Propane level?

[Kygreen10]

What's the best way to check my propane gas levels in my tank? I have two tanks. I just went dry camping for 4 days and he refrigerater ran solely on gas. I think my furnace runs on gas too. I'm going out next weekend for a few more days and want to make sure I have enough gas

[John7349]

I think the easiest thing to do is to go ahead and fill both tanks and see how many gallons it takes. This way, knowing how much you used, you can judge how long you can go. This is easier than wishing you had one more gallon. When in doubt, fill em up!

[SouthCo]

I would suggest running one tank at a time. Then when you empty the first tank switch over and fill the empty one. Then your never stuck without. I'm assuming you have 20lb tanks. I've never used two in a whole season but I only use propane to keep the fridge cold while in route and for the occasional heat early and late in the season.

But like John said, better safe than sorry. If you have no idea what you've used, I'd take them both and fill up... that'll help you gauge in the future...

[Flash828]

One simple way to get an estimate is to pour hot water down the side. Then slide your hand down the bottle. Where ever the temperature change is, that's your level.

[Scott91370]

By weight. Tanks will have the empty weight (T.W.) stamped on them. And each gallon of propane weighs X lbs. a little math and bam!

How To Tell How Full (or Empty) Your Propane Tank Really Is

This page will give you good numbers to work from.

[MagooIsBoo]

We bought a magnetic propane gauge from Lee Valley. You pour hot water down it and it reads the propane level very much like the hot water/hand tip from above. Google them and see where you can find them. It was pretty cheap and relatively accurate.amazon, Canadian tire, home hardware also sell similar products. Magnetic Propane Tank Gauge - Lee Valley Tools

[bankr63]

Get one of these ultrasonic pens: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Works like a charm, no hot water, no mess, no muss, no fuss.

[PonyExpress]

that looks cool if it really works.

[jloco]

Originally Posted by SouthCo

I would suggest running one tank at a time. Then when you empty the first tank switch over and fill the empty one. Then your never stuck without.

x2

[Isaacs]

Originally Posted by Kygreen10

What's the best way to check my propane gas levels in my tank? I have two tanks. I just went dry camping for 4 days and he refrigerater ran solely on gas. I think my furnace runs on gas too. I'm going out next weekend for a few more days and want to make sure I have enough gas

Your furnace almost certainly runs on propane. But be advised that it also uses quite a lot of your 12V battery while it's running. If you're dry camping you'll probably run out of power before you run out of propane. (Unless you have solar or generator.)

[tylersdad]

Originally Posted by SouthCo

I would suggest running one tank at a time. Then when you empty the first tank switch over and fill the empty one. Then your never stuck without. I'm assuming you have 20lb tanks. I've never used two in a whole season but I only use propane to keep the fridge cold while in route and for the occasional heat early and late in the season.

But like John said, better safe than sorry. If you have no idea what you've used, I'd take them both and fill up... that'll help you gauge in the future...

We seem to be running out of gas a lot faster than I'd expect.

After running out of LPG twice in the past year, I've also decided that your approach is the best approach. Run one tank at a time. When that one runs out, switch to the other and get the empty one filled.

[bankr63]

Originally Posted by bankr63

Get one of these ultrasonic pens: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Works like a charm, no hot water, no mess, no muss, no fuss.

Originally Posted by PonyExpress

that looks cool if it really works.

Interesting. Went back to Amazon and see a very interesting pattern of reviews. Either five star or one star. I would give it a five star personally. I do note that some of the one star reviews appear not to have actually read the short one page manual that comes with it and may be using it incorrectly. It is not a slide gauge, you are supposed to spot press at several points on the tank to determine gas level. I suspect that it doesn't read correctly if you slide it down the tank after the reading is taken.

It works fine for me on my 2*20lb tanks; I've been using for over a year now. Some say it doesn't work on larger tanks, others say it works fine on larger tanks. Mfg. says it only works on metal (steel) tanks however; probably not on the newer composite material tanks. Truma makes a similar but considerably more expensive device; that is what I originally planned to purchase until I saw the price. It may prove more reliable than the Dometic, but my Dometic seems fine.

[robert66r]

The best way to do this is to take a pitcher of hot water and pour it down the side of the tanks. You will see a condensation line where the propane is.

[whatimmadoboutmylegs]

Toss an additional, full 20lb tank in the TV. We use ours for the camp stove. In a pinch, it can be hooked up to the TT and serve furnace and fridge duty.

[RedHorse1]

Originally Posted by bankr63

Get one of these ultrasonic pens: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Works like a charm, no hot water, no mess, no muss, no fuss.

I have one too. It takes some experience to get the hang of but once you've got it figured out it's pretty good. I like it.
The furnace will use most of your propane and electricity. Fridge uses both very miserly. Fridge only should get 3-5 days on one battery and a week or two on a 20# propane tank.