If your house relies on propane, you don’t want to misjudge how much gas you have left and run out.

Whether you need propane for your entire house or just your grill, not having it when you need it can cause all kinds of problems. But how do you find out how much propane is in your tank?

It’s not as hard as you think.

Take a look at this guide to learn five tricks that’ll tell you if your propane tank is getting low.

1. Using a Gauge

This is both the easiest and most precise way to find out how much propane is left in your take at all times. There are several different ways you can do this.

Analog Propane Scale: These scales are tared for the weight of your propane tank. In other words, the reading represents the amount of propane inside your tank.

Inline Pressure Gauge: This type of system runs a gauge between the grill’s gas line and the cut-off valve on the propane tank. Depending on the pressure of the tank, it will tell you when the propane is getting low.

Digital Propane Tank Scale: A digital scale tells you the propane level and the amount of cook time that goes with it.

If you want to use any of these gauges, you can pick them up at most hardware stores.

2. Testing with Hot Water

When you pour hot water over your propane tank, the propane will absorb the heat.

After dumping hot water over the tank, run your hand down the side and look for a cool spot. This cool spot marks the fill line of your tank. If the wall of the tank feels warm, there is no propane behind it.

Measuring your propane level this way isn’t accurate, but it does let you know when you need to refill your tank.

3. Knowing the Weight

Most propane tanks come with several measurements written on the tank. These might include the water capacity (WC) and how much the tank weights when there is nothing inside (TW).

Once you know these things, you need to get a scale.

Weight the tank and subtract the tare weight (TW) from the overall weight. The number you’re left with is the amount of propane still in your tank.

For example, let’s say your tank weights 17 pounds and holds 20 pounds of propane. When you weight your tank, the scale puts it at 22 pounds. After subtracting the tare weight, you’re left with 5 pounds. In other words, your tank has 5 pounds of propane left.

4. Calculating the Cook Time

This method takes a bit of basic math. A gallon of propane creates about 92,000 BTUs. When you divide this by the number of BTUs you use every hour, you can find out how many hours a gallon of propane will last.

Multiply this with the total number of gallons in your tank. This will tell you how many hours you can cook with your propane.

Knowing your cook time lets you keep track of the amount of propane in your tank. Again, this isn’t a precise method, but it does let you know when the tank is getting empty.

5. Getting a Bluetooth Propane Level Indicator

A Bluetooth propane level indicator links to an app on your smartphone. Whenever your tank starts to get low, the app will let you know. This means you can check the level of propane in your tank while you’re at the propane gas supplier.

Checking the Levels of Your Propane Tank

There are several different ways you can check the levels in your propane tank. If you don’t have a lot of time for math or scales, you can buy a gauge. If you don’t need precise numbers, you can do the hot water test.

Want to save some extra money as a homeowner? Here are a few things you can start doing right away.