What Size of Natural Gas/Propane Hose and Quick Disconnect Do You Need?

So you might be connecting a new grill, patio heater, or fire table - whatever the case may be - and you're thinking, "What size should my gas hose and brass fittings be?" Well, you're in luck because here at Barbecues Galore, we pride ourselves on having expertise in gas fitting because we get it... this type of stuff is confusing. Together, with some proactive article reading, we can figure out what you need.

Let's start with the...

Common problems with measuring your gas fittings

Many people unknowingly buy the wrong size of fittings for their natural gas or propane hose because they don't know how to measure it; or more accurately, they don't know which part to measure. 

There are three commonplace measurements people take, but only one of them is right. First, there is the outside diameter (OD), the Nominal Pipe Size (NPS), and the inside diameter (ID) of the hose or fitting. 

The measurement you want that corresponds with the name of your gas hose is the inside diameter. You can remember this because ID in this case means "inside diameter", but in many other case means "identification." For example, a 3/8" LP/NG Hose can be identified as having the inside diameter of 3/8."

Now for the tricky part:

How to measure a quick disconnect nipple and coupler

Your keen mind might have thought, "If the inside diameter is what we are measuring, how could the 3/8" quick disconnect have the same inside diameter of the 3/8" hose if one goes in the other?" Well my friend, it's because the world (of gas fitting) works in mysterious ways... but that's why we're here.

Fittings get their name based off of the hose they fit with. That being said, you're right - the inside diameters would not be the same. Thus, the inside diameter on the female end of the Quick Disconnect Nipple would have to be more closely similar to the outside diameter of the male end of your gas hose. For example:

• the female end of our 3/8" Natural Gas Quick Disconnect Nipple and 3/8" Natural Gas Quick Disconnect Coupler will actually have an inside diameter of about  5/8"
• and the female end of our 1/2" Natural Gas Quick Disconnect Nipple and 1/2" Natural Gas Quick Disconnect Coupler will actually have an inside diameter of about 3/4"

Due to this, we advise you to make sure you know the proper measurement of your natural gas or propane hose first. With that, you'll be able to know the measurements of the Quick Disconnect Nipple and Coupler that you'll need. However, if it's the hose that you're looking for, find which hose is needed and we've got them in 5', 10', 15', and 20' lengths. 

To make your life easy, we also have them in pre-assembled kits, which you can find by clicking here. If you want to explore more, you can get the correct parts you need from our site by clicking here. You can also visit or contact any one of our five stores across Canada. 

 To continue learning, watch these videos here: