From the blog
Propane Advice for the Texas Hill Country
Clear answers about propane, from the team that delivers it.
Propane cylinder refill or exchange, which is better
Refilling your propane cylinder is almost always the better deal. You keep your own bottle, it is filled to its proper capacity, and you pay for the gas that actually goes in. An exchange cage swaps you for somebody else’s bottle, typically filled well short of full. The exception is convenience at an odd hour,…
What happens on tank set day
On tank set day a crane truck brings your propane tank, places it on its prepared base, and a gas line is run from the tank to the house. The system is then pressure tested, and only once it holds does any propane go into it. Most of the decisions were made before the truck…
Should you lease or buy your propane tank
Lease a tank and your supplier owns it and maintains it. Buy one and it is yours, which means you can buy propane from anybody, but the upkeep, the recertification and the eventual replacement are yours too. Most homeowners around here lease, and the main reason to buy is wanting to shop on price. It…
Where can a propane tank go on your property
Where a propane tank can go on your property is decided by four clearances: it has to sit a set distance from the house, from any opening such as a window or a door, from ignition sources, and from the property line. Those distances come from the national propane code and they grow with the…
What size propane tank do you need
Most Hill Country homes heating with propane need a 500 gallon tank. If propane only runs your cooktop and hot water, a 250 is usually enough, and a large house, a pool heater or a difficult driveway pushes you to a 1000. Tank size follows what you burn, not the square footage of the house.…
How propane tank monitoring works
A propane tank monitor is a small sender fitted to the gauge on your tank that reports the real fuel level back to us. Instead of predicting when you will need a fill from your past usage, we can see the number. It is the right answer for a property nobody is at in winter.…
Propane tanks, a complete guide for your home
A propane tank is a pressure vessel that holds your fuel as a liquid, sized to what your home burns and placed to meet the safety code. Most Hill Country homes run a 250, 500 or 1000 gallon horizontal tank, leased from us or owned outright, set either above ground or buried. Those four decisions,…
How to get your propane ready for a Texas cold snap
To get your propane ready for a Texas cold snap, check the tank gauge before the front arrives and fill it if it is under 40 percent. A hard freeze makes your house burn propane far faster than normal, and it makes everybody phone us in the same two days. Central Texas does not get…
What to do if you run out of propane
Running out of propane means calling your supplier for a refill plus a safety check, because the system has to be leak tested and every pilot relit by someone qualified before the gas goes back on. Turn the tank’s service valve off if you can reach it safely, then call 4-T Propane. Running out is…
How to read your propane tank gauge
To read your propane tank gauge, lift the lid on top of the tank and read the round dial underneath. The gauge shows a percentage of capacity, not gallons. A full tank reads about 80 percent, not 100, and you should call for a fill when the gauge reaches 30 percent. That is the whole…