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Does Cold Temperature Affect the Level Gauge on a Propane Tank?
Propane is similar to nearly all other kinds of materials in that it is affected by cold temperatures. The propane gas contracts when the temperature does down. That reduced level of gas in the tank is reflected by the gauge which reflects the tank level. Usually, this comes into play whenever a homeowner checks the gauge in cold conditions and sees the amount of the tank level before and after delivery. Depending upon the climate, the level on the tank might not go up as much as anticipated.

Propane Tank Level Gauge
The gauge on a propane tank shows you what fraction of the tank is full. Usually, tanks are not filled more than 80% so as to allow the gas to expand during hot temperatures. For example, a 500 gallon tank, at a reading of 80% at normal temperatures reflects approximately 400 gallons of propane inside the tank. This is roughly how much can be stored.

Normal Temperatures
The web site Propane 101, that is managed by the propane industry, considers an exterior temperature of 60 degrees to be the baseline or reference point. Like 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 will contain about 250 gallons of propane. If the temperature that 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 would actually read higher since 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 website. The amount of propane itself has not changed, but just the density of the gas has changed.

Cold-Weather Delivery
The homeowner who orders 100 gallons of propane would receive approximately 424 lbs. of propane. With the delivery of 100 gallons, the homeowner with a 1000 gallon propane tank could expect the guage to go up by 10%. These numbers would be correct if the temperatures were near 60 degrees at the time of delivery. If the delivery happened during colder weather, these chillier temperatures will cause a smaller increase reading on the propane gauge.

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