I have two underground propane tanks feeding my vacation home in the adirondacks. How low can I allow these tanks to get before I must fill them up? I have 33% in them now. I don’t use much at all when I am not here but that could drop by 2% each weekend I am up. I thought I remember hearing that I should not go below 20%. Unless I am confusing that with the “not over 80%” rule?
The house is at the top of a long driveway and with snow accumulation it’s hard to turn the delivery truck around. So I am wondering whether I can make it through till snow melt or if I really need to try and get a truck up here before it goes below 20%
Thanx!
Bill
Replies
I've run completely out, what's your concern?
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
"Success is not spontaneous combustion, you have to set yourself on Fire"
Not sure what the concern was. Maybe imagined. I didn't know if there was some risk of moisture or something if you go below 20%. Or the regulators not working etc.
As I said this is something in the back of my mind that I thought I heard but can't find any validation for by searching the web so I might have confused it with the "leave 20% space when filling for vapor and expansion" rule.
Might be, I don't worry bout the over fill level, hell, I can't afford to fill the tank up that far!
I get 300.oo worth when I need it, which is about every two yrs.
But all I am running is a gas cook top and oven, for 2 people.Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
"Success is not spontaneous combustion, you have to set yourself on Fire"
I heat with it.
Ya said ya have two tanks, can ya keep one full while using the other? Never run completly out that way.Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
"Success is not spontaneous combustion, you have to set yourself on Fire"
Are you on auto refill? Your propane provider should be able to nail it close on when to refill unless you have changed the environment to cause additional consumption without the propane providers knowledge.
They do their refills based upon a "heating degree day" formula and a historic record of you consumption.
Virginbuild
No I am on "Will Call". So I am trying to decide when to call. Or more importantly, if I can't have them come up because of the snow accumulation, what't the risk of the tank getting below X% (if any).
This is our first winter in this newly built house so our consumption rates are not yet predictable, although I have been logging the gauge reading each time I come and go.
Rule of thumb for propane, never less than 30%, no more than 80%. Given those constraints, one can calculate that a 1000gal tank really only has 500gal of usable fuel in it.
If a tank is overfilled, there is not enough "headroom" in the tank to allow proper vaporization of the liquid propane to create proper fuel supply to your appliances.
If the fuel drops below 30%, once again, insufficient vaporization of the LPG occurs, creating restricted gas fuel supply to your appliance.
Another rule of thumb if one is interested in the math, 1 gal of propane contains ABOUT 100,000BTU, often a bit more, depending on the location and specific blends. Based on your appliance's INPUT BTU's, you can roughly estimate your expected fuel consumption.
ie... A 100,000 BTU heater will use about 1 gal for every hour it operates.
Your appliances were designed for, and if properly installed, supplied a specific VOLUME and PRESSURE of fuel. When the tank is outside of the above GENERAL parameters, the appliance may suffer, ie... excessive condensation, sooting, poor combustion, just plain low output. Many standing pilot systems and almost all automatic ignition (no pilot) devices do not like low fuel pressure.
For "most" stove/water heaters/small furnaces(under 100,000BTU), you can "probably" drop below 30% without too much concern, but if you have multiple appliances running or a single large unit, ie...400,000BTU pool/spa heater, you will probably not want to run much below 30% at all.
Why be cold, call for the fill, the driver will not take any chances with safety, and you will have the peace of mind of a warm shower the next day!
I know that when our tank got very low once, we started smelling gas in the house. The propane company said that was the reason and once they filled it, the smell went away.
The building code out here says that propane tanks run empty have to be reinspected, and the lines tested, before they can be filled again. A few extra days and some $$ for neglecting to call the gas company earlier.
I suppose it makes sense if nobody knows how long the system was empty. There might be corrosion or leaks and filling without testing could create a hazard.
Thanx.
It's not really a matter of neglect. They moan about not being able to turn their truck around at my house when the snow has accumulated. So it would be a matter of hiring a front loader or backhoe to somehow move enough snow around for them to be able to get up and turn around with the delivery truck.
That being said, I was not planning on letting it run completely empty. Just was wondering how hard and fast the 20% redline was.
propane tanks can only be filled to 80% of capacity
the liquid in a cylinder of propane has to vaporize to supply your equipment and the lower the temperature of the liquid the poorer the vapourization
the surface area of the liquid in the cylinder and the temp are the key
call the supplier and ask them for their opinion , they are familiar with the area in question and can give you better advice im sure