Propane Conversions: A Must when Appliances Normally Come Ready for Natural Gas!

Almost all major appliances are sold equipped for natural gas. If you need them to be used with propane gas you will either need to special order them, or have them converted over to propane gas. Propane sometimes known as LP gas (Though the term is not technically correct as LP refers to all liquefied gases, and not just propane), is in reality quite different from natural gas. Propane is refined from natural gas, but the two are NOT interchangeable in your appliances:

Propane is heavier than natural gas and sinks to the floor instead of rising.
Propane is easier to liquefy and transport.
Propane is twice as efficient as natural gas, but several times more expensive as well.
Propane is considered environmentally safe if it escapes into the atmosphere, natural gas is not.
Both are considered a green fuel.

Propane burns more efficiently than natural gas and therefore requires different internal plumbing of a smaller size than natural gas. Piping propane into an appliance that is set up for natural gas will not work, or at least not like you expect it to, and the resulting fire and damages are NOT worth the mistake:

All of the burner orifices have to be changed out as they are smaller.
The pilot lights (if equipped) have to have new parts and be re-adjusted.
The gas regulator (valve) also needs new parts.
The burners may need the air volume adjusted as well.
The line pressure is different as well with propane requiring a higher pressure to work correctly, and there may be other changes depending on the individual equipment involved.

Not many of these changes are something the average homeowner can or should tackle and should instead be referred to a qualified service professional.

All of these changes have to be done correctly and checked for leaks by someone that knows how to deal with both propane and natural gas. The safety of your home and family depends on it.

Installing propane into a natural gas equipped appliance is a recipe for disaster, and installing natural gas into a propane equipped appliance will get you an appliance that may not work at all as it will get far to little fuel where and when it is needed.

Converting your house from natural gas to propane would be a losing proposition unless you actually had to, if you have considered it. The cost of the gas alone is several times higher than natural gas and you have to store it in a propane tank that has to be inspected at given intervals for safety. It also has to be delivered by truck and if you let it run out, not only is there the inconvenience of doing without until the supplier can get to you, but you get the pleasure of relighting all those pilots....

References: www.propane101.com/propanevsnaturalgas.htm
15 years of personal experience working with natural and propane gases.