Fraud at the Fuel Pump?

When a gallon is not always a gallon.

Because of temperature variation you don't always get the gallon of gas that you pay for when filling up at a gas station. So here's some advice on how to save money when pumping gas into your car.

1. Fuel up your car in the early morning when the ground temperature is still cold. This is because service station storage tanks 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. Service stations don't have a temperature compensation device at the pumps.

2. Don't squeeze the trigger of the nozzle to a fast mode when pumping gas into your car. The trigger has three settings -- low, middle, and high. Use the slow setting and pump at low speed. This minimizes the vapors that are created while 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.

3. Fill up when your gas tank is HALF FULL or HALF EMPTY because the more gas you have in your tank the less air is occupying its empty space. Gasoline evaporates faster than you can imagine. Those big 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.

4. Another reminder, if there is a gasoline truck pumping into the storage tanks when you stop to buy gas, don't fill up because it's likely the gasoline is being stirred up as the gas is being delivered, and you could pick up some of the dirt that normally settles on the bottom.
Herb