What is a natural gas orifice?

Orifices are responsible for the amount of gas that flows into the burners. Orifices are brass fittings that screw into (spud) or onto (hood) valves. These orifices will have various hole sizes as they determine the gas type either Propane or Natural Gas.

Do you need an orifice for natural gas?

Propane and Natural Gas Are Supplied at Different Pressures

Cooktop burners typically supply about 40,000 BTUs per hour. A propane stove orifice size is about 0.082 inches (drill size 45), but the valve on a similar stove that uses natural gas needs an orifice that is almost 0.125 inches (drill size 35).

What is the orifice size for natural gas?

Natural gas pilot orifice sizes typically vary from approximately 0.014 to 0.026 (inches diameter). Examples include 0.026′′ for a commercial cook- ing appliance pilot (1,835 Btu/hr at 4′′ pressure), and 0.018′′ for a natural gas water heater pilot (879 Btu/hr at 4′′ pressure).

What is the orifice on a gas stove?

For most gas cooktops a threaded brass orifice or "spud" is used to meter gas at the proper flow rate at each burner. Gas flow rate, a combination of supply pressure and orifice diameter, determines the quantity of gas available at the individual burner and thus sets its BTU output rate or range.

What is the difference between propane and natural gas orifice?

Natural Gas orifices will have a larger hole as it is a lower pressure gas and Propane is a compressed gas and the orifices will have a smaller hole. They are not interchangeable. You never want to use an orifice that is drilled for Natural Gas on Propane or Propane for Natural Gas.

Drilling the gas orifice from propane to natural gas

What happens if you run propane through a natural gas orifice?

Running propane through an orifice designed for natural gas and lower pressure will result in an overly large flame and soot. The flame will be bigger and may cause damage and even an explosion. This is because the orifice jet designed for natural gas is larger than the one for propane.

Are propane and natural gas fittings the same?

The two are not interchangeable; each fuel source requires special gas utilization fittings. If you want to switch between the two, you'll need a conversion kit for the appliances' manufacturer for the installation process.

How do I choose an orifice size?

Divide the flow of the liquid by the velocity of the liquid to determine the area of the orifice in square feet. In the above example, you would divide 8 by 2. The total area of the orifice would be 4 square feet.

Can you convert any grill to natural gas?

Can You Convert any Propane Grill to Natural Gas. Basically, no. Many grills are capable, and you can purchase kits to make the change.

Can you connect a propane grill to a natural gas line?

Once a natural gas line is installed, you will no longer have to worry about running out of gas mid-cook or frequently replacing propane tanks. While you should never hook a propane gas grill to a natural gas line without first converting it for natural gas, it is a relatively easy process.

Can I use a propane hose for natural gas?

Although it may be possible, it is not practical to use a propane hose like part # 37207-30915 with natural gas because the pressure of propane is much higher then natural gas. Since propane hoses are smaller in diameter it will also most likely restrict the flow of the natural gas that is lower pressure.

Can propane pipes be used for natural gas?

A house that has gas piping sized for propane will not be adequately sized for natural gas, when converting from propane to natural gas, the pipe size will most likely need to be upgraded to a larger pipe size diameter to attain the same BTU acquired with propane.

Can I hook up propane to a gas stove?

Most, but not all, appliances can be converted from natural gas to propane. The biggest sticking point is that natural gas is kept at a lower pressure, and some appliances can't handle the higher pressure of propane even with adjustments.

How do I choose an orifice plate?

Does orifice size affect flow rate?

A reduction in orifice size results in decreased flow as only so much liquid can pass through the orifice. In all of the above cases, the inlet pressure is constant and the outlet pressure is, effectively, zero (atmospheric) as there is nothing to restrict flow on the exit side of the orifice.

How do you identify an orifice in the pipeline?

An orifice identification, whether it is for liquid measurement or for gas/air measurement, is identified by its tab; which is hanged outside. If it is up (with bore of up hole), then it is used to measure liquid, and if it is down (with bore of down hole) then it is used to measure gas/air.

What does orifice size mean?

The orifice size of the nozzle determines the operating pressure of your machine. As a rule of thumb, the smaller the orifice, the greater the restriction of water flowing through the machine. This causes the pressure to increase. Choosing a nozzle with too large of an orifice will reduce operating pressure.

How do you calculate gas flow through an orifice?

To calculate the flow rate of fluid passing through an orifice: Multiply the gravitational constant g with the mean centerline H . Multiply the produce with 2 . Find the square root of the product.