It looks like we will be building a new house.
My son said that we should bury the propane tank to avoid any issues should the SHTF as we will be in the county.

Thoughts? Can it be done?

Yes there are propaner tanks that are designed to be buried.

Here's one example.

https://www.kleen-ritecorp.com/p-37890-1000-gallon-underground-propane-tank.aspx

I'd be more worried about my security than my propane when SHTF.

Watch/read THE ROAD.

Thanks. I will check them out.

I see them when I drive by the propane businesses

I agree with your son. Buy a small dilapidated dog house to conceal the refill port and its cover.

What ISSUES?

Issues? In the SHTF scenareo, several things come to mind. First the OP was saying they may not be home all the time. Above grade tanks have the valve and line accessible, easy to steal propane, shut off the vale to the house out of spite, cut the line, etc. Above grade tanks can make for a fun target if you want to do harm. If I were putting in a new tank, I would bury it if I could.

I had not noticed . . . hard to do if they are buried, but ahve seen three different propane trucks delivering over tha last week and nothing other than the fill port was above ground.

Seems like the tank would need a good protective coating!

Think pipelines..

I've got a buried 500 gallon propane tank for my 20KW Generac generator. My house is ICF construction, with geothermal HVAC, so the Generac is my only real use for propane.

Couple of things to consider. To get a tank to bury, we had to buy VS rent, then trench the line, so there are some extra added costs. The tank does have extra coating and they'll bury it with anode bags to draw corrosion from the tank. You'll still have to have the tank inspected annually or at least prior to refilling.

Keep in mind, your cap and fill are above ground, so it still will be vulnerable if that's what you're worried about. The benefits from underground are mostly safety and aesthetics.

I looked it up and total cost for mine was around $3500.

Thanks.

I put in an above ground 500 gallon tank.

Had a propane guy tell me the other day that new 500 gallon tanks are bringing 4K, wow!

Ouch!

Watch Craigslist and other classified ads and you might be able to find one. I found a 500 gallon that had new valves and such for $300 and my old 250 gallon for a trade in.