The weather is getting colder, which means the heating season has already begun. Have you ever been outside at night, in the cold and rain, checking the gas cylinder of your motorhome or caravan, or swapping it for a full one? And how did you check whether the cylinder was empty? Knocking on it? Weighing it? You already know what I'm talking about 🙂
Well, there was a time when I too checked my motorhome's gas cylinders very often. I would knock on the cylinder and try to guess how much gas was still inside, and just to be sure I weighed the cylinder on a luggage scale and calculated: weight minus tare… 🙂
Today I no longer bother with weighing cylinders! I discovered Mopeka® measuring devices for myself. This solution is really so convenient and easy to use!
Who is Mopeka?
Mopeka® is a world-leading provider of sonar-based tank monitoring solutions. The Mopeka® portfolio consists of award-winning, patented sonar, mobile and cloud-based services and solutions that help all businesses dealing with liquids, including suppliers of propane, butane, water, anhydrous ammonia and other liquid commodities, to better manage their existing liquid volumes and simplify supply chain management.
The Mopeka® product range also includes measuring solutions suitable for home use. The range of applications is very wide: gas and water tanks in motorhomes and caravans, and gas cylinders and water tanks for household BBQ grills, steel heaters and other domestic solutions.
Two different sensor models are currently available for gas cylinders: the MOPEKA Standard Bluetooth gas level sensor and the newer MOPEKA PRO Check Bluetooth gas level sensor. The sensor has magnets and is attached with them to the bottom of a steel cylinder. Aluminium cylinders need additional mounting aids (accessories). Using sonar technology, the sensor checks the level of liquid gas in the cylinder and sends the information via the Bluetooth wireless protocol to a receiver, which can be, for example, a smartphone or the separate MOPEKA Check Wireless LED Display, which can be connected to 2 gas level sensors.
To process the information on your smartphone, the free Tank Check app is available
Tank Check can be downloaded from:
Google Play Store (for Android)
Apple App Store (for iPhone, iPad)
Tank Check is very easy to use
- To pair the Tank Check sensor with your phone, simply press the “Sync” button on the back of the sensor while the main screen of the app is visible. When using a Tank Check sensor for the first time, you must press the “Sync” button 5 times in a row to wake the sensor.
- Place the Tank Check sensor in the centre of the bottom of the tank. Most tanks have a small “flat” spot in the centre, and this is the nominal position for the sensor.
- Turn the tank over. Once the liquid has settled, the app will display a reading. Note that LPG liquid sloshes in the tank for a few minutes and measurement quality is low until it has stabilised.
The Bluetooth wireless standard allows the sensors to be monitored reliably only within a radius of about 10 m. If you wish, however, you can monitor the sensors from the other side of the world, wherever you can access the internet with your smartphone. To do this, a MOPEKA Check Wifi Bridge must be installed within Bluetooth range of the sensors; it sends the measurement data over a Wi-Fi connection to the Mopeka cloud, from where the Tank Check app on your smartphone downloads it.
I use both the MOPEKA Check Wireless LED Display and the Tank Check app on my smartphone. I have installed the display in my motorhome next to the main driver's display, where every family member can check the gas cylinder levels at the press of a button. Personally I use the app more, because it is very convenient.
The app can also be set up to send warning alerts when the amount of gas in a cylinder drops below a set level. In my app I have added the 2 gas cylinders of my motorhome and also the cylinder of my home BBQ gas grill. This is the overview I have:
I have used Mopeka® products myself for a long time and dare to recommend them to others too!
Mopeka® devices are also available in our online shop: see Mopeka measuring devices