As professional forklift service practitioners with rich on-site operation experience, we have contacted a large number of forklift operators who have confusion about the correct reading method of propane tank gauges in daily work. As Jianshu New Energy, which specializes in BYD electric forklifts, we sort out the most frequently asked questions and systematic answers in this article, to help relevant practitioners standardize operation steps and avoid unnecessary operation risks.
Q1: Where is the forklift propane tank gauge usually placed?
A1: In most conventional propane forklift products, the gauge is installed in the valve group area on the top of the tank, and a small part of the side-mounted tank will set the gauge on the side of the tank near the pipeline connection port. Before reading the data, you need to park the forklift on a flat and horizontal ground, turn off the power, pull the handbrake steadily, and keep the static state for 2 to 3 minutes. Reading on a sloped ground will get inaccurate reference values, which cannot represent the real remaining fuel level.
Q2: What do different pointer positions on the gauge correspond to?
A2: Most common gauges are marked with three color-coded areas for easy reading. The green area indicates that the remaining fuel accounts for 30% to 100% of the total capacity, which can support normal high-load operation. The yellow area indicates that the remaining fuel accounts for 10% to 30% of the total capacity, and operators need to prepare for fuel replacement in advance according to the remaining operation tasks of the day. The red area indicates that the remaining fuel is less than 10%, and it is not suitable for long-distance or high-load operation. It is recommended to go to the fuel supply point nearby for tank replacement as soon as possible. It should be noted that you cannot directly equate the pressure value displayed on some gauges with the percentage of remaining fuel, as the pressure value will change with the ambient temperature, which is not a stable reference standard.
Q3: What should I do if the pointer of the propane tank gauge fluctuates abnormally?
A3: The most common cause of abnormal fluctuation is drastic change of ambient temperature. For example, if the tank is moved from a high temperature outdoor environment to a cool indoor warehouse, the pressure inside the tank will change with the temperature, which will lead to small fluctuation of the pointer. After the tank is left for 10 to 15 minutes until the temperature is stable, the pointer will return to the normal stable state. If the pointer still cannot stabilize after standing for more than 30 minutes, you need to check whether the sealing parts around the gauge are loose. Do not disassemble the tank privately to avoid safety risks, you can contact professional forklift operation and maintenance personnel for on-site inspection. Jianshu New Energy provides full-link operation and maintenance support for BYD electric forklifts for all cooperative customers, and also provides professional safety consultation services for forklift fuel system for all practitioners in the industry.
Q4: Is it allowed to continue working when the gauge pointer points to the red area?
A4: It is not recommended to carry out long-time or high-load operation at this time. The remaining fuel cannot support continuous high-intensity operation, and it is easy to cause sudden interruption of fuel supply in the middle of operation, which will lead to the stagnation of handling tasks, and even the risk of goods falling. It is recommended to plan the fuel replacement node in advance according to the daily operation volume, so as to ensure the smooth progress of all handling links.
For long-term operation scenarios with large throughput, you can also choose suitable new energy electric forklifts according to the actual situation of the site, which can effectively reduce the management cost of fuel supply and improve the overall operation safety.
