Mopeka Bluetooth Propane Tank Gauge

[jimf909]

Last week I was looking for something to spend GW bucks on during their 15% off sale and came across a Bluetooth propane tank gauge. It arrived this week and I tried it out today.

Sand the rust off of the tank..

Epoxy toothpicks to the sensor so it sits squarely on the bottom of the tank...

Spray paint the tank, attach the sensor to the tank (the sensor has magnets that stick to the tank)...

Download the app to a phone and set it for a tank depth of 4.25” which is about the depth of the liquid propane in a full Westy 3.3 gallon tank (up to the overflow bleed valve which is about 2.6 gallons).

I’m looking forward to seeing how it tracks the propane level. GW recommends taking the sensor off of the tank in between measurements. I was going to try some more secure attachment system but decided to keep the sensor inside the van when not measuring the propane.

https://www.gowesty.com/product/lp-tank/25189/-bluetooth-propane-tank-level-sensor

It’s also available on amazon for a few bucks less.
_________________
- Jim

[kamzcab86]

My parents picked a package of these up at their local RV dealer months ago (before GW began selling them) and gave me the second sensor (the first is in their van along with the non-app digital display). Works well. 👍

Digging out that image reminds me that I need to get my tank filled before the upcoming trip!

Edit: Since this post, I've changed the tank parameter to a horizontal diameter measurement of 6" (calculated via tank circumference) . The above image showing 30% was an incorrect reading and resulted in my tank being overfilled because I went and had the tank filled thinking it was low.🤦‍♀️

Edit 2: The instructions state to mount the sensor perpendicular to the tank (and centered on the bottom), not parallel, to get an accurate reading.
_________________
~Kamz
1986 Cabriolet: www.Cabby-Info.com
1990 Vanagon Westfalia: Old Blue's Blog
2016 Golf GTI S
"Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance." - 孔子

[WestleyTheWesty]

Just grabbed one of these from Amazon, nice to see a few tips for using it! Yeah, really no reason to leave it installed 24/7, and the little bag is smart to keep it protected.

Will hopefully test it out this week!
_________________
1990 Westy, started stock, not anymore!

[jimf909]

[maco70]

Here are the instructions photos, about where to put the sensor :

_________________
Martin from Montréal

1986 Vanagon GL full camper westfalia
(brown/tan interior)

[cmayna]

Something I've been wanting to determine how much propane the westy has but also how much propane I have left in my BBQ and smoker propane tanks.

My local ACE hardware has them in stock for $37.....and with a $5 off Ace rewards card that the wife got in the mail recently.
_________________
'90 Westy / automatic.
If I'm not working on the camper or my '50 Chebbie truck, I'm either fishing with the wife or smoking Salmon.


Craig

[cmayna]

JimF909 and Kamz,
Is 6" the best horizontal tank height dimension to use? With 6" it says my tank is about half full which seems pretty accurate to me, but until I get it topped off, it's all a guess.

I then connected the transmitter to the bottom of one of my smoker 20 lb tanks which says 98% which if my memory is correct would be pretty close to accurate.

Just a bunch of more testing, etc will deem how accurate this setup is.
_________________
'90 Westy / automatic.
If I'm not working on the camper or my '50 Chebbie truck, I'm either fishing with the wife or smoking Salmon.


Craig

[Ahwahnee]

Yeah - I got one too on the strength of the above comments. 34 bucks & free shipping from Amazon made it a reasonable bit of kit.

My tank is full so on Monday I will have it and see what it says using 6".

[kamzcab86]

[cmayna]

Just measured the OD and am also getting just a tad over 6". Not knowing if we should be talking OD vs ID, think I'll also stay at 6" for now. Pretty neat device. Think I'll be getting another one dedicated to my two 20# BBQ tanks.

Nice toy. Thank you jimf909 for doing this post.
_________________
'90 Westy / automatic.
If I'm not working on the camper or my '50 Chebbie truck, I'm either fishing with the wife or smoking Salmon.


Craig

[jimf909]

Caution: make sure you download the CORRECT APP.

I was confused when Kamz said she couldn’t enter decimals for the tank height (I could do that on the app I was using). I was further confused when Kamz’s screenshot showed a horizontal tank (I couldn’t select a horizontal tank on my app).

It turns out we had very similar apps (see screenshots above) but kamz’s app had a gear where mine had a pencil. I went back to the App Store and downloaded Mopeka TankCheck not “MY Tracker BBQ” that I had downloaded. They both looked and worked alike but the first app seems to work better with horizontal tanks (at least it displays a horizontal tank).
_________________
- Jim

[kamzcab86]

[jimf909]

^^^ This is interesting. The Help link in the MT Tracker BBQ app goes to an Australian website (below). Either GW has a stash of Australian product and I followed the directions in the package correctly or I somehow managed to track down the Australian version of the app.

Edit: it looks like I just downloaded the Australian app. The product from GW shows the .com url. I'm glad it worked as well as it did !

https://www.boc.com.au/shop/en/au/mt-tracker-bbq

Thanks for setting me straight.
_________________
- Jim

[izzydog]

OK, I'll bite... what's the science behind this magic device?

[jimf909]

[SyncroHead]

My Westy's propane tank was filled by the previous owner and I don't have any idea if it's 90% full or almost empty. This device looks great!

I just ordered one of these too. I'll report back...

Jim
_________________
"A Vanagon? It's not a car or a van. It's a hobby!"

Check out:
www.VANAVATION.com
www.SyncroSafari.org and
www.Vanagons.org

[cmayna]

Mopeka's FAQs states that the battery in the sensor will typically last a year. Battery strength will be stronger in warm climate. Not sure what I'm going to do yet but might consider removing the battery when not using the sensor which I foresee myself using it 2-3 times a year or add an extra 2032 battery to my stash of batteries in the westy kitchen drawer?
_________________
'90 Westy / automatic.
If I'm not working on the camper or my '50 Chebbie truck, I'm either fishing with the wife or smoking Salmon.


Craig

[kamzcab86]

[Ahwahnee]

[jimf909]