What Are My Propane Tank Size Options?

We’ll help you choose the right tank for your heating and appliances.

When you come on board with a new propane provider, one of the first things you generally do is arrange a new propane tank. It’s not always easy to know how large of a tank your home needs. Hopefully, your new propane company can offer some insight.

At Cape Cod Oil & Propane, we sell and rent many different propane tank sizes. We’ve helped families from the South Shore to Provincetown choose the best tank for their houses and can answer your propane storage questions.

What’s the difference between tank size and capacity?

You may notice that after you receive a propane delivery, your tank is only filled about 80 percent. This is a safety precaution that all propane personnel do — it’s called the “80 percent fill rule.”

Depending on outside temperatures, propane can expand 17 times more than water. We allow 20 percent empty space in propane tanks to allow for this change in volume. So, for example, a 120-gallon tank has a capacity of 96 gallons.

What are standard propane tank sizes?

Here’s a rundown of some of the propane tank sizes we typically install:

• 60-gallon tanks can power a single appliance, like a dryer or range.
• 120-gallon tanks power one or two propane appliances.
• 250-gallon tanks can handle appliances or supplemental heat.
• 325-gallon tanks can supply the heating and appliances of a small home.
• 500-gallon tanks will supply heat for a 2,500–4,500 square-foot home.
• 1,000-gallon tanks are used for large homes and commercial spaces.

It’s worth considering that not all these sizes are available in both aboveground and underground models. The 60-gallon and 120-gallon tanks must be placed above ground.

How do you decide what tank size you need?

When the Cape Cod Oil & Propane team plans for a new tank installation, we consider the following variables:

• House size — If you heat your home and water with propane, then the size of your space (and the number of water taps) will affect how much fuel you use each season.
• Household members — Did you recently welcome a baby to your family or have an older relative move in? This will likely mean you need to run the heat more often. The same is true if someone works from home.
• Number of appliances — We need to account for every fireplace insert, space heater, cooking appliance or other propane-fired product.
• Installation placement — As noted above, not all propane tank sizes can be buried underground. If you want underground propane storage, that limits your selection somewhat.

Rent your propane tank with Cape Cod Oil & Propane!

When you rent a top-quality tank from us, we will install it and handle any maintenance issues for you. If your family grows, you build an addition to the house, or you install a new gas appliance, we can change your storage to a larger tank.

Ready to switch to Cape Cod Oil & Propane for unbeatable fuel delivery? Join our family of customers.