Diesel tank monitoring starts with the night nobody's around
Without diesel tank monitoring, a theft shows up days or weeks later, when a dip comes up short or a machine won't start. By then there's no time of loss and nothing to give police.
Your tanks stand at the homestead, the workshop and the outstations. They're out of sight for days during musters, and grader, ute and generator draw is all over the place.
A padlock on the bowser handle won't stop a hose in the fill point or the outlet.
- A dip or paper log only tells you something's gone, not when.
- A dry tank stops the grader, the feed run and the muster.
The same night, with and without a text
Without monitoring
- 2:00 amSomeone siphons 1,000 L from the tank.
- 6:00 amThe tank looks fine from the house.
- Day 3A dip comes up short. Nobody knows when.
- Day 5You report it with no time and no volume.
With monitoring
- 2:00 amThe level drops 1,000 L in a few minutes.
- 2:05 amText to you and the manager.
- 6:00 amYou check the tank and the bowser door.
- 8:00 amPolice get the time and volume.
How diesel tank monitoring works at the homestead
- 1
A sensor on top of each tank
A level sensor sits at the centre of the tank top, clear of the baffles and fill pipe. It reads every 5 to 15 minutes.
- 2
Radio to the shed
Each sensor sends by LoRaWAN (long range wide area network) radio to the gateway on the shed roof.
- 3
Starlink or 4G carries the text
The gateway sends out by Starlink or 4G, so the tank doesn't need phone coverage.
- 4
A sudden drop is an alert
The system compares each reading with normal draw. A step drop or an after hours drop texts the people on your list.
What we fit on the tanks and at the shed
-
Tank level sensor
Reads the diesel level from the top of each tank. We calibrate it to a dip.
Reads every 5 to 15 min
-
Bowser and hatch contact
Tells you when the bowser cabinet or tank hatch is opened out of hours.
Alerts on any open
-
Gateway on the shed
Picks up every tank sensor by radio. We test signal at each tank first.
Hourly health check
-
Starlink or 4G link
Sends the text out from the shed where the phone signal is poor.
Starlink or 4G
What lands on your phone when the diesel drops
Homestead 10,000 L tank, overnight
Dashboard view
- Tank level
- 8,990 L
- Last 30 min
- -1,000 L
- Bowser door
- Closed
- Sensor
- Reporting
Today versus with diesel tank monitoring
| Topic | Today | With monitoring |
|---|---|---|
| Finding a loss | At the next dip, days or weeks later | A text within minutes of the drop |
| Proof for police | A guess at the date and litres | Time, rate and volume from the graph |
| Running dry | A flat tank at the outstation | A reorder alert at 20 per cent |
On a station with tanks all over the place
One gateway covers every tank it can see, and we test signal at each one.
Add a power failure alarm or bore pump run hours to the same gateway.
Got gas for the brooders or heaters? See LPG tank level monitoring. Cropping? See farm diesel tank monitoring.
What it costs
We fix the price after a short scoping call or a site visit. It depends on how many tanks, how far they are from the gateway, and how it gets out. Ongoing support is available as a plan after handover.
Price a fuel tank alertThe fixed price covers
- A level sensor on every tank you want watched
- Gateway and Starlink or 4G backhaul
- Installation and electrical work under QLD Electrical Contractor Licence 1513082
- Calibration to a dip, alert set-up and a draw-down test, plus training
- An ongoing support plan: we keep it running, fix faults and replace batteries
What this won't do
- It tells you soon after a theft starts. It won't stop one. Keep the locks and cameras.
- Litres are indicative. Foam, condensation, heat and the fill pipe affect the reading, so still dip.
- It shows how much went, not who took it.
- It isn't a fuel dispensing control or a certified overfill or leak detection system. It doesn't replace AS 1940 bunding and venting or your own tax records.
- A tank outside gateway range sends nothing.