Natural Gas or Propane? Choosing the Right Fuel for Commercial Cooking Equipment

Almost every piece of gas equipment on this site ships in two versions — one configured for natural gas, one for liquid propane. It is the only choice on the page you cannot undo with a setting, and it is the one buyers ask about least. This guide covers what actually differs between the two fuels, whether you can convert later, and how to compare the running cost honestly.

Which one can you actually get?

Start here, because it settles most cases without any analysis. If there is a natural gas main at your building and a meter with capacity to spare, natural gas is normally the answer. If there is no main — rural sites, food trucks, concession trailers, outdoor events, or a leased space where the landlord will not run a new service — propane is the answer.

The second question is capacity. An existing gas service sized for a previous tenant's equipment may not carry a new fryer battery plus a range. Add up the BTU/hr of everything that will run at once and have your gas fitter confirm the meter and pipe sizing before you order. This is a cheaper conversation before delivery than after.

The real difference: energy density

Propane carries far more energy in the same volume than natural gas does. That single fact drives nearly everything else.

The natural gas and propane-per-gallon figures are the US Energy Information Administration's current conversion factors. EIA's own monthly data shows delivered natural gas heat content moving between roughly 1,032 and 1,039 BTU per cubic foot through 2026, so treat 1,036 as a working average rather than a constant.

Pressure, orifices and why the parts differ

What pressure does commercial equipment actually run at?

You will see "3.5 inches water column for natural gas, 10 inches for propane" repeated everywhere. Treat it as a rough orientation, not a specification — real commercial manuals do not agree with it.

TechTown, Parts Town's technical arm, puts it plainly: "There is NO 'one number fits all' answer to the question of the right gas pressure." The number that governs your installation is on the data plate of your specific unit. Pitco adds a hard ceiling worth knowing: "Do NOT exceed 13.5" W.C. pressure as damage may occur to the gas valve."

Why are propane orifices smaller?

Two reasons compound. First, propane carries about 2.4 times the energy per cubic foot, so the burner needs less than half the volume for the same heat output. Second, propane is delivered to the burner at higher manifold pressure, which pushes more gas through any given opening. Both push the hole smaller.

Run an appliance configured for natural gas on propane and you deliver roughly two and a half times the intended energy through an orifice sized for the wrong fuel. That is not a performance problem. That is a fire.

Why does propane need a regulator?

Because tank pressure is neither low nor stable. Pressure inside an LP tank swings with temperature — from under 10 psig to over 200 psig — while the burner needs a steady supply at around 11 inches of water column. The regulator's job is to absorb that variation and hand the appliance a constant, low pressure. It is also the safety barrier between tank pressure and the equipment.

Natural gas arrives from the utility already at low pressure, so it needs far less regulation. Propane installations typically regulate twice: once at the tank, and again closer to the appliance.

Can you convert natural gas to propane later?

Yes — and it is a designed-in process, not a workaround. This is worth stating clearly because there is a lot of bad information about it.

CSA/ANSI Z83.11 / CSA 1.8, the standard that commercial gas cooking appliances in the US are listed to, explicitly covers appliances "convertible for use with either propane gas or liquefied petroleum gases," and sets out special construction provisions for convertible appliances. It also addresses listed gas appliance conversion kits. Conversion is contemplated by the standard itself.

What is in a conversion kit?

• LP orifices for every burner
• The LP regulator spring, or a replacement regulator
• The LP rating plate

That last item is not a formality. The data plate is what declares the fuel the appliance is configured for, and updating it is the compliance step. Kits are model-specific — manufacturers publish different part numbers for natural-to-propane and propane-to-natural, and for different vat or burner configurations.

Who is allowed to do it?

A qualified agency, using the manufacturer's kit. Frymaster's wording: "Conversion of this appliance from one type of gas to another should only be performed by qualified, licensed, and authorized installation or service personnel." And the warning that goes with it: "Switching to a different type of gas without installing the proper conversion components may result in fire or explosion. NEVER ATTACH THIS APPLIANCE TO A GAS SUPPLY FOR WHICH IT IS NOT CONFIGURED!"

Pitco's is shorter: "NEVER supply the fryer with a gas that is not indicated on the data plate."

Should you just order the right fuel instead?

If you know which fuel the site has, yes. A factory-configured unit costs nothing extra, arrives ready, and avoids a service call. Our gas fryers ship as separate NG and LP models for exactly this reason, and our convection ovens are convertible between the two. Conversion is the answer when you are moving equipment to a new site, not when you are buying new.

Which is cheaper to run?

Directionally, piped natural gas is normally cheaper per BTU than delivered propane. But the honest answer is that you have to run the numbers on your own rates, because both move constantly. Here is the method.

The arithmetic

1. Natural gas. Your bill is in dollars per thousand cubic feet (Mcf). At about 1,036 BTU per cubic foot, 1,000 cubic feet is roughly 1.036 million BTU. Divide your rate by 1.036 to get dollars per million BTU.
2. Propane. Your delivered price is in dollars per gallon. At 91,452 BTU per gallon, one million BTU takes about 10.93 gallons. Multiply your price per gallon by 10.93.
3. Compare the two per-million-BTU figures. That is the only apples-to-apples comparison.

A worked example using published data: the EIA put the US average price of natural gas sold to commercial consumers at $12.71 per Mcf in June 2026, which works out to roughly $12.27 per million BTU. For propane to match that, delivered propane would need to cost about $1.12 per gallon — which it essentially never does commercially.

Note how much the natural gas figure itself moves: EIA's monthly commercial price went from $11.26 in January 2026 to $12.71 in June, a 13% swing inside six months. Anyone quoting you a fixed "propane costs X% more" figure is quoting a snapshot. Use your own numbers.

The cost comparison also is not the whole decision. Propane buys you independence from a utility connection, which is the entire business case for a food truck or a remote site. Natural gas buys you never having to schedule a delivery or run out mid-service.

Who regulates what

Two codes, and the boundary between them is genuinely useful to understand.

• NFPA 58, Liquefied Petroleum Gas Code — governs the storage, handling, transportation and use of LP-Gas. In practice: the tank, where it sits, how it is filled, and everything up to the point of delivery.
• NFPA 54 / ANSI Z223.1, National Fuel Gas Code — governs fuel gas piping systems, equipment and appliances downstream of that point. It covers natural gas, manufactured gas and LP-Gas in the vapor phase only.

So a restaurant on propane is subject to both codes, with the split falling at the point of delivery from the tank. A restaurant on natural gas is essentially dealing with NFPA 54 alone, downstream of the meter. The appliances themselves are separately listed to CSA/ANSI Z83.11.

The short version

• Availability usually decides it. No main, no natural gas
• Propane holds about 2.4× the energy per cubic foot, which is why its orifices are smaller and its pressure higher
• Never connect an appliance to a fuel its data plate does not name
• Conversion is legitimate and standardised — manufacturer kit, qualified technician, updated rating plate
• Order the right configuration new rather than converting, if you know the site
• Compare fuels per million BTU using your own rates, not someone else's percentage