When you think of a grill, what comes to mind? Most people first picture either a charcoal or propane grill. Indeed, these are the most common options, but there is another option: a natural gas grill. If you have a dedicated outdoor kitchen or grilling area, having a natural gas grill installed is a great choice. Here's a look at what that will involve.

1. You'll need to have a gas line run.

You can only have a natural gas grill installed if you already have a gas supply in your home. While you could have an entire gas line run from the street just to power your grill, this would be very expensive and probably not worth it. A plumber or gas line specialist can run a line from the closest gas line to the area where you plan to place the grill.

It's a good idea to have a gas line installation company give you an estimate for running a line. They may recommend putting your grill in a different location than you initially planned to avoid running a very long line. The shorter line you can get away with, the less this service will cost.

2. Gas line installation may require underground work.

In most cases, your gas line installer will have to run a length of the line under the ground beneath your outdoor kitchen area. This allows you to place the grill a few feet from the edge of your home, which is important for safety and fire prevention. If you plan on installing any sort of flooring in your outdoor kitchen, you will want to do this after the gas line is run so your floor does not get ruined in the installation process.

3. You should have a grill in mind before you have the gas line run.

Pick out the natural gas grill you want before you make an appointment with the gas line installer. This will ensure the gas line installer recommends the right size gas line, and it will also make sure they run the gas line to the right spot. If you can't have the gas grill present on-site by the time your installer arrives, at least have its dimensions and specifications ready for your installer to reference.

Natural gas grills are convenient and affordable to run. If you are ready to try a natural grill, contact a local gas line installation company.