# Will barbecue burners work equally well with propane or natural gas?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-barbecue-burners-work-equally-well-with-propane-or-natural-gas/398494
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [April 2, 2007, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-barbecue-burners-work-equally-well-with-propane-or-natural-gas/398494 "2007-04-02T23:41:17Z")
**Posts on this page:** 2
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@panamajack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panamajack)
#### Post date: [April 2, 2007, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-barbecue-burners-work-equally-well-with-propane-or-natural-gas/398494/1 "2007-04-02T23:41:17Z")
My father and I are building a brick barbecue grill in his backyard. It will be primarily used with charcoal, but we also want to put in a removable gas burner to be used when the full grill isn’t needed. Just to clarify, this isn’t a ‘pre-made’ grill that we’re dropping in, but a large above-ground pit (only part of which will have the gas under it).
There doesn’t seem to be any ready-made solutions, but the easiest way for us seems to be to order replacement parts and build it from that. While some parts seem to available for use with natural gas, the burners don’t seem to be specifically marked for use with one or the other.
So the question is, will the natural gas burn as well out of any burner as with propane? Or should we actually be looking for a specific burner designed for natural gas?
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### Author:  [@Kevbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kevbo)
#### Post date: [April 2, 2007, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-barbecue-burners-work-equally-well-with-propane-or-natural-gas/398494/2 "2007-04-02T23:51:28Z")
Typically different jets are needed. Due to the large density difference between the two gasses, a burner set up for propane will run very lean (too much air) on NG.
I’ve never seen the NG jets in stores, you have to order them direct from the grill manufacturer.
That said, if the venturies have adjustable shutters, you may be able to make it work OK by restricting the air intakes.