The dial on your propane tank reads percent, not gallons. A tank is filled to about 80 percent so the liquid has room to expand, which means a “full” 500-gallon tank holds roughly 400 gallons. Look at that dial once a month, and call us before it drops to 20 percent. We deliver from our yard at US Route 162 and Route 262 in Montezuma Creek, across the Navajo Nation and the wider Four Corners, and this is the question we answer more than any other: what is that number actually saying.
What the number on the dial means
Under the lid on top of the tank is a small round gauge. Lift the lid, look at the needle, and read the percent. Empty is near the bottom. After a fill, the needle sits around 80. The dial does not count gallons. It does not count days of heat. It only tells you what share of the tank still has liquid in it.
Most residential tanks we set are 250, 500, or 1,000 gallons. The size is on the data plate on the tank. Once you know the size, the percent turns into a rough gallon picture you can use.
On a 250-gallon tank, a fill to about 80 percent is about 200 gallons. Twenty percent left is about 50 gallons. On a 500-gallon tank, a fill to about 80 percent is about 400 gallons. Twenty percent left is about 100 gallons. On a 1,000-gallon tank, a fill to about 80 percent is about 800 gallons. Twenty percent left is about 200 gallons.
Those are the numbers we plan around. If you do not know your tank size, read the plate, or ask the office. We can look it up from the last delivery.
If the glass is fogged, the lid is stuck, or the needle has sat on the same mark for months, call us. A gauge you cannot read is a reason to have someone look. It is not a reason to guess.
Why the tank stops at about 80 percent
Propane sits in the tank as a liquid. When the sun hits the steel, or a warm afternoon follows a cold night, that liquid expands. The space above the liquid is there so the liquid has somewhere to go. That is why a fill stops at about 80 percent. A tank showing 80 on the dial is as full as it is supposed to get, so plan the winter around that smaller number. The extra room at the top is not wasted space. It is how the tank is meant to be filled.
The 20 percent line
Do not let the dial drop below 20 percent. Below that you have almost no cushion if weather delays a delivery. Snow, ice, mud, and a washed-out dirt stretch can slow a truck. We do not promise a clock time. We get there as fast as it is safe to, and weather can delay a delivery.
If the tank runs all the way empty, adding propane is not the end of the work. An out-of-gas tank needs a leak check by a qualified technician before the system can go back in service. Pilots go out. The lines have to be checked before anything is lit again. That leak check is a separate visit, and in a storm it is a slow one. Do not try to relight a pilot yourself. Call us and wait for the technician.
For will-call, call when the dial is around 30 percent. That is the line that usually leaves enough fuel to get through a wait. If you are already at 20, call the same day. If you are empty, call as soon as you know.
The other gauge on the tank
The dial is the gauge you read. There is a second device in the dome that people mix up with it. That is the fixed liquid level gauge, a small valve our drivers use while they fill. It tells them when the liquid has reached the 80 percent line. Only a trained person should open it.
Those two readings do not always land on the same number. After a delivery the ticket may show a completed fill and the dial may sit a little under 80. Temperature moves the liquid. The fill can still be correct. Use the delivery ticket for how much went in, and use the dial to watch the tank between visits. Leave the small valve closed, and if you are not sure what you are looking at under the lid, ask your driver next time we are there.
Will-call or keep-full
There are two ways delivery works, and plenty of people are not sure which one they are on:
- Will-call means you watch your own gauge and call us when you need propane. You keep the control, and you keep the watching. It works if checking the tank is truly part of your month.
- Keep-full, or automatic delivery, means we track how your household uses propane and schedule you before you get low. You still glance at the dial. You are not the one who has to remember to call.
If you heat the house with propane, keep-full is the steadier way through winter. If you also run a shop heater, a barn, or stock tanks off the same supply, that load belongs in the same conversation. We cover that work on our agricultural page. Tell us if you add a heater, a generator, or extra people in the house. Usage changes, and we need to know.
If you do not know which plan you are on, call and ask. It takes a minute to look up.
When to call us
Call the office at 435-255-1020 when the dial is near 30 percent on will-call, when it is at 20 or below, or when the tank has run empty. Call if the gauge is unreadable, if the needle looks stuck, or if you want to switch to keep-full before the cold sets in. That number is also the emergency line, and it is answered 24 hours. You can also reach us through our contact page.
Our drivers are CETP-certified, and the full list of what we handle is on our services page. The towns we run, from Montezuma Creek through Aneth, Red Mesa, Mexican Water, Bluff, Blanding, Mexican Hat, Monument Valley, Kayenta, Dennehotso, Rock Point, Blue Gap, Whippoorwill, Chinle, Many Farms, and Shiprock, are listed on our service area page. Some of those roads are ordinary driving in fair weather and slow after snow. A tank that still has room is how you stay ahead of that.
Running Horse Services is Navajo Nation-owned, a subsidiary of Navajo Nation Oil and Gas Company. Of the Nation, for the Nation. We would rather explain a gauge on a quiet afternoon than take an empty-tank call in a January storm.
Carbon monoxide and the smell of gas
Propane appliances work hardest in winter. Every level of the home should have a working carbon monoxide alarm. If you smell an odor like rotten eggs, or a CO alarm sounds, get everyone outside first, call 911 from a safe place, then call us at 435-255-1020. Do not look for the leak yourself. Do not go back inside until responders say it is safe.
More of that same guidance sits on our safety page.
Running Horse Services - US Route 162 and Route 262, Montezuma Creek, UT 84534 - 435-255-1020
Questions we get
How do I read my propane tank gauge?
Lift the lid on the tank dome and read the dial. The needle shows percent, not gallons, and a filled tank sits around 80 percent. Most houses here have a 250, 500, or 1,000 gallon tank, and that size times the percent gives you a rough gallon picture. If the glass is fogged or the needle has not moved in months, call us at 435-255-1020 and we will look at it. Do not take the gauge apart.
Why does my tank only fill to 80 percent?
Your tank fills to about 80 percent so the liquid propane has room to expand when the tank warms up. That space at the top is part of a proper fill, and a “full” 500-gallon tank holds roughly 400 gallons. The driver stops at that line on purpose. If the dial sits a little under 80 after a delivery, the tank can still be filled correctly. Call the office if a ticket and a dial reading look far apart.
At what percentage should I order propane?
Order when the dial is around 30 percent if you are on will-call. That usually leaves enough propane to get through a wait if weather delays a delivery. Do not wait until 20 percent, and do not let the tank run empty. Below 20 percent you have little cushion, and an empty tank needs a leak check before we can put the system back in service. Keep-full customers should still glance at the dial and call if it looks lower than it should.
What happens if my propane tank runs completely empty?
If the tank runs empty, a qualified technician has to do a leak check before the system goes back in service. Pilots go out, and the lines need to be checked before anything is lit again. Call us at 435-255-1020. Do not relight appliances yourself. Weather can delay a delivery, so an empty tank in a cold week is a slow fix. Keep-full is how a lot of households avoid getting that low.
