Gas Info...BS or Helpful?

[moonpup]

Got this info in an email this morning and was wondering, is this truly helpful information or just more internet BS? I know the part about filling-up while a delivery is being made is true, but what about the rest?

"May be worth sending out to our folks. Especially those field travelers who fill up multiple times a week!

I don't know what you guys are paying for gasoline.... but 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 an important 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. If 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 other 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.

One of the most important tips is to fill up when your gas tank is HALF FULL or HALF EMPTY. 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. Hope this will help you get the most value for your money.

DO SHARE THESE TIPS WITH OTHERS!

WHERE TO BUY USA GAS, THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT TO KNOW. READ ON

Gas rationing in the 80's worked even though we grumbled about it. It might even be good for us! The Saudis are boycotting American goods. We should return the favor.

An interesting thought is to boycott their GAS.

Every time you fill up the car, you can avoid putting more money into the coffers of Saudi Arabia. Just buy from gas companies that don't import their oil from the Saudis.

Nothing is more frustrating than the feeling that every time I fill-up the tank, I am sending my money to people who are trying to kill me, my family, and my friends.

I thought it might be interesting for you to know which oil companies are the best to buy gas from and which major companies import Middle Eastern oil.

These companies import Middle Eastern oil:

Shell...........................205,742,000 barrels

Chevron/Texaco.........144,332,000 barrels

Exxon /Mobil...............130,082,000 barrels

Marathon/Speedway... 117,740,000 barrels

Amoco............................62,231,000 barrels

Citgo gas is from South America, from a Dictator who hates Americans. If you do the math at $30/barrel, these imports amount to over $18 BILLION! (oil is now $90 - $100 a barrel

Here are some large companies that do not import Middle Eastern oil:

Sunoco..................0 barrels

Conoco..................0 barrels

Sinclair.................0 barrels

B P/Phillips............0 barrels

Hess.......................0 barrels

ARC0....................0 barrels

If you go to Sunoco.com, you will get a list of the station locations near you. All of this information is available from the Department of Energy and each is required to state

where they get their oil and how much they are importing."

[sblake01]

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.

As far as when to or not to fill up, that it the only part of this that I have heard over the years and it seems to make sense and I won't fill up if I see the truck at the station. There is some logic to the temperature based statements and they make sense as well as the half full/empty statements though I've never really given much thought to that. I'll sidestep the political statement.

[AndysPlit]

I have no problem withdrawing my support from Middle Eastern oil. However, I am slightly skeptical that this is just a ploy to have more consumers purchase Sunoco gas.

I'll do some more research to verify the information provided. But, you'll never get me to have my car run on Arco. Hmmm......or is just another myth.

[sakijo]

Here in Hawaii, all oil is refined by Chevron or Tesoro. All oil refined in Hawaii comes from Indonesia. Different additives make it turn into Shell, ARCO, Union 76, etc. The "Katrina" explanation for the sharp rise in gas prices didn't hold much water here, but living on an island with an oil Oligopoly, there's not much that can be done . . . we just can't drive over to the next county or state for cheaper gas.

[bigoak]

The temperature comment sounds fishy. Once you get 10 feet down the tempearature is pretty constant. (That's why our water lines don't freeze despite the well-documented weather).

Additionally, the pumps up here are volume regulated to 15C (59F).

[hls30.com]

BP (British petroleum) has its own set of issues to question whether to spend money with them-it's all in the threads...

Will

[zhead240]

we have mandatory emmision tests every two years. one test is for leaks in gas cap and tank. thus loss by evaporation is not possible. correct me if i'm wrong.

[red_dog007]

Filling up in the morning when it is colder doesn't make much since. The tanks are underground where the temperature is a constant temperature. I can see why these guys do their own temperature compensation though. All day they have trucks running around and HUGE tanks above ground that are subjected to the weather. They do have pimp lines but they are underground, but then come back above ground once the pipes are on their property.

I can understand fulling up on slow and with more gas in the tank to prevent vapor loss, but I doubt that it will make that much of a difference, even over time. Leave a red gas container outside for a few days and you won't even notice a difference in how much gas was evaporated.

It is cool that BP doesn't import from the Middle Easy. I buy all of my gas from BP, and BP only. Don't buy from Exxon because of their redicolous profits compared to everyone else, Shell and Chevron are EXPENSIVE, and Citgo is Venzy gas. I know that places like BP are trying to make a difference, and rather support BP for doing so then Exxon or Chevron for not doing that so much. I know that they have already started using E10 in all of their gas. I know that everyone will, but the big guys sure are taking their dandy time.

If Shell could offer me cheaper gas, and less of it from the Middle east, I might support them more as they too are doing a lot to help.

[JonnyRock]

I too take all of this with a grain of salt. The underground tanks can't be affected much by weather, as my old basement barely was. Evaporation inside the tank is thought provoking, but minimal I think. However, the part about when the tanks are being filled is true. It stirs up all of the particles which settled to the bottom, so stay away from them at those times.

As for the political, no boycott will be large enough to effect any of said companies, or their policies.

BP ... have already started using E10 in all of their gas.

And don't even get me started on Ethanol. Thats an arse-backward solution if ever there was one. Drives up food prices, drives down fuel efficiency, and has a net effect of increasing pollution.

[Walter Moore]

we have mandatory emmision tests every two years. one test is for leaks in gas cap and tank. thus loss by evaporation is not possible. correct me if i'm wrong.

I think he meant evaporative losses were happening WHILE you are filling the tank and the gas cap is open. That is the purpose of the large round disk that covers the tank opening (in some places) when you put the gas nozzle in the opening. It blocks the opening and is intended to prevent fuel vapor emissions.

In places where the EPA has mandated stricter air pollution controls the gas nozzles have active vapor recovery systems.

And aren't gas pumps supposed to be re-calibrated as the weather conditions change? Otherwise in the dead of winter the gas station would lose money like mad.

[zhead240]

he recommends not letting tank to get below 1/2 because of the air space in tank. thus evaporation. i interpret this as loss of fumes while cap is on.

[red_dog007]

And don't even get me started on Ethanol. Thats an arse-backward solution if ever there was one. Drives up food prices, drives down fuel efficiency, and has a net effect of increasing pollution.

You might be thinking about E85.

E10 is a hell of a lot better then the chemicals that they use to achieve the given octane, give no fuel economy differences, and ethanol is more so a "neutral" fuel.

The type of grain used is actually not feed to humans in anyway. It is only the kind that is used to feed animals. The price of gasoline as increased the price of corn based food WAY more then ethanol has or ever will.

Corn is/was just the short term use, and many other ways of making ethanol are being researched and even used today.

Garbage is already being used, and switch grass is supposed to be the next ethanol maker.