Ditching propane tanks
How to bring natural gas into your barbeque

It could be one of the manliest traditions we celebrate here in America - the ritual task of grilling meat on an open flame. While traditional (and sexist) thinking assumes that American women are in charge of food preparation, the backyard range has always been man territory.

The same is true of the grill itself. Your grill is an extension of your manliness - the larger, shinier and more complex your grill, the more clout you have with the local stags.

Arguments abound, however, about which grills are the manliest. Some maintain that charcoal is the only way to go. Others will swear by propane, complaining that charcoal takes too much effort and offends the taste buds. It's the quintessential argument, and yet it obscures the real problem that affects both charcoal and propane users: keeping up with fuel. Ever go to sear some burgers and find only two or three briquettes in the bottom of your charcoal bag? Ever fire up the propane grill only to empty the tank halfway through the cooking process?

Fuel needs can set back a potential griller every time - unless, that is, the griller in question knows what he's doing. In that case, he's going to be cooking with natural gas.

It makes sense. Most houses are already equipped with natural gas hook-ups, and attaching your grill to the mix is just a matter of running a line out to the patio. If you're the type of griller that cooks on a large range, then natural gas is the only smart way to go. Large grills can eat up propane tank after propane tank, and making a trip to the convenience store to get a refill every five minutes can be pretty expensive.

Making the conversion to natural gas may be as easy as a simple conversion kit, and it may not. Some manufacturers supply those kits for their grills upon request, but if a kit isn't available there's little you can do. The simplest way to go gas is to have gas in mind when you shop for your grill.

Getting a gas line to a convenient location is the next step. This is generally a simple process and should take a certified contractor no more than two hours. Ask for a quick-connect gas line, as well. It works the same way that an electrical outlet does. You simply plug in the grill when you're using it and unplug it when you're not. It also provides a safe way to unplug the juice if you have a grill fire, and most feature a controlled shutoff feature that will choke off the gas if the line accidentally gets cut or broken.