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Does Cold Temperature Affect the Level Gauge on a Propane Tank?
Like nearly all other types of materials, propane is affected by cold temperatures. As the temperature declines, the propane gas contracts. That reduced level of gas inside the tank is reflected by the gauge that reflects the tank level. Usually, this occurs whenever a homeowner checks the gauge in cold weather 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 anticipated.

Propane Tank Level Gauge
The propane tank's gauge shows you what percentage of the tank is full. Normally, tanks are not filled over 80% in order to enable the gas to expand during hot days. Like for instance, a 500 gallon tank, at a reading of 80% at normal temperatures reflects approximately 400 gallons of propane in the tank. This is roughly the amount which is able to be stored.

Normal Temperatures
The propane industry manages the popular website Propane 101, which considers the propane reference point to be an exterior temperature of 60 degrees. 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 have roughly 250 gallons of propane. If the temperature that same day is a lot lower than 60 degrees, the gauge will read lower. In the same way, if the temperature is much higher than 60 degrees, the gauge will actually read higher since the gas expanded.

Effect of Expansion and Contraction
The amount of energy contained or energy contained within a tank will not change when the gas either contracts or expands, according to 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
The homeowner who orders 100 gallons of propane will be given roughly 424 lbs. of propane. With the delivery of 100 gallons, the homeowner with a 1000 gallon propane tank can expect the guage to go up by 10%. These numbers will 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 result in a smaller increase reading on the propane gauge.

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