Does Cold Affect a Propane Tank Level Gauge?
Propane is similar to most other types of materials in that it is affected by cold temperatures. The propane gas contracts when the temperature declines. That reduced level of gas inside the tank is reflected by the gauge that reflects the level on the tank. Often, this happens whenever a homeowner checks the gauge during cold weather conditions and sees the amount of the tank level before and after delivery. Depending upon the weather, the tank level might not rise as much as anticipated.
Propane Tank Level Gauge
The propane tanks guage will show what portion of the gas tank is still full. Tanks are usually not filled over 80% full as this would allow for the gas to expand during warmer days. Like 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 can be stored.
Normal Temperatures
The propane industry operates the popular website Propane 101, which considers the propane reference point to be an exterior temperature of 60 degrees. For instance, if the gauge reads 50% of capacity on a day when the temperature is close to 60 degrees, then a 500 gallon tank would contain approximately 250 gallons of propane. If the temperature that same day is a lot lower than 60 degrees, the gauge would read lower. In the same way, if the temperature is much higher than 60 degrees, the gauge would actually read higher due to the expansion of the gas.
Effect of Expansion and Contraction
The energy contained or amount of energy contained within a tank would not change when the gas either expands or contracts, 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 will be given 424 lbs. of propane. If the homeowner has a 1000 gallon propane tank, they could expect the gauge to go up by 10% with the delivery of 100 gallons. These numbers would be accurate if the temperatures were near 60 degrees at the time of delivery. If the delivery happened during colder weather conditions, these chillier temperatures will result in a smaller increase reading on the propane gauge.