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When I was a little girl we lived in a town of 1200 people in Oregon. An uncle came to visit and was horrified at the price of gas in our little town. I remember it was 41 cents a gallon and he said it was 21 cents where he lived. That didn't mean anything to me then but the high cost of gas today sure does mean something to me. We are all probably feeling the pinch in our wallets when we fill up at the pump. Here are some gas saving tips to help us all save some money to take a little of the sting out of filling up at the pump:
•Fill up your car in the early morning when the ground temperature is still cold. All service stations have their tanks buried below ground so the colder the ground the more dense the gasoline. As it gets warmer gasoline expands, so buying in the afternoon or evening your gallon is not exactly a gallon.
•When you are filling up DO NOT squeeze the trigger of the nozzle to fast mode. When you pump the gasoline slower it minimizes the vapors that are created. All hoses have a vapor return, if you are pumping in fast mode; 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 are getting less worth for your money.
•Fill up when your tank is half full or half empty. The more gas you have in your tank the less air is occupying its empty space. Gasoline evaporates at an extremely fast rate. The gasoline storage tank has an eternal floating roof that serves as zero clearance between the gas and the atmosphere, so it minimizes the evaporation.
•Follow your owner's manual recommendation for the right octane level for your car. For most cars the recommended gas is regular octane. A higher octane gas than recommended does not have a higher benefit.
•Be careful of gas saving gadgets. The EPA has tested supposed gas saving devices and has found few that provide fuel economy benefits. Check out "Fact or Fuelishness" at http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/autos/aut10.shtm for more information.
•Combine errands as several short trips taken from a cold start can use twice as much fuel as one trip driving the same distance when the engine is warm.
•Carpooling is an option to driving alone and many cities have programs to match those who want to carpool, or they offer ride share vans.
•Drive at a consistent speed, even in traffic. Too much braking wastes as much fuel as rapid acceleration. Applying the brakes kills momentum and then you have to speed up again which wastes gas.
•Accelerate slowly. A pretty simple tip that will leave you with more gas in your tank and less visits to the pump.
•Unnecessary idling wastes fuel, costs you money and pollutes the air.
•Keeping tires inflated and aligned can increase gas mileage up to 3%.
•A tuned engine can increase gas mileage by an average of 4%
•Clean oil reduces wear caused by friction between moving parts and removes harmful substances from the engine.
•Quick starts and stops eat up the fuel. In-town gas mileage can be improved by up to 5% by driving at an even speed.
•For more information check out http://www.epa.gov/otaq/consumer.htm
Marilyn Bohn's Bio
Marilyn is a creative organizer who has been organizing for over 20 years. She is a member of the National Association of Professional Organizers and is working towards becoming a Certified Professional Organizer. Professionally she has been organizing homes and offices for over two years. She holds a bachelors degree in Social Work. She has reared five daughters and currently lives in Utah.
Marilyn invites you to her website http://www.marilynbohn.com where you can find free organizing tips and interesting blogs and helpful videos on organizing.
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