Does Cold Temperature Actually Affect the Level Gauge on a Propane Tank?
Propane is like most 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 that reflects the level on the propane tank. Usually, this comes into play whenever a homeowner checks the gauge during cold weather conditions and sees the amount of the tank level before and after delivery. Depending upon the conditions, the tank level might not rise as much as anticipated.

Propane Tank Level Gauge
The gauge on a propane tank shows you what portion of the tank is full. Normally, tanks are not filled more than 80% in order to allow the gas to expand during warm temperatures. For example, a 500 gallon tank, at a reading of 80% at normal temperatures reflects roughly 400 gallons of propane in the tank. This is around the amount that can be stored.

Normal Temperatures
The website Propane 101, that is managed by the propane industry, considers an exterior temperature of 60 degrees to be the baseline or reference point. Like for instance, if the gauge reads 50% of capacity on a day when the temperature is near 60 degrees, then a 500 gallon tank would have about 250 gallons of propane. If the temperature that day is a lot lower than 60 degrees, the gauge will read lower. Similarly, if the temperature is a lot higher than 60 degrees, the gauge will actually read higher since the gas expanded.

Effect of Expansion and Contraction
According to the information given by the propane industry website, the amount of energy contained within the tank does not actually change as the gas expands or contracts. 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 correct if the temperatures were near 60 degrees at the time of delivery. If the delivery took place during colder weather, these chillier temperatures would result in a smaller increase reading on the propane gauge.