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📡 Bluetooth Propane Gauges and Other Gadgets That Broadcast
A Bluetooth propane gauge tells anyone nearby how full your tank is. Door sensors, smart locks and toothbrushes give away more than you would expect too.
Quick answer: Many Bluetooth gadgets do not wait for your phone to connect. They shout their readings into the air every few seconds, and anyone nearby can listen with a free app. A propane gauge on a grill or RV tank is a good example. Door sensors, smart locks, toothbrushes, grill probes and some cars do the same. None of this is hacking: the data is broadcast in the open.
What does a Bluetooth propane gauge broadcast?
Bluetooth propane gauges come in three common forms. Some stick under the tank and measure the level with sound, like Mopeka sensors and the GHP EchoCheck GHP Group, EchoCheck tank sensor. Others are scales the tank sits on, like Flame King’s smart scale Flame King, smart propane scale. RV owners also use tank monitors such as Lippert’s BottleCheck Jayco parts, Lippert BottleCheck and Garnet’s gauges RV PRO (29 Nov 2017).
The Mopeka sensors are the best documented, because home-automation projects read them. ESPHome’s code pulls out the tank reading, temperature and battery level from each broadcast ESPHome, Mopeka Standard source (read 5 Nov 2026) ESPHome, Mopeka Pro source (read 5 Nov 2026). It needs no password and no pairing. That means anyone with a scanner in range can read the same numbers. EchoCheck quotes a range of up to 164 feet GHP Group, EchoCheck tank sensor.
- What it reveals. That you own a propane tank, roughly how full it is, and when the level changes. A falling level means someone is cooking or heating.
- A fixed identity. ESPHome tells sensors apart by their Bluetooth address ESPHome, Mopeka Pro source (read 5 Nov 2026). A sensor that keeps the same address can be recognised again at a new campsite or driveway.
- How they are spotted. Mopeka Standard sensors use the service ID
0xADA0ESPHome, Mopeka Standard source (read 5 Nov 2026). Mopeka Pro sensors use0xFEE5with company ID0x0059Home Assistant, Mopeka integration manifest. ESPHome’s Mopeka Pro code also reads Lippert BottleCheck sensors ESPHome, Mopeka Pro source (read 5 Nov 2026).
We found no widely sold propane regulator with Bluetooth built in. The connected part is usually a separate gauge, scale or sensor fitted to the tank.
Which other gadgets broadcast to anyone nearby?
Home Assistant can read all of these passively, which is why their formats are public Home Assistant integration manifests (read 5 Nov 2026). Each one is a lead about what is in a home, not proof of who lives there.
| Device | What a listener can learn | How it is spotted |
|---|---|---|
| Door and window sensors (BTHome, such as Shelly BLU) | When a door opens, unless the owner turned on encryption. BTHome encryption is optional BTHome, encryption (read 5 Nov 2026) | Service ID 0xFCD2 |
| August and Yale smart locks | That this door has a Bluetooth smart lock, and which brand | Service ID 0xFE24 |
| Oral-B toothbrushes | When someone is brushing, so when someone is home and awake | Company ID 0x00DC |
| Grill thermometers (Inkbird, ThermoPro) | That someone is cooking, and the meat temperature | Names starting iBBQ or TP9 |
| Home thermometers (Govee, Xiaomi, SensorPush, Ruuvi) | Room temperature and humidity. Newer Xiaomi models encrypt their readings | Xiaomi 0xFE95, Ruuvi 0x0499, names like SensorPush |
A single reading matters little. The risk is the pattern: a door sensor and a toothbrush together show when a house is busy and when it is empty.
Which surveillance gear gives itself away over Bluetooth?
The same openness works in your favour when the device is pointed at you.
- Camera glasses. Detector apps watch for company IDs: Luxottica
0x0D53(Ray-Ban Meta), Snap0x03C2, and Meta’s0x01ABand0x058EHelp Net Security (27 Feb 2026). Meta’s IDs also match its VR headsets, so treat a hit as a lead Help Net Security (27 Feb 2026). The NoPeek developers add that detection is “probabilistic, not guaranteed” NoPeek project notes. - Flock’s Raven gunshot sensors. GainSec found Raven advertising its own Bluetooth services for GPS, power, network and upload status, numbered
0x3100to0x3500flock-you, crediting GainSec’s Raven dataset. - Flock battery packs. Flock’s extended-battery units advertise the name
FS Ext Batteryflock-you, crediting GainSec’s Raven dataset. Our Flock guide covers the cameras themselves.
Does my car broadcast too?
Often, yes. A Tesla Model 3 “constantly sends out iBeacon advertising” so the phone key works. Researcher Martin Herfurt picked the cars up from up to 50 metres away BeaconZone, on Martin Herfurt’s Tesla research.
Tyre-pressure sensors are a bigger issue, and almost every modern car has them. IMDEA Networks collected signals from more than 20,000 vehicles over ten weeks, with receivers costing about $100 each. Each sensor sends a unique ID unencrypted, so the same car can be recognised again IMDEA Networks via EurekAlert (25 Feb 2026). Tyre sensors use 315 or 433 MHz radio, which the Scout cannot hear.
How do I check what my own devices broadcast?
- Install a free scanner such as Nordic’s nRF Connect nRF Connect for Mobile, App Store. Walk around your home, garage or RV and note every device it lists.
- Paste each company ID, service ID or name into our Bluetooth ID lookup to see what it is.
- Step outside and scan again from the street. Anything still visible there is visible to strangers too.
- A MaxIntel Scout does the same passively and flags known devices on screen.
How do I cut down what they give away?
- Turn on encryption where it exists. BTHome sensors support AES encryption with a shared key BTHome, encryption (read 5 Nov 2026). Use it, and buy models that encrypt by default.
- Remove what you do not use. Take the battery out of a tank sensor or grill probe between seasons.
- Think about placement. A sensor near an outside wall reaches the street. One deep inside the house usually does not.
- Do not rely on a gadget for security. A broadcast that says a smart lock is fitted is also an advert for the door.
Reading broadcasts is passive and legal in most places, but using them to follow a person is not. Our ethical OSINT guide explains where the line sits.
Frequently asked questions
Can someone see my propane tank level over Bluetooth?
Often, yes. Sensors such as Mopeka broadcast the reading, temperature and battery level with no pairing. Anyone in range with a Bluetooth scanner can read them, and EchoCheck quotes a range of up to 164 feet.
Are Bluetooth propane gauges a security risk?
The reading itself is low risk. The bigger issue is a fixed Bluetooth address, which lets the sensor be recognised again. Its readings also show when the tank is in use.
Which household devices broadcast over Bluetooth without connecting?
Door and window sensors, smart locks, toothbrushes, grill thermometers and room thermometers are common examples. Home Assistant reads all of them passively, which is why their formats are public.
Can you detect Meta smart glasses with Bluetooth?
Often, by their Bluetooth company IDs, such as Luxottica 0x0D53. Meta's IDs also match its VR headsets, and glasses that are off or not advertising will not show, so a hit is a lead.
How do I see what Bluetooth devices are around me?
Use a free scanner such as nRF Connect, then look up each ID or name in the Max Intel Bluetooth ID lookup. Scan again from outside to see what strangers can pick up.
Can my car be tracked by its tyre pressure sensors?
Researchers at IMDEA Networks tracked cars this way. Each sensor sends a unique ID unencrypted, and they logged more than 20,000 vehicles with receivers costing about $100.