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A Costly Mistake at The Gas Pump You Can Avoid!

By: Scott Siegel The costly mistake many drivers make when filling their car with gas is to overfill it by topping it off. When the gas pump nozzle clicks off, do you stop or do you keep pumping? Are you trying to add more gas your tank after the shutoff trying to stuff as much in as possible? Are you pumping more gas after the shutoff to round your total cost to the nearest full dollar amount? If either of these scenarios are true, or if any other reason causes you to top off your tank you have developed a bad habit that is costing you money and is contributing to air pollution.

In many areas, a gas station's pumps have vapor recovery systems that recover gas vapors to keep those vapors from getting into the air. If you top off your gas tank it will result in you paying for gas that is drawn back into the gas station's vapor recovery system.

The extra gas you are trying to stuff into your tank may be drawn into the vapor recovery system back into the station's tanks. In that case you are paying for gas that is not going into your car but is going back into the gas station's tanks. The effect of this, of course, is to raise your cost of gas.

When you top off your tank there is a good chance that gas will evaporate or will be spilled on the ground. Both of these things will cost you money for gas that is not getting into your tank. That is it bad for your wallet.

There are more undesirable situations that can happen when overfilling your gas tank. Gas expands as it warms up. This is certainly something to keep in mind in the summer or in areas with warm weather. Gas in underground tanks will be cooler than the air as the ground insulates it from the heat. As the fuel in your tank gets warmer it expands. As the fuel expands it has to have more room.

If you overfill your car, there is no room for the fuel to expand. As the gas expands it has to go somewhere. It could easily find it's way into the vapor collection system of your own car. This may foul the vapor system causing it to malfunction.

The fuel that expands is lost gasoline that you have paid for. You paid for gas that you are not able to use. The result: your cost of gasoline goes up. But that is not the end of your increased costs! If the expanding fuel ends up in your car's vapor collection system it will negatively affect the system. If that occurs your vehicle will become much less efficient.

A less efficient car means less fuel efficiency which means you will use more gas which means it will cost you more money. The result is you are hit double in the wallet, once for the gas that is lost directly and second for the extra gas your car starts to burn because it is running inefficiently. Double ouch!!

Gas vapors add toxic substances such as benzene to the air. This is a major contributor to days that are designated ozone warning days. Fuel vapors are detrimental for your health and harmful to you if inhaled. When you overfill your tank you end up with vapors added to the air right where you are pumping. This will cause you to inhale toxic fumes.

When you next fill your truck or car, when the pump automatically stops don't add any more fuel, your tank should be full enough. Don't top it off, don't overfill it. Not only will you be saving money but also helping your own health and helping the environment!

Article Source: http://www.lifeweightloss.com

Scott Siegel has written a 143 page manual of industry insider secrets on saving gas and money at the pump. Visit us to discover how you can increase fuel economy. Find out how to save gas.
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