Does Cold Affect the Level Gauge on a Propane Tank?
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 inside the tank is reflected by the gauge which reflects the level on the tank. Often, this happens whenever a homeowner checks the gauge in cold climate and sees the amount of the tank level before and after delivery. Depending upon the weather, the tank level may not rise as much as expected.
Propane Tank Level Gauge
The gauge on a propane tank shows you what fraction of the tank is full. Normally, tanks are not filled more than 80% so as to allow the gas to expand on hot days. Like for instance, a 500 gallon tank, at a reading of 80% at normal temperatures reflects about 400 gallons of propane inside the tank. This is about the amount that could be stored.
Normal Temperatures
The web site Propane 101, which is operated by the propane industry, considers an exterior temperature of 60 degrees to be the baseline or reference point. 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 will have roughly 250 gallons of propane. If the temperature that same day is much lower than 60 degrees, the gauge will read lower. In the same way, if the temperature is a lot higher than 60 degrees, the gauge will actually read higher due to the expansion of the gas.
Effect of Expansion and Contraction
Based on the information given by the propane industry web site, the amount of energy contained within the tank does not really change when the gas contracts or expands. 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 will be correct if the temperatures were near 60 degrees at the time of delivery. If the delivery happened during colder weather conditions, these chillier temperatures will cause a smaller increase reading on the propane gauge.