Does Cold Really Affect the Level Gauge on a Propane Tank?
Propane is like the majority of other kinds of materials in that it is affected by cold temperatures. The propane gas contracts as the temperature does down. That reduced level of gas inside the tank is reflected by the gauge which reflects the tank level. Often, this happens whenever a homeowner checks the gauge during cold weather and sees the amount of the tank level before and after delivery. Depending on the climate, the tank level may not go up as much as expected.

Propane Tank Level Gauge
The gauge on the propane tank will show what percentage of the gas tank is still full. Tanks are normally not filled over 80% full because this will allow for the gas to expand during hotter days. Like for instance, a 500 gallon tank, at a reading of 80% at normal temperatures reflects about 400 gallons of propane inside the tank. This is around how much could be stored.

Normal Temperatures
The web site Propane 101, which 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 would read lower. Also, 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 Expansion and Contraction
The energy contained or amount of energy contained in 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 would receive 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 will be accurate if the temperatures were close to 60 degrees at the time of delivery. If the delivery happened during colder weather, these chillier temperatures would result in a smaller increase reading on the propane gauge.