Petrol prices soar
Until recently, I haven’t given much thought to the price of petrol. I have always just pulled up, filled up and pootled along on my merry way. I couldn’t have told you how much a litre of petrol cost or where you’d find the cheapest petrol station.
Well, that was until NOW. Recently I have noticed that when I fill up my little car, the dial seems to whizz and whirl out of control, and my car that used to cost £30 to fill up now costs over £40.
Rising fuel costs are all over the news at the moment. From the recent strikes in Portugal to increasing reports of fuel theft in the UK, we’re all feeling the pinch. Some peoples’ livelihood is directly related to fuel usage, but all of us feel the knock on effect in increased costs of food and general commodities.
What can you do?
For me personally, the answer seems to be my bike. I have been trying to cycle to work everyday, and although I don’t manage it all the time, it makes a huge difference. So, if you’re up for getting fit whilst saving more than a few pennies, don your cycling clips and helmet and enjoy the ride.
If cycling isn’t a viable option for you, I’ve also included some fuel saving tips, to help you squeeze your money’s worth from every litre. For more practical tips on cutting your fuel consumption, check out this website about ‘hypermiling’.
Top up tips
With the price of fuel soaring, here are some tricks to help you get your money's worth out of every litre.
Only fill up your car 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 denser the fuel. Petrol expands when it gets warmer, so if you buy in the afternoon or evening... your litre is not exactly a litre.
When you’re filing 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. In slow mode you should be pumping on low speed, thereby minimising the vapours that are created, while you are pumping. All hoses at the pump have a vapour return. If you are pumping on the fast rate, some of the liquid that goes to your tank becomes vapour. Those vapours are being sucked up and back into the underground storage tank so you're getting less for your money.
If there is a fuel truck pumping into the storage tanks when you stop to buy, do not fill up.
As the fuel is being delivered it is being stirred up and you may pick up some of the dirt that normally settles on the bottom.
Fill up when your tank is half full.
The reason for this is, the more fuel you have in your tank, the less air occupying its empty space. Petrol evaporates faster than you can imagine.
Written by Jenny Steele.
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