A Costly Mistake at The Gas Pump You Can Avoid!

A mistake that many drivers make when filling their gas tank is to overfill it by topping it off. When the gas pump nozzle clicks off automatically,do you keep pumping? Are you trying to add as much gas as you can possibly stuff into your tank? Do you pump more gas after the automatic shutoff to round your total to nearest full dollar amount? In either case this is a bad habit that is most likely costing you a lot of 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 overfill your tank there is a good chance that gasoline will evaporate or will be spilled. Both of these costs you money for gas that is not getting into your car. That is not good 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 vehicle that runs inefficiently burns more fuel which translates into spending more money on gas. That is a double hit in the wallet, once for the fuel that is lost directly and second for the additional gas your vehicle uses because it is running inefficiently.

Gas vapors are a major factor in adding toxic pollutants such as benzene to the air. This contributes to bad ozone days. Gas vapors are bad for your health and harmful to breathe. When you top off your tank you will end up with vapors released into the air. When this happens you are breathing in toxic fumes.

The next time you fill your car or truck, when the pump automatically stops your tank should be full enough. Do not top it off. Not only will you be saving yourself money, you will you be protecting your own health and you will also be helping the environment!

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

Scott Siegel is the author of a 143 page book of industry insider secrets on saving gas and money at the pump. Visit us to learn how you can increase fuel economy. Find out how to save gas.
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