The propane tanks are essential for every home where people love to grill and make BBQ food. This is because the outdoor grills are designed to work with propane tanks and power these grills. However, it’s important to keep an eye on the fuel in the propane tank. So, with this article, we are sharing the information you need!
How To Tell When Propane Tank Is Empty?
There are different ways to determine if the propane tank is empty or not. In the majority of cases, people use the weight chart to determine if the tank is empty, but it’s not always an accurate choice. The propane tanks are designed with the tare weight printed on the handle/collar of your propane tank. With this method, if the propane tanks weigh the same as the tare weight, it’s empty. For measuring the weight on the propane tank, you can use a scale. On the other hand, if the propane tank is not empty, we are sharing how you can check the level of fuel in the propane tank.
Hot Water & Cold Touch Method
This is the first method that you can use to check the level of fuel in the propane tank. This is a promising choice because you don’t need any special tools or equipment. For this purpose, consult to the instructions mentioned below;
- First of all, fill up the bucket with hot or warm water (the hot water can be taken from your home’s faucet)
- Make sure that you don’t trick and keep pouring water on one part of the tank slowly
- Now, keep running your hand vertically on the tank’s side, and you will witness a change in temperature
- If there is no propane in the tank, the tank will feel warmer at the top, and the bottom will be cooler to touch. Also, if you feel a difference in the temperature on any part of the propane tank, that’s how much fuel is still inside the propane tank. On the other hand, if you don’t sense the difference, the propane tank is empty
Gauge Method
This is another great way to help you determine the level of propane in the tank. With the gauge method, you can simply leave the propane tank in one place and have a look at the gauge (it will show how full the propane tank is). It’s needless to say that gauge is an important kitchen accessory since it’s used for freezers and refrigerators as well and helps maintain the food at optimal temperature. To go ahead with this method, you can follow the below-mentioned instructions;
- Connect the gauge between the hose (the one that fed into the RV) and propane tank
- Now, read the gauge, and you will see how much propane is left in the tank
In the majority of cases, the gauge level indicators are properly calibrated to optimize the external temperature, promising an accurate measure of propane in the tank.
Weight Method
This is the most promising option for getting accurate information about the fullness of the propane tank. However, this method requires some effort and tools to ensure the results come out accurately. For this purpose, you can use a scale but make sure you have some basic knowledge of math. In the section, we are sharing the instructions;
- To begin with, 1 gallon of propane weighs around 4.2 pounds, while the empty propane tank weight is termed as tare weight (you can check the tare weight on the handle of the propane tank)
- Once you have these numbers, disconnect the propane tank and close down the valve and put your tank on the scale
- Then, record the weight that’s showing on the scale. After that, you need to minus the tare weight from the current tank’s weight
- As a result, you will get an approximate value which is the approximate weight of propane left in the tank
- Now, you’ve to divide the value by 4.2, and you will be able to determine the accurate level of propane left in your propane tank
These are three effective methods of determining the propane level in the propane tank, and with the instructions mentioned above, you can also check if the tank is empty.