Propane level?

[traveler44]

The furnace ran all night last night so I checked the propane tanks today and the one we were running off of had frost about 3/4 of the way up. Does this mean that the tank is 3/4 full or 3/4 empty? Thanks Tom

 

[cookie]

I have always taken that to mean that is the approximate level of remaining LP.

Peace
Dave

 

[RuralPastor]

I have always taken that to mean that is the approximate level of remaining LP.

Peace
Dave

x's 2

 

[Willym]

If you have no frost or condensation line, then an easy way to check your tank level is to pour some hot water over the tank. Then run your hand down from the top. The propane level will be indicated at the point where the metal temperature changes from warm to cold. There are self adhesive plastic temperature indicating strips on the market, but I've found the touch method just as easy.

 

[boatdoc]

x's 2

X's 3

 

[traveler44]

Okay! Thanks, That is what I thought but I wasn't sure. Mary was just worried that we needed to buy more propane already. I think the indicator on one side of the regulator is supposed to change to red when that tank is empty. I keep running off of the one side and try to keep the other tank as a spare. Just one more night of subfreezing weather here in south west Missouri and I plugged in the 50 amp cord today so we should be able to run the engine heater on the truck and the fireplace and an electric heater too. Tom

 

[Ray LeTourneau]

traveler44. You should be able to run an extension cord to the pedestal for your truck's engine heater. There should be an extra 15 or 20 amp outlet in there.

 

[Wharton]

We use one tank until it is empty and switches to the other, then we get the empty one filled. We also don't run our furnace at night for several reasons: noise of furnace, propane consumption(furnaces are propane wasters). We do have an electric blanket though.

 

[sengli]

Ditto on the electric blanket! I always thought the frost line is the level of the propane too.

 

[traveler44]

traveler44. You should be able to run an extension cord to the pedestal for your truck's engine heater. There should be an extra 15 or 20 amp outlet in there.

Thanks Ray! I dug out the 50 amp cord and start using it in place of the 30 amp cord so we are running an electric heater and the fireplace and the truck heater all at the same time when needed. The weather warmed up real nicely today and so I quit using the engine heater and dewinterized the Bighorn today. I think it will stay warm here until we leave for Texas on Sunday. I might just weigh the tanks and if they are very low get them filled before we leave here. I like to travel with full tanks. If anybody is interested the empties weigh 25.3 pounds so the 30 pound tanks weigh about 55 pounds full. Tom

 

[DuaneG]

Has anyone tried the ad on level gauge for their rv. I have one on my BBQ, but was not sure if it would be accurate enough. Usually they show green to red (full to empty).

Sent from my cell phone. Please forgive typos and spelling errors.

 

[Wharton]

We have tried them and find that they work. The problem is remembering to get the hot water to check them. We find it easier to keep an eye on when the tanks switch over and then fill the empty one.

 

[mobilcastle]

We have tried them and find that they work. The problem is remembering to get the hot water to check them. We find it easier to keep an eye on when the tanks switch over and then fill the empty one.

X2 seems the easiest way.

 

[traveler44]

The way I understand it the only way a gauge can show the real level of a propane in a tank is if it has a float that goes down inside the tank. The rest of the gauges only show that the tank is empty. They might say full and empty but they won't show the level of gas in the tank. The strip that can be stuck to the side of a tank works on the theory that as the hot water is poured down the tank the part of the tank that has gas in it will be a different temperature than the empty part. I think that is why I had the frost on the bottom 2/3 of my tank on the cold morning when I looked at it. The other tank was nearer full and was dry. I weighed my tank this morning and it only had about 3 pounds left so I had it filled.

 

[traveler44]

Thanks Ray! I dug out the 50 amp cord and start using it in place of the 30 amp cord so we are running an electric heater and the fireplace and the truck heater all at the same time when needed. The weather warmed up real nicely today and so I quit using the engine heater and dewinterized the Bighorn today. I think it will stay warm here until we leave for Texas on Sunday. I might just weigh the tanks and if they are very low get them filled before we leave here. I like to travel with full tanks. If anybody is interested the empties weigh 25.3 pounds so the 30 pound tanks weigh about 55 pounds full. Tom

I made a mistake in the weight of the empty tank it is actually 23.5 pounds. A little backwards I guess. I didn't want anybody to wonder why their full tank weighed short.

 

[rumaco]

I tap mine with a wood (1" X 1" X 10") dowel and the sound is very differant at the propane level vs the empty side. You can tell almost exactly where the level is. Works very well!

 

[rumaco]

I also use the two tanks that came with my 5er and for long stays have a 50 gallon all hooked to an automatic switch that turns the empty off and goes directly to the next full tank in the line. I have three and a total of 64 gallons and never worry!