Does Cold Affect a Propane Tank Level Gauge?
Propane is similar to most other kinds of materials in that it is affected by cold temperatures. The propane gas contracts when the temperature declines. That reduced level of gas in the tank is reflected by the gauge which reflects the level on the propane tank. Normally, this comes into play whenever a homeowner checks the gauge in cold climate and sees the amount of the tank level before and after delivery. Depending on the conditions, the tank level might not rise as much as expected.
Propane Tank Level Gauge
The gauge on a propane tank shows you what percentage of the tank is full. Usually, tanks are not filled over 80% so as to allow the gas to expand on warm temperatures. For instance, a 500 gallon tank, at a reading of 80% at normal temperatures reflects about 400 gallons of propane in the tank. This is about how much could be stored.
Normal Temperatures
The propane industry operates the popular website Propane 101, that considers the propane reference point to be an exterior temperature of 60 degrees. Like for instance, if the gauge reads 50 percent of capacity on a day when the temperature is near 60 degrees, then a 500 gallon tank would contain around 250 gallons of propane. If the temperature that same day is much lower than 60 degrees, the gauge will read lower. Similarly, if the temperature is a lot higher than 60 degrees, the gauge will actually read higher since the gas expanded.
Effect of Expansion and Contraction
The energy contained or amount of energy contained inside a tank will not change as the gas either contracts or expands, according to the propane industry website. The amount of propane itself has not changed, but only the density of the gas has changed.
Cold-Weather Delivery
If a homeowner orders 100 gallons of propane to be delivered, they would receive 424 pounds of propane. If the homeowner has a 1000 gallon propane tank, they can expect the gauge to go up by 10% with the delivery of 100 gallons. These numbers would be correct if the temperatures were near 60 degrees at the time of delivery. If the delivery took place during colder weather, these chillier temperatures would result in a smaller increase reading on the propane gauge.