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Virco Natural Gas Conversion

    One of the selling features for me about this gas grill was the availability of the factory conversion kit to natural gas. I had looked at the Members Mark and knew it could be converted because of the excellent information published by Alek, but I didn't want something that seemed so simple to void my warranty. When I started this idea, I had NO idea what was involved. I just assumed you put some larger orifices on there on off you went! Well, I wasn't quite that naive, but I had no idea there was any difference in the valve or even what part the valve played other than opening and closing.

    I am writing this for a couple of reasons. To let everyone know what I ended up with after trial and error, and in hopes that anyone else out there that thinks they can only change the orifices will read this first and save themselves some grief. Let me also say that Alek hadn't yet published the details of his valve work when I got started with my conversion. But, I would like to thank him in advance for all of the great info and pics. They showed me quite a bit and I will be referring to them and using a couple of them along the way here. If anyone would like to see it directly, here is a link to Alek's NG conversion info for his Members Mark. All of the pictures of the valves on this page are Alek's and not of a Virco, but the valves are so close in design, it really doesn't make any difference the function is the same. Once you do this for yourself, it will become quite clear. The only difference I can see, is that the Members Mark valves are straight and the Virco valves are angled about 45 degrees.

    Ok, when I first decided to do the conversion, I was a little leery because I had read others who had said they were only getting about 450 degrees after converting and Virco had confirmed that this was about right. I certainly didn't want to have a beautiful grill like this one that was only able to do that, kind of all "show" and no "go", but after reading how Alek had increased the orifice size to raise his BTU's, I figured I could do the same. 

    I decided to call Virco and inquire about the NG conversion kit. At the time not a lot of people had done it yet, so there was limited information as to what the kit included. It was at this time I discovered that the kit included all new valves and orifices for all five burners. I didn't understand why they sold you new valves, so I asked the guy on the phone and he said "I don't really know, but they look exactly the same as the LP valves". I asked him if they would sell me the orifices by them selves. I figured if there was no difference in the valves why should I buy them? I could just trade out the orifices and be fine. The gentleman on the phone was very nice but, he informed me that there was no cost information for the orifices by themselves, they only carried them individually for warranty purposes. He told me he would just send them to me free of charge. I could not believe it! I was really excited thinking I was going to convert my grill without having to buy the kit! Once I got the orifices and put them in and hooked up my gas line the excitement quickly ran out. 

    The grill fired up after some readjusting of the igniters, (more on that later), but it took a long time to reach 450 degrees and none of the main burners or the rotisserie would stay lit on low. I could blow them out! I also had read another post from a person on the Garden Web who had said they had converted, and also could not "see" any difference between the two valves and if they had it to do over again they would have just drilled out the orifices. That post also helped me decide to try the orifices only at first. I ended up calling Virco and purchasing the conversion kit anyways to get the valves. I figured there has to be something different even though these folks couldn't see it. After receiving the complete kit, I too could not see any difference between the valves and at this point didn't know what it would be, but I was soon to learn. I replaced all of the valves and orifices with the new ones. This time when I fired up the grill the only difference was that the burners would stay lit at low, but just barely.

    At least now I knew I had the right parts and could start the modification process from here knowing that if I messed any thing up, at least I had a spare set of valves, NG orifices and my original LP orifices just in case. It was around this time, that Alek had published detailed information on what he had done to his valves to convert his Members Mark. After reading the information I finally realized how the valve worked and how to modify it. Here are the charts showing the factory sizes of valves (for low) and the orifices (for high) and what I drilled them out to.

Chart of the factory sizes of the orifices and where I drilled them to

Chart of the factory sizes of the valves and where I drilled them to

    To increase the orifice size for the high setting, first turn off the gas supply to the grill. You can gain access to the orifices by removing the grates, SS flame tamers and then the burners. The only tools you will need is a small wrench to unscrew the nut which holds the burners in near the rear of the fire box, and a small socket set to remove the orifice itself from the valve (which will be exposed once you remove the burner). Once that is completed remove the orifice from the valve and simply drill it larger, clean it free of debris and replace it. To increase or drill the valve for the low setting is a little more involved. You must disassemble the front of the grill to gain access to the valves. (Make sure you turn the gas off first) The easiest way I have found to do this, is to first remove all of the knobs. Next, using a Phillips screwdriver, remove two screws from each valve securing it to the front panel. Next, use the same screwdriver to remove two Phillips screws from each end of the front plate, once you remove these, the plate will be loose except for the igniter wires. As you pull the front panel forward, off of the valve stems, you will notice the igniter wires are secured to the igniters. Simply pull the connectors free from the igniters and this will fully release the front panel. Once you have access to the valves, you can remove the front of the valve by removing two screws on the front of it. Be careful not to lose the spring or the "D" ring when removing the stem. Once this is out of your way, use some needle nose pliers to remove the brass cone from inside the valve. It simply pulls out. The pictures below will show how the valve comes apart and how it works.

    Once you have removed the brass cone from inside the valve you will notice a large hole on one side and a very small hole on the other. Basically, when you turn the valve to high the gas is ported through the large hole and limited by the size of the orifice. When you turn it to low, the gas is limited by the smaller hole on this brass cone. This smaller hole is the one you will want to drill larger to increase your low setting. Again, make sure there is no debris before replacing it and try not to lose any of the grease. With the sizes I ended up with, the burners all run on low VERY nicely and I am not concerned with them blowing out. The side burner needed no modifying except for the high position. I now have a nice low on all of the burners and a very good high as well. By my estimates, and the charts, I am better than stock on the main burners and I have very good control. More to be added later on gas hookup and other modifications.