Does Cold Temperature Affect the Level Gauge on a Propane Tank?
Similar to most other types of materials, propane is affected by cold temperatures. When the temperature goes down, the propane gas contracts. That reduced level of gas in the tank is reflected by the gauge which reflects the tank level. Usually, 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 upon the conditions, the tank level may not rise as much as anticipated.

Propane Tank Level Gauge
The gauge on the propane tank would show what percentage of the gas tank is still full. Tanks are normally not filled over 80% full since this would allow for the gas to expand during warmer days. For example, a 500 gallon tank, at a reading of 80 percent at normal temperatures reflects around 400 gallons of propane in the tank. This is around the amount which is able to be stored.

Normal Temperatures
The propane industry manages the popular website Propane 101, that considers the propane reference point to be an exterior temperature of 60 degrees. Like for example, if the gauge reads 50 percent of capacity on a day when the temperature is near 60 degrees, then a 500 gallon tank will contain roughly 250 gallons of propane. If the temperature that same day is much lower than 60 degrees, the gauge would read lower. In the same way, if the temperature is much higher than 60 degrees, the gauge would actually read higher because the gas expanded.

Effect of Contraction and Expansion
The energy contained or amount of energy contained within a tank will not change as the gas either expands or contracts, according to 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 receive 424 pounds of propane. If the homeowner has a 1000 gallon propane tank, they may expect the gauge to go up by 10% with the delivery of 100 gallons. These numbers would be accurate 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.