Tips on Filling Your Gas Tank

I was standing in the breakroom at work waiting to nuke my puff pastries I brought (the ones I made here) which is something I never do because I don't eat breakfast, but as I was waiting, I noticed someone had posted tips on filling your gas tank.  I learned so much from reading the article that I decided to post it because one of the things my blog is definitely about is how to save money, and here is just another way to do it.

• Only buy or fill up your car in the early morning when the ground temperature is still cold.  All service stations have their storage tanks buried below the 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 play an important role.  A 1-degree rise in temperature is a big deal for 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 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 become 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 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.  
• If there is a gasoline truck pumping into the storage tank 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.

I thought these tips were really great and although, I can't say that I will always be able to fill up at half tank, I know I can stick to filling up in the morning and definitely at low mode if it is going to make my gas go further.