}
Power your winter with Butane
Whether you're staying at home or working; keep warm this winter, with Butane.
Summer is here, and it’s time to break out the BBQ and your favourite summer foods. A spot of alfresco cooking has never been more popular in the UK, in fact, in 2023, Brits hosted around 65 million BBQ parties*, with 75%* of households owning a barbecue grill.
Any BBQ chef worth their burgers knows that the best results come from complete control over the grill. That’s why gas-fuelled BBQ grills are such a popular choice, with instant heat which you can control at the turn of a dial. It lets you take advantage of any break in the clouds to get the BBQ going. There’s also less clean up, with no need to wait hours for the coals to cool and no smoky residue.
When it comes to outdoor cooking, people ask us if they need propane or butane for BBQing. Both will work, but we recommend propane when it comes to outdoor use.
Well, you asked, so here’s the science. Both propane and butane are gases, but propane turns into a gas at -42°C, whilst butane boils at -2°C. So, propane is much better for storage outside, even in the winter, and will perform better even in the most uncooperative of summers.
If you’re looking for a propane gas bottle for BBQing and not sure what colour gas bottle to get, you’ll need either the green or red bottles. The green are patio gas heater bottles whilst the red are standard propane bottles and cylinders.
The green patio version comes in 5kg and 13kg bottles. Red propane cylinders are larger, coming in a range of sizes between 3.9kg and 47kg.
You can find out how to choose which you need below (link to anchor text for next H2 tag).
Most barbecues come with a standard, 27mm clip on regulator ** which works with the green patio bottles. If you’ve not seen the before, the regulator is a safety feature which automatically cuts off the gas if it reaches a certain pressure. Bottle also feature our Gas Trac Indicator which will let you know when your gas is running low.
Our propane gas bottle for BBQing aren’t compatible with most standard barbecues. However, you can add a screw in high-pressure adjustable propane regulator to the cylinder to make them work.
As a guide, more BBQs with up to three burners will need our 5kg patio bottle, whilst a grill with four or more will benefit from the 13kg one. If you’re not sure, then check out our handy tool for some help: ‘Which gas bottle do I need?’
If you’re wondering about a BBQ gas bottle price, you can find out in our Calor shop.
As with any time you use gas, a safety-first approach is really important. Following some simple guidelines will ensure that your gas bottle is ready to get cooking when you are.
That’s right, your gas bottle has one. Why? Well, although they are made of low-carbon steel which needs a check-up every so often. Over time they can develop rust, get damaged, dented or develop some other issues. So, we take them in for a through test, every five years to ensure they’re safe.
You’ll find your cylinder’s test date stamped on one of the three side collars of the bottle itself. This is a letter and two numbers. The letter denotes the quarter the test is due A for first quarter, B for second and so on. The two numbers are the year when the test is due. So, a cylinder with a test date of D26 will need testing between October and December of 2026. Always check the test date of your cylinder before use, and replace if it’s within that date, just to be sure.
Unfortunately, it’s not always time for a barbecue, so you will need to store your gas bottle somewhere. Storing your gas bottle is simple, provided you follow some basic guidelines. You must store your gas bottle:
Storing the bottle outdoors is especially important as, should a leak occur or a value not be fully close, then gas could escape and build up. This could be very dangerous, so always store your gas bottle in an outdoor area.
Although rare, it is possible for a gas bottle or cylinder to develop a leak or how a value to not be fully closed. The easiest ways to tell if this has happened is a hissing sound and/or the smell of gas around the area of the bottle. If you hear or smell either of these, turn off the gas supply immediately, leave the area, then call the emergency services. It is essential that you allow professionals to deal with the leak and don’t attempt to resolve it yourself.
That’s the basics, but we recommend you take some time to have a read of our safety area for more information.
Like the summer, gas bottles don’t last forever. When your gas bottle is empty, you’ll need a new one.
Whilst your bottle will be refilled, we do this at one of our sites as it’s a technical process which needs some care. Exchanging your bottle is easy, order a new bottle from our shop (link) and let us know you have one to exchange. When we drop off your new one, we’ll take the old one, and get it refilled for someone else to use.
When it’s time for a new bottle, simply order the bottle you need from our shop or exchange it at one of our approved retailers, then get back to the barbecue!
The price of your new gas bottle will depend on:
If you’re not sure which size of bottle you need, then we can help here.
When you know which, you need, you can find more details of prices, and order one, in our shop right here.
If you want to know where to get a BBQ gas bottle or where to refill your BBQ gas bottle, you can find our approved retailers here.
Still wondering what gas you need for your BBQ?
Well, our propane BBQ gas bottles are quick to heat, easy to use, give you complete control, burn without smoke, are simple to take care of and fast to exchange. Fuelling your summer fun with our BBQ gas bottles will give you more time to perfect your grill skills and enjoy the sunshine.
If you’d like to know more, check out our shop for more information and pricing.
Now you've got the advice for BBQ success, why not give our tasty gas BBQ recipes a go and check out related content to help you on your way to more BBQ success.
Sources
*nationalbbqweek.co.uk/bbq-facts/top-20-bbq-facts/
**check ‘what’s included in the box’ when getting your BBQ to ensure the regulator is included, if it’s not check manufacturers instructions for which regulator you need.
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