residential premises - an apartment or house, which means that the replacement must be approved by the local government.

Instructions for owners of private houses

There are many reasons for turning off gas in private houses, mostly located in villages, country and cottage communities. The most common are the reconstruction of a house or its transfer from a place of permanent residence to a dacha, which residents visit seasonally.

Let's look at how to legally refuse gas in a private home. When refusing, you should still be guided by the same Gas supply rules, clause 51. It is necessary to prove that there are no payment debts and disconnect the in-house equipment at your own expense.

You need to start the same way - by writing an application to the gas distribution organization that supplies fuel and maintains networks. Only specialists have the right to insert or dismantle equipment.

Remember that all work on connecting/disconnecting fuel is carried out at the expense of the home owner. If you want to perform such procedures often, you will have to fork out some money. Prices vary across the country, so it is better to contact the regional Gazprom office to clarify the cost of events.

The cutting location is most often chosen after the meter. Cut the pipe, weld a hole or install a plug - if you plan to connect again in the future

When connecting a house to a gas main, all work was also carried out at the expense of the owner, so any equipment - an overhead or underground branch of the gas pipeline, pipe outlet outside, wiring - will be left in place.

Procedure for resuming gas supply

If, for some personal reason, the owners of an apartment or house want to reconnect their home gas equipment, they must re-write an application to the gas distribution department at the place of registration of housing.

A common example: former owners move away, mothball the house, then sell it, and the new owners want to reconnect to natural gas. They need to submit an application, after which the service organization will prepare invoices for payment.

After payment, representatives of the gas service will go to the site, check the connection conditions, the serviceability of the equipment, and then make a new connection

If the gas capacity of the new owners increases, they will have to change the meter. Usually, after payment of all bills, connection is made within 5 days - according to Resolution 549, paragraph 48.

Conclusions and useful video on the topic

Why is it important to trust the installation of gas appliances only to gas service workers:

It is not difficult to agree on measures to turn off the gas if you followed the operating rules, made payments on time, and concluded an agreement in accordance with all the rules. But before making your final decision, still think about whether you will need gas in the future - now it is the cheapest of all existing types of fuel in Russia.

If you no longer need to use gas from time to time, simply install a meter and pay according to the volume actually used.

If you have questions about the topic of the article or can add interesting information to our material, please leave your comments.