Does Cold Temperature Affect a Propane Tank Level Gauge?
Propane is like most other types of materials in that it is affected by cold temperatures. The propane gas contracts as the temperature declines. That reduced level of gas in the tank is reflected by the gauge that reflects the tank level. Usually, this occurs whenever a homeowner checks the gauge during cold climate and sees the amount of the tank level before and after delivery. Depending upon the weather, the level on the tank might not rise as much as anticipated.
Propane Tank Level Gauge
The propane tank's gauge shows you what portion of the tank is full. Typically, tanks are not filled more than 80% in order to enable the gas to expand during hot days. For instance, a 500 gallon tank, at a reading of 80% at normal temperatures reflects roughly 400 gallons of propane inside the tank. This is around the amount that is able to be stored.
Normal Temperatures
The website Propane 101, which is operated by the propane industry, considers an exterior temperature of 60 degrees to be the reference or baseline point. Like for example, 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 roughly 250 gallons of propane. If the temperature that day is a lot lower than 60 degrees, the gauge would read lower. Similarly, if the temperature is much higher than 60 degrees, the gauge would actually read higher since the gas expanded.
Effect of Expansion and Contraction
According to the information provided by the propane industry website, 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 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 can expect the gauge to go up by 10% with the delivery of 100 gallons. These numbers would be correct if the temperatures were close to 60 degrees at the time of delivery. If the delivery happened during colder weather conditions, these chillier temperatures would cause a smaller increase reading on the propane gauge.