How to Convert a Blackstone Griddle to Natural Gas

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While swapping tanks was always annoying, the big thing that pushed me to convert my Blackstone Griddle to natural gas was purchasing the 36″ Blackstone. I was tired of moving my 28″ Blackstone back and forth from the back deck to the camper for trips.

This all ended when I pulled the trigger on the 36″ griddle. I am now able to leave the 28″ in the camper and no longer need to refill tanks for my Blackstone on the back deck. This is probably the most convenient thing and I should of done it several years ago. Plus, there is the extra bonus that natural gas is actually cheaper than propane!

While you can buy the conversion kit directly from Blackstone, after some searching, I was actually able to get it quite a bit cheaper at Walmart. With that being said, they are definitely hard to find in the spring as it seems as if people snatch them up pretty quickly. The conversion kit is definitely worth looking into and will eventually pay for itself assuming you do a lot of cooking like me.

Tools Needed to Convert a Blackstone Griddle to Natural Gas

Blackstone’s Natural Gas Conversion Kit which consists of the following items

• 10′ 3/8″ Natural Gas Hose
• 3/8″ Quick Connect Fitting
• 16 Natural Gas Orifices
  • M6x1.0 mm for Main Burners – 2.0mm (6 pcs)
  • M6x.75mm for Main Burners – 2.0mm (6pcs)
  • M6x1.0mm for Side Burners – 1.39mm (2pcs)
  • M6x.75mm for Side Burners – 1.39mm (2pcs)
• Two Thread Check Gauges
• 7mm Orifice Wrench (7mm socket will also work)

Additionally you’ll need a screw driver, gas tape and while it may be over kill I also recommend using thread seal on the orifices themselves.

Most homes have a 1/2″ gas line and not a 3/8″ quick connect fitting for the 1/2″ gas line. To ensure you have all the tools needed to start the job and it is cheap enough. I recommend stopping by a box store and pick up a 1/2″ to 3/8″ reducer. This will hopefully prevent any extra trips to the store mid installation.

Also, as a note, the Blackstone’s natural gas conversion kit is designed to be used with natural gas at 7 inches of water column. You’ll want to verify your gas pressure with the gas company and regulator manufacturer prior to proceeding. If you aren’t comfortable with this install, I recommend hiring a professional.

How to Convert a Blackstone Griddle to Natural Gas

Before I even get started on this walk through I want to mention one mistake that you want to avoid! Do not over tighten the orifices when reinstalling the new! I did this on accident and had one snap on me in which it was a royal pain to get the break threads back out, but luckily I was able to without having to purchase more parts to fix my mistake.

Also, prior to proceeding, ensure your propane tank is off and disconnected from the Blackstone.

Start out by disconnecting the igniter wires from the starter button. These simply just pull off. The farthest burner away will have the longest wire and as you get closer to the starter the burners wire will be shorter (this is a good note for when you go to put it back together).

To convert a Blackstone to Natural Gas, start out by removing the burners. Each burner will have a screw holding the back in place to the Blackstone’s base/stand. Remove these screws and set aside in a safe place.

With the rear screw removed and the igniters disconnected from the starter switch, you should now be able to easily remove the burners and set them aside in a safe place.

Using the Blackstone’s Natural Gas Conversion Kits 7mm orifice wrench, unscrew and remove all the existing orifices. I was able to get some of them by hand and others I needed some vice grips to get some leverage on the orifice wrench.

Take an existing orifice and check the gauges of the orifice with the provided thread check gauges. This will tell you which orifices are needed for your thread type. Once this has been figured out you can apply some thread sealer to the new orifice.

Then screw the new orifices in. Just hand tighten it, but DO NOT OVER TIGHTEN THE ORIFICE or it will break leaving you with stuck threads!

Now that the new orifices are installed, it is time to put the Blackstone back together. Start out by fishing the burner wires back down to the starter and installing them. Once the igniter wires are back connected to the starter, you can put the rear screw back into the burners re-securing them to the Blackstone.

On to the last couple steps, attached the 3/8″ Blackstone provided hose to the Blackstone. It is probably over kill, but I do recommend using gas tape for this to assist with creating a good seal. Also attached the quick connect to the Natural Gas’s supply line.

Finally, turn the natural gas on and let everything pressurize. While this is the last step, I also highly recommend checking for leaks! To do this, I find that the best practice is to mix water and dish soap together.

Go around each new connection and apply the water and dish soap all around the connection/threads. Should there be a leak, the dish soap and water combination should bubble. This will need to be fixed prior to using the Blackstone again.

As a good practice habit, I recommend not only just turning the burners off on the Blackstone but also the the main valve that is supplying it. Natural gas isn’t a propane tank that will hopefully just run empty without causing any harm, it will just keep coming and it is obviously highly flammable.

More Notes about Blackstone’s Natural Gas Conversion Kit

Per Blackstone’s website, The Blackstone natural gas conversion kit is not optimized or recommended for the AirFryer Griddle Combo and it is also not compatible with the Culinary series. The kit is however compatible with the 28″ Griddles, 36″ Griddles, Tailgater, Rangetop Combo and Single Burner Rec Stove.

Other Things to Consider Prior to Switching from Propane to Natural Gas

Keep in mind that propane is actually natural gas in which the propane is extracted from the natural gas. In doing this, it is made to be more portable. If your house has natural gas you are lucky as many people are still running there homes on large propane tanks and or electric appliances.

The extra bonus outside of not having to switch propane tanks constantly is that natural gas is actually cheaper than propane. So not only are you saving your self the headache of making propane tank exchanges but you are also saving money along the way.

Another reason to switch from propane to natural gas is that natural gas is actually more reliable and readily available. You may or may not have caught in the news the last couple years, but in northern states, in the middle of winter they were actually facing shortages of propane. In having natural gas, you are bypassing all these worries and all the price gouging that goes along with it.

To further expand on the want for natural gas over propane one should also know that natural gas is also safer than propane.

So for me, the decision converting from propane to natural gas was easy. I already had it piped outside to a generator, its safer, less headaches swapping tanks and ultimately it is cheaper. Now get back to that Blackstone Griddle and cook something awesome!

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