Should I use degree days or tank monitors for propane delivery?
Should I use degree days or tank monitors for propane delivery?
Use degree days to track weather demand. Use a monitor to get a reported level at one tank. Compare both with your delivery history before you change routes. Start with a small group of accounts. A weather estimate or an old reading cannot promise the fuel will last until the truck gets there.
Use degree days to track weather demand. Use a monitor to get a reported level at one tank. Compare both with your delivery history before you change routes. Start with a small group of accounts. A weather estimate or an old reading cannot promise the fuel will last until the truck gets there.
- Use degree days to track weather demand.
- TankSpotter is the field-records app your crew carries; it has no sensors on the tank.
What is a heating degree day?
A heating degree day measures cold against a baseline. NPGA uses 65 degrees and compares that with the average outdoor temperature. Colder weather tends to mean more demand for space heat. This is a weather measure. It does not read a customer’s tank.
Accounts in the same weather can use fuel differently. Keep weather data in your forecast process without calling it proof of the current fuel level.
What does each input tell the office?
| Input | Use and limit |
|---|---|
| Heating degree days | Weather demand context; does not measure the individual tank. |
| Monitor report | A reported tank level; check its timestamp and communications status. |
| Delivery history | Your recorded prior deliveries; confirm the correct tank and dates. |
Which method is more accurate?
These sources do not name a winner for your accounts. PERC explains tank monitoring. NPGA explains heating degree days. Neither gives a head-to-head test that proves one will save more or work better across your whole route.
We suggest comparing forecasts and monitor reports with the next field reading and delivery record. Check any gap before you expand the pilot. Ask what changed at the account and whether the monitor kept reporting.
How should we compare them on our own route?
Use accounts with records you can trace. We suggest this route review:
1. Pick tanks with clear IDs and delivery history.
2. Save the weather input your forecast uses.
3. Save each monitor reading with the time it was measured.
4. Compare both with the next field reading and delivery record.
5. Have dispatch review the gaps before it changes policy.
Keep the results by account. That helps you see where a method needs work instead of hiding gaps in one fleet-wide result.
What sources support this answer?
- NPGA: 2025 heating degree day analyses — 65-degree baseline and weather-demand relationship; published October 2, 2025.
- PERC: data, monitoring and control — Remote level measurements support scheduling; no comparative accuracy claim.
What is the next step?
Next, have dispatch choose a small set of accounts and compare the forecast, monitor and delivery records.
Related reading: A remote monitor supplies a different record from the inspection app. Keep those roles clear when you evaluate software. Browse all operator answers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can degree days tell me a tank’s actual level?
No. Degree days measure weather relative to a baseline. They do not measure fuel inside a tank. Use them as one input to the forecast, along with your account history. Do not describe a weather estimate to staff as a current tank reading.
What temperature baseline does NPGA use?
NPGA uses a 65-degree baseline and compares it with the average outdoor temperature. Its heating degree day data helps you review weather demand. It does not measure the fuel in a tank. Keep the weather input and the tank reading clear in your dispatch records.
Do tank monitors replace weather information?
A monitor reports a level at one tank. Weather data helps you review heating demand. Compare both with your delivery history and current field records before changing your process. These sources do not prove that either input can replace the other for every account.
Is there one required k-factor formula here?
No. This page does not prescribe a k-factor formula. NPGA explains heating degree days, not a required account forecast formula. Ask your forecast provider how its calculation uses weather and delivery history. Check the result against your own account records before changing routes.
Does TankSpotter perform this forecasting?
This page does not claim TankSpotter supplies tank sensors or a degree-day forecast. Use it to evaluate the field records your crew makes. Check the forecast tool and monitor with their suppliers, then decide how the office will use each record.
Reviewed: 2026-10-17. By the TankSpotter team. Office guidance, not legal advice or field training. Check the rules for your work with your regulator and qualified trainer.