Arizona HOMESCHOOL HeartBeat

Monthly E-letter

May 2008
Volume 9, Issue 5

Even though Arizona is in our name, 
we also cover news items of interest across the nation.

 

  TIPS

Looking for Homeschooling Families' Income Ideas
Gasoline Tips
Focus on the Family Book Reports    Free Online Biology Textbook
Top Ten Conservative Colleges
Help Fund Mammograms
HSLDA Group Discount Membership
 

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; 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.

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.

Companies that 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 Venezuela, from a dictator who hates Americans, Hugo Chavez. If you do the math at $30/barrel, these exports amount to over $18 BILLION! (Oil is now $100+ a barrel. Don't buy from CITGO).

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.

Back to top

If you would like to be notified by email when the new issues are posted,
subscribe for free by sending a blank email to:  HSHeartbeat-subscribe@yahoogroups.com 

05/03/08