How Long Do Your Propane Tanks Last

I get my first 3 or 4 trips on a tank, and then generally go the rest of the summer on another. Cold weather makes a big difference.

workhardplayharder wrote:
To make them last a little longer in winter I pull in the slide(s)at night. With the slides in the RV is more air tight keeping the cold out and the warm in.

Our slide seals the same in or out, but in there would be less exterior surface area to cool, and less square feet to heat.

Get some stick-on gauges that you pour hot water on. I've used them for years and they are quite accurate and easy to use. They come in sizes for both 20 & 30# tanks. Then you will know.

To make them last a little longer in winter I pull in the slide(s)at night. With the slides in the RV is more air tight keeping the cold out and the warm in.

We seldom empty a tank a year.

Bought our TT this time last year with 2 30g tanks. We used the furnace, fridge, stove and oven a few times before it went into storage. I pulled the bottles off and used one for my propane smoker for a 3-4, 4 hour smokes and it's finally getting to the point where it needs to be filled.

An easy trick is to weigh them on a bathroom scale. When full, mine weigh 36 lb. Empty is 16 lb. A gallon of propane weighs a little more than 4 lb. So when you get down to 20 pounds, there is a gallon left, and so forth.

Unless you run your heater all the time, a tank lasts a really long time, even with cooking and showers and the fridge. I have done three weeks of camping on one tank, with plenty to spare.

Depends on how much you use them and what size tanks you have.

Bought my TT new in Feb of 2012. It came with 2 full 30# tanks. I just had my first one run out last August (2013)

I have made 3 off season trips (long w/e's) in that time where I have run my furnace, and 2 trips to the races (5 days each) where I had to use propane to power the fridge. I only fired up the water heater as needed and yes, I have the fridge running on propane while traveling.

IMO that's a pretty good run for one tank.

2 days to 6 months.
Running the furnace a lot and you can be empty in a couple of days. During the summer when we only have the stove and oven running we can go for nearly two months.

They last right up until they run out.

No, really, it depends on the weather. If you are running the furnace, that'll run 'em down fast. In the heat of summer when the only draw on them is the fridge and cooking, two 20 pounders will last for months. In the dead of winter when the furnace is going great guns as well, you'll get perhaps a week out of each tank. And that depends on where you set the thermostat.

Any closer than that is impossible to predict. I note that I have a non-thermostatically controlled Mr. Heater device that is rated 18,000 btus, same as the furnace in my TT. You turn Mr. Heater on, and he runs continuously, and will suck a 20 lb tank dry in 18 hours, according to the chart that came with it. That's 36 hours for two 20 pounders. Fortunately, your furnace won't run continuously unless it is REALLY REALLY cold, so take day-and-a-half as the limit on that end; anything longer is easily within the realm of possibility.