From pipeline worker:
I've been in the petroleum pipeline business for about 31 years, currently working for the
Kinder-Morgan Pipeline here in San Jose, CA. We deliver about 4
million gallons in a 24-hour period from the pipe line; one day it's diesel,
the next day it's jet fuel and gasoline. We have 34 storage tanks here
with a total capacity of 16,800,000 gallons. Here are some tricks to
help you get your money's worth.
1.
Fill up your car or truck in the morning when the temperature is still
cool. Remember that all service stations have their storage tanks
buried below ground; and the colder the ground, the denser the gasoline.
When it gets warmer gasoline expands, so if you're filling up in the afternoon
or in the evening, what should be a gallon is not exactly a gallon. In
the petroleum business, the specific gravity and temperature of the fuel
(gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, ethanol and other petroleum products) are
significant. Every truckload that we load is
temperature-compensated so that the indicated gallonage is actually the amount
pumped. A one-degree rise in temperature is a big deal for businesses,
but service stations don't have temperature compensation at their
pumps.
2.
If a tanker truck is filling the station's tank at the time you want to buy
gas, do not fill up; most likely dirt and
Sludge in the
tank is being stirred up when gas is being delivered, and you might be
transferring that dirt from the bottom of their tank into your car's
tank.
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 there is and gasoline evaporates rapidly,
especially when it's warm. The extra gas also helps keep your gasoline in-tank
pump from getting to hot in the summer and wearing out sooner than they
should. (Gasoline storage tanks have an internal
floating 'roof' membrane to act as a barrier between the gas and the
atmosphere, thereby minimizing evaporation.)
4.
If you look at the trigger you'll see that it has three delivery settings:
slow, medium and high. When you're filling up
Do not
squeeze the trigger of the nozzle to the high setting. You should be
pumping at the slow setting, thereby minimizing vapors created while you are
pumping. Hoses at the pump are corrugated; the corrugations act as
areturn path
for vapor recovery from gas that already has been metered. If you
are pumping at the high setting, the agitated gasoline contains more vapor,
which is being sucked back into the underground tank so you're getting less
gas for your money.
Hope
this will help ease your 'pain at the pump'.
I've been in the petroleum pipeline business for about 31 years, currently working for the
Kinder-Morgan Pipeline here in San Jose, CA. We deliver about 4
million gallons in a 24-hour period from the pipe line; one day it's diesel,
the next day it's jet fuel and gasoline. We have 34 storage tanks here
with a total capacity of 16,800,000 gallons. Here are some tricks to
help you get your money's worth.
1.
Fill up your car or truck in the morning when the temperature is still
cool. Remember that all service stations have their storage tanks
buried below ground; and the colder the ground, the denser the gasoline.
When it gets warmer gasoline expands, so if you're filling up in the afternoon
or in the evening, what should be a gallon is not exactly a gallon. In
the petroleum business, the specific gravity and temperature of the fuel
(gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, ethanol and other petroleum products) are
significant. Every truckload that we load is
temperature-compensated so that the indicated gallonage is actually the amount
pumped. A one-degree rise in temperature is a big deal for businesses,
but service stations don't have temperature compensation at their
pumps.
2.
If a tanker truck is filling the station's tank at the time you want to buy
gas, do not fill up; most likely dirt and
Sludge in the
tank is being stirred up when gas is being delivered, and you might be
transferring that dirt from the bottom of their tank into your car's
tank.
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 there is and gasoline evaporates rapidly,
especially when it's warm. The extra gas also helps keep your gasoline in-tank
pump from getting to hot in the summer and wearing out sooner than they
should. (Gasoline storage tanks have an internal
floating 'roof' membrane to act as a barrier between the gas and the
atmosphere, thereby minimizing evaporation.)
4.
If you look at the trigger you'll see that it has three delivery settings:
slow, medium and high. When you're filling up
Do not
squeeze the trigger of the nozzle to the high setting. You should be
pumping at the slow setting, thereby minimizing vapors created while you are
pumping. Hoses at the pump are corrugated; the corrugations act as
areturn path
for vapor recovery from gas that already has been metered. If you
are pumping at the high setting, the agitated gasoline contains more vapor,
which is being sucked back into the underground tank so you're getting less
gas for your money.
Hope
this will help ease your 'pain at the pump'.
