RV Propane Calculator
Estimate how much propane your RV will burn on a given trip — broken down by furnace, water heater, refrigerator, and cooktop — and how many tank-days that buys you.
Inputs
Standard DOT cylinders: 20 lb ≈ 4.7 gal LP, 30 lb ≈ 7.1 gal, 40 lb ≈ 9.4 gal. Motorhome ASME tanks are listed in usable gallons on the data plate.
Set 0 in summer; 6–10 in cold-weather camping.
Most setups cycle the water heater 1–2 hours/day to cover showers and dishes.
Set 0 if you run the fridge on shore power or DC the whole trip.
gallons for the trip
How we got this
- 4 day
Days per full tank
- 1
Tank refills needed
- 7.7 gal
Furnace
- 1.4 gal
Water heater
- 2.8 gal
Refrigerator
- 0.4 gal
Cooktop / oven
Methodology
Each appliance burns at a published steady-state BTU/hr. Multiply by hours-per-day × trip days, then divide by 91,500 BTU per gallon of propane to get gallons.
| Appliance | Assumed burn rate | Hours/day | Gallons/trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| Furnace | 25,000 BTU/hr | 4 | 7.7 |
| Water heater | 12,000 BTU/hr | 1.5 | 1.4 |
| Refrigerator (on LP) | 1,500 BTU/hr | 24 | 2.8 |
| Cooktop / oven | 7,500 BTU/hr | 0.75 | 0.4 |
Total for 7 days of camping: 12.3 gallons.
At an average daily burn of ~1.8 gallons, your 7 gal tank lasts about 4 days. You'll need 1 refill to cover the trip.
Estimate only — actual usage depends on weather (the furnace dominates in cold weather), elevation (less efficient combustion above ~5,000 ft), and behavior (boondocking with no shore power runs the fridge harder on LP).
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