LPG and Bottled Gas Usage Calculator

Who this is for

How long a cylinder lasts, and what the gas costs you each day. Write the date each cylinder goes on and the date it runs out, with what you paid for it, and the sheet works out the days it lasted and the cost per day and per week. The summary turns that into an average, a yearly cost and the number of cylinders a year at your current use.

Homes off the gas grid, caravan and motorhome owners and boat dwellers who cook or heat with LPG cylinders or a bulk tank and want to budget for the next delivery.

What this helps you track

• How many days each cylinder or tank fill lasted
• What the gas cost per day and per week for each cylinder
• Price changes between deliveries and suppliers
• The average cost per day across every cylinder logged
• How many cylinders a year you are likely to need at current use

How to use it

1. Write the cylinder size, your current price per cylinder and the appliances running on gas at the top.
2. When a new cylinder goes on, write the date connected and the price you paid for it.
3. When it runs out, fill in the date empty; the days lasted and the cost per day and week are worked out in the browser and the workbook.
4. On paper, count the days between the two dates and divide the price by them.
5. Note anything that changed use, such as cold weather, guests or a new appliance, so a short-lived cylinder makes sense later.
6. Check the yearly figures in the summary before ordering, or when comparing suppliers.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser
• Excel / Google Sheets workbook

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The workbook uses plain formulas only — SUM, IF, COUNTIF and the like — so it opens in Excel, LibreOffice and Google Sheets without anything breaking, and every calculated cell is grey so you can see which figures it worked out.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

Does this work for a bulk tank rather than cylinders?

Yes. Treat each fill as one line: the date of the delivery, the date you next ordered or the gauge reached your refill point, and what that delivery cost. Use the notes column for the litres delivered and the gauge readings.

How is the yearly cost worked out?

It takes the average cost per day across every cylinder you have logged and multiplies it by 365. The more cylinders you record, across summer and winter, the closer it gets to a real year of use.

Why is there a price on each line as well as in the header?

Prices change between deliveries. Each line uses what you actually paid for that cylinder, so the history stays true; the header price is your current one, kept as a reminder when ordering.

I run two cylinders on a changeover valve. How do I log them?

Log each cylinder on its own line from the day it starts supplying to the day it empties and the valve switches over. The days lasted then reflect real use rather than time spent sitting as the spare.