I just bought some land in Ohio that has 2 wells on it. It's written in the contract that I have free gas to 1 residence for life. I (think) one well does not have gas, while the other does...at least my interpretation of the map symbols. If so, I have to transport it approx 1000', under a creek, and up a fairly steep hillside.....guess the backhoe will finally start earning its keep.
I'm wondering.....does the line definitely have to be buried under the frost line? Is it plastic or steel pipe? Should I power the house and shop directly with the gas, or power a gas generator?
Should I start a new thread or continue on this one?
thanks for any advise...
PS. My brother in law (6miles from my land) has the free gas as well.....and it works great. He's even thinking about getting one of these new nat gas cars...
While I am a little new to this, I also have free gas and I will try to answer a few of your questions.
My lines are not buried very deeply at all, definitely not below the frost line. It is black plastic pipe. You should talk to a plumber to make sure you are using the correct materials. If you can develop a relationship with the people that tend the well it will help you a great deal as well. They will probably be the ones to tie your line into the well.
Get a copy of the original lease that was signed to see what you are responsible for and how much gas you are allowed to use. I was able to access county records via the internet and print out the original copy of the lease. There is usually a limit, mine is 200,000 cubic feet per year. While this is more than you will probably use in a year to keep your home heated and to run other natural gas appliances (i.e. hot water heater, clothes dryer, oven and stove, gas logs etc.), it is probably not enough to completely power your home with the use of a natural gas powered generator. Ditto on the natural gas car idea. I looked into it briefly and decided it would use too much gas and the makers of the natural gas compressors specifically call out that well head gas is not to be used (too many other elements in it, alot of moisture as well). My contract does stipulates that I will pay "well head rates" if I use over the allotted 200,000 cubic feet. I have no idea what this rate is , but I assume it is cheaper than from the gas company.
I am sure you realize that you must be very careful with this gas. It will be your responsibility from the well head to the appliances. I recommend that you hire a plumber that is state certified to work on natural gas plumbing in your area. If your brother already has it I am sure he can point you in the right direction.
Also,while your contract may stipulate that you get free gas for life. I think this is for the life of the well. Everything I have been told leads me to believe that this is 20 to 30 years. If the oil runs out the people that own the well won't have a whole lot of motivation to continue to service the well. There may still be gas, but no oil means they may decide to cap it off. From what I have heard you can purchase the well at that point to continue your gas service, but I am not sure about this.
Sorry for the long winded response, but last year I was also looking for info and found it difficult to obtain. There are quite a few people on this site that are knowledgeable about natural gas and wells, but not many that actually get well head gas to their homes. Hope I was of some help to you.
Mark
. something to think about when deciding where to build.