[FONT=Courier][SIZE=2]TIPS ON PUMPING GAS–GOOD INFO
I don’t know what you guys are paying for gasoline…Here in California
we are also paying higher, up to $3.50 per gallon. But my line of work
is in petroleum for about 31 years now, so here are some tricks to get more
of your money’s worth for every gallon.
Here at the Kinder Morgan Pipeline where I work in San Jose , CA we
deliver about 4 million gallons in a 24-hour period thru the pipeline. One day
is diesel, the next day is jet fuel, and gasoline, regular and premium
grades. We have 34-storage tanks here with a total capacity of 16,800,000
gallons.
Only buy or fill up your car or truck in the early morning when the
ground temperature is still cold. 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 a n impo rtant
role. A 1-degree rise in temperature is a big deal for this business.
But the service stations do not have temperature compensation at the pumps.
When you’re filling up do not squeeze the trigger of the nozzle to a
fast mode. I f you look you will see that the trigger has three (3) stages:
low, middle, and high. In slow mode you should be pumping on low speed,
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 stora ge tank so you’re getting
less worth for your money.
One of the most important tips is to fill up when your gas tank is HALF
FULL or HALF EMPTY (whichever way you look at it). 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. Gasoline storage tanks
have an internal floating roof. This roof serves as zero clearance
between the gas and the atmosphere, so it minimizes the evaporation. Unlike
service stations, here where I work, every truck that we load is temperature
compensated so that every gallon is actually the exact amount.
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.
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