Tips on Pumping Gas

Didn't really know where to put this, or really the validity of it, but thought some of you braniacs would like some stimulation for the day.

TIPS ON PUMPING GAS

From some one in the business.

I don't know what you guys are paying for gasoline.... but here in California we are paying up to $3.75 to $4.10 per gallon. 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. 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.

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. 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; 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. Most stations have a required filter system to catch this mess before it gets in your car.

I dunno about down there in the states, but in Canada gas price gets temperature corrected, so the old "cold fill up" trick doesn't work.

Good info, good to know. Thanks for posting (+). I have to wonder, though. I see how temperature and evaporation can make a significant difference in a high volume situation, like at a petroleum pipeline business. Every little thing is multiplied when you flow millions of gallons per day. But I have to think that those same things might not impact the average fuel consumer enough to make a real difference. I wish there was a study that showed actual results at the pump. I know every little thing counts, just saying, it would be nice to see how much money is actually lost at the individual consumer level.

It probably doesn't make that big a difference but it makes you think. You have a 20 gallon tank, how much of that so called pumped 20 gallons actually makes it to the combustion chamber?

It certainly does make us think about it. One thing I'm thinking about right now is when I see people filling multiple containers of gas to take home for whatever, how much of it evaporates before it gets used? I'm guessing much more gets wasted from spillage and evaporation than if the gas were pumped directly into the tank.

AA wrote:

It certainly does make us think about it. One thing I'm thinking about right now is when I see people filling multiple containers of gas to take home for whatever, how much of it evaporates before it gets used? I'm guessing much more gets wasted from spillage and evaporation than if the gas were pumped directly into the tank.

Or how much goes bad before being used? Gas does have a shelf life, and its not that long for good quality gas.....

some service stations *do* have temp compensation at the pumps as/if required by state law. Some states and some cities/counties require the pump to have a sticker stating is is, some require a sticker if not, and many require that it is but don't require a sticker because everyone has to comply. I don't know how that is checked, however.

The "fill up when half full" is a great, great point given that the empty space in the tank has to be taken up by a completely saturated fuel vapor and the more space, the more fuel in the vapor. GM cars have built in vapor recovery, by the way, that trumps much of the tank-side vapor collection gadget.

All hoses at pumps *in california* have vapor returns. When you are outside the golden state, look at the fuel pump. Two hoses per nozzle *or* "vapor retrun" or some synomym printed on a hose with a bellows gadget that fits snugly over the fuel filler opening on your car - that's a vapor return pump. One hose with no snuggie bellows - probably not.

How much gas does a consumer lose? I dunno but it can be calculated. For instance from vapor loss. If you have a Riv (18 or 20 gal tank) and you go half down between fills (9+ gal of vapor in the system at each fill) if you fill up 50 times a year you will lose 450-ish gallons of vapor, less any recovered by the on-board vapor recovery. If you are in a state that does not require gas tanks to be buried 4-6 feet below ground you will lose so-so-many gallons of fuel per year due to expansion. On the other hand, tanks buried below frost line won't change much. With these guidelines, if this is of interest to you you should be able to figure out how much gas vapor you blow over a month or year. I hope someone will chime in and say how to convert that back to liquid fuel assuming the gas is atmospheric air at sea level and STP fully saturated with gas fumes. That oughta get close enough.

GAs shelf life? I heard 90 days without using Sta-Bil.

Happy calculating

Albertj