Does Cold Temperature 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. 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 upon the conditions, the level on the tank 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. Typically, tanks are not filled more than 80% so as to allow the gas to expand during hot days. Like for instance, a 500 gallon tank, at a reading of 80 percent at normal temperatures reflects about 400 gallons of propane in the tank. This is roughly how much 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 baseline or reference point. 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 will contain roughly 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 due to the expansion of the gas.
Effect of Contraction and Expansion
The energy contained or amount of energy contained within a tank will not change when the gas either expands or contracts, based on the propane industry web site. 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 be given 424 pounds 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 will be accurate 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.