David Lamoreaux was arraigned Thursday on charges of arson, risking a catastrophe and other offenses.
The Aug. 1 explosion leveled Lamoreaux's house in Exeter and damaged more than a dozen nearby homes and a school.
Court papers say Lamoreaux told his daughter that morning that he was going to kill himself.
Lamoreaux has been hospitalized since the explosion. He declined comment to WNEP-TV as he left district court in Pittston on Thursday.
He is being held in the Luzerne County Correctional Facility. A preliminary hearing is set for Feb. 3.
