Does Cold Really 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 inside the tank is reflected by the gauge which reflects the tank level. Normally, this happens whenever a homeowner checks the gauge in cold weather conditions and sees the amount of the tank level before and after delivery. Depending on the climate, the level on the tank may not go up as much as anticipated.

Propane Tank Level Gauge
The propane tank's gauge shows you what portion of the tank is full. Normally, tanks are not filled over 80% so as to allow the gas to expand during hot days. For instance, 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 how much could be stored.

Normal Temperatures
The propane industry manages the popular web site Propane 101, that considers the propane baseline point to be an exterior temperature of 60 degrees. Like for instance, 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 approximately 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 will actually read higher because the gas expanded.

Effect of Contraction and Expansion
The energy contained or amount of energy contained within a tank would not change as the gas either contracts or expands, based on the propane industry website. 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 will be given 424 lbs. of propane. If the homeowner has a 1000 gallon propane tank, they could expect the gauge to go up by 10% with the delivery of 100 gallons. These numbers would be correct if the temperatures were near 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.