Does Cold Affect a Propane Tank Level Gauge?
Similar to the majority of other kinds of materials, propane is affected by cold temperatures. When the temperature declines, the propane gas contracts. That reduced level of gas in the tank is reflected by the gauge which reflects the level on the tank. Often, this comes into play whenever a homeowner checks the gauge in cold weather and sees the amount of the tank level before and after delivery. Depending on the weather, the tank level may not rise as much as expected.
Propane Tank Level Gauge
The propane tank's gauge shows you what fraction of the tank is full. Normally, tanks are not filled more than 80% so as to enable the gas to expand during warm days. Like for example, a 500 gallon tank, at a reading of 80 percent at normal temperatures reflects around 400 gallons of propane inside the tank. This is about the amount which 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 example, if the gauge reads 50 percent of capacity on a day when the temperature is close to 60 degrees, then a 500 gallon tank would contain about 250 gallons of propane. If the temperature that day is much lower than 60 degrees, the gauge will read lower. Also, if the temperature is a lot higher than 60 degrees, the gauge will actually read higher because the gas expanded.
Effect of Expansion and Contraction
The energy contained or amount of energy contained within a tank will not change when the gas either expands or contracts, according to the propane industry web site. The amount of propane itself has not changed, but just 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 may expect the gauge to go up by 10% with the delivery of 100 gallons. These numbers would be accurate if the temperatures were close to 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.