A fluid level sensing system includes a mounting strip and fluid sensing nodes coupled to the mounting strip. Each fluid sensing node is switchable between a fluid present state and a fluid absent state. Each fluid sensing node includes a prism, a photoemitter and a photoreceptor. The photoemitter and photoreceptor are interposed between the prism and the mounting strip. In the absence of fluid around the prism, the photoreceptor receives greater than a threshold amount of light from the photoemitter internally reflected by the prism to switch the fluid sensing node to the fluid absent state. When the prism is covered in fluid, the photoreceptor receives less than the threshold amount of light from the photoemitter to switch the fluid sensing node to the fluid present state. A processor determines a fluid level based on the fluid detection states of the fluid sensing nodes.