Author Topic: Maybe your gas pump is cheating you.  (Read 2211 times)

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Offline OkieJohn

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Maybe your gas pump is cheating you.
« on: March 31, 2008, 05:56:53 PM »
In America, we measure and weight everything with great accuracy. The gas pump is no different.

Every gasoline pump in America is checked on a periodic basis. That time scale is determined by local and state laws. It is usually based on a six month testing cycle.

An inspector, from the state tax division, will drive up to the pump, collect 10 gallons of fuel into a special container. The fuel is then weighted to determine the accuracy of the pump.

On every pump in America, you will find a small sticker from the state tax board. On that sticker will be the octane of the fuel, and a small box with a hand written number. All pumps in the US must maintain -10 to +10 teaspoons to be considered accurate enough for sales.

If the sticker on your pump reads -9 then you are getting 9 teaspoons less than a gallon. If it reads +5 than you getting 5 teaspoons more with every gallon you buy.

Most of us are creatures of habit, we buy our fuel at the same place and sometimes the same pump over and over. Minus 8 teaspoons over a year period can add up to a lot of fuel.

Check the sticker on your pump.

For the mathematically unchallenged. 1 US gal = 767.999 teaspoons

At -10 teaspoons, and $3.00 per gal,  if you bought 20 gallons, you would loose about 60¢ every tank full
 
Now, having said all that, if you buy your gas just any old place, it probably averages out just fine.

Offline Wretched Excess

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Re: Maybe your gas pump is cheating you.
« Reply #1 on: March 31, 2008, 06:00:40 PM »

my dad frets that the gas that has been dispensed in the hose is "bought gas" that he is being
cheated out of.   :-)

Offline OkieJohn

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Re: Maybe your gas pump is cheating you.
« Reply #2 on: March 31, 2008, 06:11:27 PM »
If someone shut off the pump and then drained the hose, he would be.

New style dispensers don't kill the pump until the hose is hung up, for that very reason..

Offline Crazy Horse

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Re: Maybe your gas pump is cheating you.
« Reply #3 on: March 31, 2008, 07:10:46 PM »
They measure gas a lot better than what you are saying. One they have to measure the flow rate...........here in NC they rate how many gallons per minute. This helps to stop unneeded fuel spills. Also the Department of Weights and Measures measures the flow of fuel to better than a few teaspoons. Yet there is always +/- in the measuring.

So yes I feel sure there are a couple of teaspoons lost or added..............yet never seen a pump in NC telling you which one is + or -
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Offline Uhhuh35

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Re: Maybe your gas pump is cheating you.
« Reply #4 on: March 31, 2008, 09:43:03 PM »
I worked at a few gas stations when I was in High School (1979-81). One time this old fart drove in and while he was pumping his gas shot me an angry look and asked: "Hey! These aren't the kind of pumps that suck gas out of my tank are they?"

All I could do was laugh and say "No sir!". But I thought to myself: "Jeez, what a ****in' idiot!". Gas pumps get checked regularly for accuracy and to see if they've been messed with internally.

I guess the all "conspiracy theories" upgrade themselves over time.
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Offline Chris_

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Re: Maybe your gas pump is cheating you.
« Reply #5 on: April 05, 2008, 02:41:06 PM »
They measure gas a lot better than what you are saying. One they have to measure the flow rate...........here in NC they rate how many gallons per minute. This helps to stop unneeded fuel spills. Also the Department of Weights and Measures measures the flow of fuel to better than a few teaspoons. Yet there is always +/- in the measuring.

So yes I feel sure there are a couple of teaspoons lost or added..............yet never seen a pump in NC telling you which one is + or -

I see panic stories about this on the news every time gas goes above $3 for the year.  The state checks, measures, and verifies that gas pumps are accurate and in good working condition.  A local news reporter checked with them and found that diferences in fuel dispensing are usually on the positive side, that some pumps put out a little more than what they indicate.
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