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Butane or propane BBQ regulator

Updated: 23 October 2026

The hose on the barbecue looks the same, the regulator is a small coloured body, and the blue cylinder was cheaper at the garage than the green one. A butane or propane BBQ regulator is still two parts. UK barbecue propane is regulated around 37 mbar. Butane regulators are specified around 28–30 mbar. The valves do not cross, and butane is the weaker gas once the patio gets cold. The [Gas regulator](/hub/grills-and-barbecues/gas-regulator) comparison is where the eight listings sit with their prices. This page is the gas and the season. We did not measure cylinder pressure, and a qualifying purchase can earn us a commission at no extra cost to you.

The hose on the barbecue looks the same, the regulator is a small coloured body, and the blue cylinder was cheaper at the garage than the green one. A butane or propane BBQ regulator is still two parts.

Our top picks

Calor Calor 27 mm patio regulator

Best overall

Calor Calor 27 mm patio regulator
8.9/10about £13.77
View offer
Cofan Cofan butane regulator

Alternative

Cofan Cofan butane regulator
2.4/10about £11.69
View offer
JD Brands JD Brands butane clip-on

Alternative

JD Brands JD Brands butane clip-on
3.3/10about £13.01
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Two pressures, two valves
  2. 2.What the butane listings in this set actually print
  3. 3.Cold weather
  4. 4.Caravan regulators are a different duty

Two pressures, two valves

Flogas states the rule: butane regulators are usually 28 mbar, propane regulators are usually 37 mbar, and they are not interchangeable. Liquid Gas UK puts butane at 28–30 mbar and propane at 37 mbar. GOV.UK lists a nominal 37 mbar for propane (Group P) and 29 mbar for butane (Group B) at the appliance inlet. Those figures are the regulated supply, not the pressure inside the cylinder, and not a reading from this set. Liquid Gas UK's user sheet gives a rule-of-thumb vapour pressure of about 1.5 bar for butane and about 7 bar for propane at 15 °C. A shared 8 mm hose tail is not permission to swap the bodies. If the plate asks for 37 mbar propane, a butane regulator is the wrong class. Calor's UK map puts a 21 mm clip-on on standard butane, a 27 mm clip-on on patio propane, and a screw-on regulator on standard propane. Patio gas is propane. Campingaz and a jumbo Irish butane regulator are other fittings. Change the regulator when you change the gas. The propane valve split is 27 mm clip-on or POL.

What the butane listings in this set actually print

Neither butane listing prints a millibar figure. Do not write 28 mbar onto those rows because an industry sheet uses that number. The product page has to say it too. The JD Brands BGR01 at about £13.01 is titled as a blue 21 mm butane clip-on. Flow and hose-tail size are absent. It is 4.4 from 90 ratings. Several reviewers say a 20 mm regulator arrived. Other reviews describe an easy fit when the valve matched. Both can be true of different boxes. 20 mm is not 21 mm. Check the marking before you fit it. The Cofan listing at about £11.69, model 41007762, prints no valve size, millibar, or hose tail, at 4.6 from 92 ratings. Amazon notes that some products cannot be delivered outside mainland UK. Calor, Adventure, the POL screw, and the POL handwheel print 37 mbar. The HowseHold pages omit millibar, so they are not a butane alternative.
Calor Calor 27 mm patio regulator

Testsieger

Calor Calor 27 mm patio regulator
8.9/10about £13.77
View offer

Cold weather

Propane is the cold-weather gas in this comparison. Butane's vapour pressure falls as the air cools, so a blue cylinder that cooked in July can starve a burner in November while liquid remains in the bottle. The JD Brands POL listing says propane where a butane regulator is not suitable in cold weather. That lines up with the Liquid Gas UK vapour-pressure point. No degree threshold is printed on these eight listings. Do not invent one. Butane is a fair summer choice when the clip matches a valve you can check. It is a poor plan for a frosty cook. You do not upgrade a butane bottle by screwing on the about £8.99 propane handwheel. The handwheel is POL. The butane clip is not.

Caravan regulators are a different duty

EN 1949 caravan systems are described at 30 mbar for both gases. That part is not the 37 mbar barbecue propane regulator, and it is not the 28–30 mbar butane clip from a garage cylinder. Taking the barbecue POL regulator to the van, or the van regulator to the patio bottle, mixes two duties. Follow the plate on the appliance you are feeding. Camping in a butane title does not make it a caravan part. Once the regulator matches, fitting is how to fit a BBQ gas regulator.

Common questions

Can a barbecue use either gas?
Only if the plate and the valve match the gas you connect. Many UK gas barbecues are built for 37 mbar propane. A butane cylinder needs its own regulator, usually 28–30 mbar on a 21 mm clip. Do not feed propane through a butane regulator because the hose looks similar.
What is the butane pressure in the UK?
Industry sheets specify 28–30 mbar. GOV.UK lists a nominal 29 mbar for butane and 37 mbar for propane. None of the butane listings here print a millibar number, so you cannot point at JD Brands or Cofan and say it is 28 mbar.
Which colour bottle is which?
On Calor's UK map, green patio gas is propane on the 27 mm clip, blue is butane on the 21 mm clip, and screw propane takes POL. Other suppliers use their own colours, so the valve and the label outrank the paint.
Is 21 mm the same as 20 mm?
No. The JD Brands title says 21 mm. Several reviewers say 20 mm arrived and did not fit. That does not prove every box is 20 mm. Forcing a 20 mm body onto a 21 mm valve is not a fit.
Does this set include a butane regulator with 28 mbar printed?
No. Both butane listings leave pressure unprinted, and the Cofan page also leaves the valve size blank. The propane listings that print a figure print 37 mbar, not 28.

Related pages

Gas regulator buying guide

Gas regulator

27 mm clip-on or POL: which barbecue regulator fits

Best BBQ gas regulator UK: match the valve and plate

How to fit a BBQ gas regulator: clip-on or POL nut

Sources

Public UK sources used for this comparison. Listing prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk figures for these ASINs. Retrieved 22 October 2026.

  1. Liquid Gas UK: Consumer Guidance Sheet 39 (August 2020) (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  2. GOV.UK: types of gas and supply pressures in the UK (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  3. Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, regulation 2 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  4. Gas Safe Register: BBQ safety (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  5. Calor: which hose and regulator (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  6. Calor: propane patio regulator, 27 mm clip-on (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  7. Calor: connecting a gas bottle (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  8. Flogas: regulator safety (retrieved 22 October 2026)