What’s Gotta Stay

I remember as a teenager typically not having enough money on hand to fill the tank up with gas, so it was a game of carefully squeezing that handle to land exactly on the penny to the amount I had on hand in gas.  Remember those days of collecting a buck or two from everyone in the car before heading out for the night of teenage fun?  Thankfully this is not an issue for me these days, though with current gas prices I cringe every time I fill up the tank.

Worse than the filling up process is being short on gas when you are in a hurry to get somewhere, and having to take the time to fill up.  How many times have you begged that low gas light to not come on as you speed off to a meeting or something similar?  Your precisely timed errands get fouled up when you have to take 10 or 15 minutes to stop off and fill up in the middle of them.  Though this may not seem like a crisis, there are times when it really can throw a wrench in your tight schedule, whether planned or because you are late.

Even worse, running out of gas can really mess up your day.

Make it a habit to keep your tank full.  Fill up when you are at a third or half tank.  Don’t let it slip down to a quarter tank or less before you are pressed to make time and stop off to fill up.  When you procrastinate filling up, it always seems to be at the most inconvenient time you need to do so.  For some reason, this inconvenient time is when there are the longest lines at the pump as well, blame it on Murphy.

By keeping your tank above a half tank, you may be visiting the gas station a little more often, but you enjoy enough benefits to make it worthwhile.  First, you are rarely if ever presented with that stress inducing situation where you simply don’t have time to fill up but have not choice.  Second, in the case of an actual emergency, dealing with a low gas tank is not going to be an issue.  Third, with todays quickly changing gas prices they are usually headed up.  By filling your tank frequently you are typically getting the best priced gas ahead of the trend.  Finally, if you have teenage drivers you can put your mind at ease on at least one thing - they are not going to be stranded by running out of gas.  You may have to lay some rules on their participating on filling that tank, but at least this is one less thing to worry about when they are out on the town.

Keeping your tank full need not be a major task.  Figure out your regular weekly routine, how much gas you use on a regular basis, and schedule in gas stops at your favorite and likely lowest priced station.  Whether this is once a week or more often, scheduling in a time when lines are low and paying at the pump with a credit or debit card can make this a quick stop.