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Propane vs butane BBQ

Updated: 23 October 2026

A six-burner on a British patio pulls a lot of vapour, and the bottle beside the wagon is often the wrong one. Patio gas is propane. Blue butane uses another pressure, another clip, and it stops turning into vapour near freezing. This propane vs butane BBQ guide settles the cylinder and the matching regulator. Which wagon to buy stays on the [6 burner gas BBQ comparison](/hub/grills-and-barbecues/6-burner-gas-bbq). Updated on 21 October 2026 from these amazon.co.uk listings and from Calor, Liquid Gas UK, Flogas, and Hamilton Gas Products, without a lab test. Amazon.co.uk links may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

A six-burner on a British patio pulls a lot of vapour, and the bottle beside the wagon is often the wrong one. Patio gas is propane.

Our top picks

CosmoGrill CosmoGrill Pro Deluxe 6+1 with cover

Best overall

CosmoGrill CosmoGrill Pro Deluxe 6+1 with cover
9.0/10about £299.99
View offer
CosmoGrill CosmoGrill Emberr 6+1

Best value

CosmoGrill CosmoGrill Emberr 6+1
8.0/10about £279.99
View offer
TOV TOV Deluxe 6+1

Alternative

TOV TOV Deluxe 6+1
6.8/10about £199.99
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Propane, patio gas, and butane are not one bottle
  2. 2.37 mbar, 28–30 mbar, and the valve
  3. 3.13 kg once you have four burners or more
  4. 4.What that means for these five grills
  5. 5.Which cylinder to leave connected

Propane, patio gas, and butane are not one bottle

Patio gas is propane in a green bottle, not a third fuel. Calor puts propane’s boiling point near −42 °C and butane’s near −2 °C, so propane still feeds a burner on a frosty morning and blue butane often does not. Liquid Gas UK sets UK propane at 37 mbar and UK butane at 28–30 mbar. Drawing gas cools the bottle, so butane can fail a few degrees above freezing. On a mild day butane can run the grill if the clip matches. A green bottle and a red bottle are both propane at 37 mbar, and they still use different valves.

37 mbar, 28–30 mbar, and the valve

A propane regulator and a butane regulator do not swap. Flogas states that the pressures and the valves differ. Propane, including patio gas, is 37 mbar. Butane is 28–30 mbar. New regulators are made to BS EN 16129. Calor’s 13 kg patio-gas bottle uses a 27 mm clip-on. Red propane is often a POL screw at the same 37 mbar, so that head will not seat on a green bottle. Butane in Great Britain is often 21 mm. Hamilton Gas Products notes that butane in Northern Ireland is often 35 mm. Check the neck, then buy that fitting.
CosmoGrill CosmoGrill Pro Deluxe 6+1 with cover

Testsieger

CosmoGrill CosmoGrill Pro Deluxe 6+1 with cover
9.0/10about £299.99
View offer

13 kg once you have four burners or more

Calor’s size guide is a rule of thumb, not a legal minimum. Up to three burners, they point you to 5 kg of patio gas. From four burners upward they point to 13 kg, and a six-burner sits on that line. The 13 kg page states a recommended offtake of about 15 kW. That figure belongs to the bottle, not to a grill listed at about 14.5 kW. A 5 kg bottle can still light a short cook. Where the bottle stands while you cook is on the how to use page.

What that means for these five grills

Only the Emberr includes a propane hose. The amazon.co.uk bullets do not state the millibar. CosmoGrill’s page states a 27 mm clip-on, 37 mbar, and a 2 m hose. A red POL bottle needs the screw regulator, and blue butane needs another head. The Pro Deluxe listings tell you to buy 37 mbar or 28 mbar. TOV states no pressure and treats the hose as extra. BROILUCK does not list a regulator. Ratings stay on the best picks in this set.

Which cylinder to leave connected

Leave green patio gas or red propane connected, on a 37 mbar head that matches that valve, if the grill has to work on a cold evening. Keep blue butane for a mild day when you already own the 28–30 mbar regulator for that clip, 21 mm in much of Great Britain and often 35 mm in Northern Ireland. Do not move the Emberr’s 27 mm propane clip onto a butane bottle or a POL screw and call the joint finished.

Common questions

Is patio gas propane?
Yes. Patio gas is propane in a green cylinder with a 27 mm clip-on, regulated at 37 mbar. Red Calor propane is the same gas at the same pressure, though it often uses a screw-in POL valve. You cannot move a patio-gas clip-on onto a POL bottle and still call the connection correct. Butane is the blue cylinder at 28–30 mbar, and it is not patio gas.
Will a blue butane bottle run a six-burner in April?
It might on a mild day, and it often will not once the bottle cools. Butane’s boiling point is near −2 °C, and drawing gas cools the liquid, so vapour can fail a few degrees above freezing. Butane is a fair warm-weather extra when the clip matches. It is a poor default for April. Propane at 37 mbar still vapourises in that weather.
Does Northern Ireland change the butane clip?
Often, yes. Hamilton Gas Products notes that butane in Northern Ireland is frequently a 35 mm clip, while butane in Great Britain is frequently 21 mm. Patio gas stays a 27 mm clip-on at 37 mbar. A 21 mm butane regulator that is correct in England can be the wrong part on a Northern Ireland butane bottle. Propane in the Republic of Ireland commonly uses another thread, which is a further mismatch if that bottle is the one you have.
Is 5 kg of patio gas enough for six burners?
Calor’s guide points to 5 kg of patio gas for up to three burners, and to 13 kg from four burners upward. Six burners fall on the 13 kg line. Five kilograms can cover a short cook. The 13 kg page lists a recommended offtake of about 15 kW. That is the bottle’s stated figure, not a test that a grill quoted at about 14.5 kW will run short.
Which listing already includes the propane hose?
Only the Emberr listing in this set includes a clip-on propane hose. The amazon.co.uk bullets do not state the millibar. CosmoGrill’s page states 27 mm, 37 mbar, and a 2 m hose. The Pro Deluxe listings say to buy the regulator. TOV and BROILUCK do not include one. The Emberr hose suits green patio gas. It does not fit a butane bottle or a red POL propane bottle.

Related pages

6 burner gas BBQ buying guide

6 burner gas BBQ for a crowd

6 burner gas BBQ

Best 6 burner gas BBQ UK: which listing to open first

How to use a gas BBQ: lid open, cylinder off first

Sources

Public UK sources used for this comparison. Listing prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk figures for these ASINs, from saved listings dated 19 October 2026.

  1. Liquid Gas UK Consumer Guidance Sheet 39 (August 2020) (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  2. HSE ACOP L56, Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  3. Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  4. GOV.UK: fire safety outdoors (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  5. Calor: gas bottles for BBQs (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  6. BS EN 498:2012 catalogue entry (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  7. Gas Safe Register: BBQ safety (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  8. Registered Gas Engineer: LPG hoses (retrieved 19 October 2026)