fill 'er up friday: 06.20.08

Although many gas stations in the city had regular unleaded priced up to $4.29 per gallon, this week I was able to find a gas station priced lower (If you're local and live in the Southeast part of the valley, the Texaco at S. Maryland Pkwy and Pyle is always lower than the rest.)

So without further ado, here's the price I paid for this week's fill-up. Actually, I paid it twice because HotMomma's car needed gas and since I'm a nice husband I filled her's up too.



With this lower price compared to other gas stations nearby I only experienced a $.04 increase from last week's $4.17 price per gallon. Not too bad, but still unacceptable.

And since we're talking gas, here are some great tips sent to HotMomma from a friend in her mommies' group. It was sent to her by a guy that works at a major petroleum company.

1. Only buy or fill up your car or truck in the early morning when the ground temperature is still cold (ground really doesn't get cold overnight in Vegas though). Remember that all service stations have their storage tanks buried below ground. The colder the ground the more dense the gasoline, when it gets warmer gasoline expands, so buying in the afternoon or in the evening....your gallon is not exactly a gallon. In the petroleum business, the specific gravity and the temperature of the gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, ethanol and other petroleum products plays an important role. A one-degree rise in temperature is a big deal for petroleum business. But the service stations do not have temperature compensation at the pumps.
   
   
2. When you're filling up do not squeeze the trigger of the nozzle to a fast mode. If you look you will see that the trigger has three stages: low, middle and high. You should be pumping on low mode, thereby minimizing the vapors that are created while you are pumping. All hoses at the pump have a vapor return. If you are pumping on the fast rate, some of the liquid that goes to your tank becomes vapor. Those vapors are being sucked up and back into the underground storage tank so you're getting less worth for your money (I'm always in a hurry and use the fast setting. I'm going to stop doing that).
   
   
3. One of the most important tips is to fill up when your gas tank is HALF FULL. The reason for this is the more gas you have in your tank the less air occupying its empty space. Gasoline evaporates faster than you can imagine (I'm a procrastinator. I wait until the gas light is on. Not anymore).
   
   
4. Another reminder, if there is a gasoline truck pumping into the storage tanks when you stop to buy gas, DO NOT fill up; most likely the gasoline is being stirred up as the gas is being delivered, and you might pick up some of the dirt that normally settles on the bottom (I actually never thought of this).

All of these tips sound simple. I'm going to try them.