Gas Prices

[Phil]

Here's a pisser -- got my heating oil tank filled yesterday. The furnace takes a fuel oil and kerosene mix. Fuel oil -- $4.99/gal, kerosene -- $6.50/gallon.

[greg]

Heat and air guy I know laughs and says fuel oil is a rich man's heat. It's crazy what it cost now.

[Onslow]

It bites owning a home with a service panel not adequate to run a heat pump. I wanted to upgrade mine in 2008 when the house was in remodel, but the local building official made up some crap about needing to bring the wiring to code in my 120 year old house before before being allowed to upgrade my service. I learned this past Spring a year after installing a new gas furnace, there is no where in the building code that requires a person to bring wiring up to code in an existing dwelling before upgrading service.

[troutboy_II]

It bites owning a home with a service panel not adequate to run a heat pump. I wanted to upgrade mine in 2008 when the house was in remodel, but the local building official made up some crap about needing to bring the wiring to code in my 120 year old house before before being allowed to upgrade my service. I learned this past Spring a year after installing a new gas furnace, there is no where in the building code that requires a person to bring wiring up to code in an existing dwelling before upgrading service.

Perhaps he just didn't want your house to burn down?

[Onslow]

It bites owning a home with a service panel not adequate to run a heat pump. I wanted to upgrade mine in 2008 when the house was in remodel, but the local building official made up some crap about needing to bring the wiring to code in my 120 year old house before before being allowed to upgrade my service. I learned this past Spring a year after installing a new gas furnace, there is no where in the building code that requires a person to bring wiring up to code in an existing dwelling before upgrading service.

Perhaps he just didn't want your house to burn down?

The wiring is fine, and there is no knob and tube wiring being used. Not enough outlets.

[trout-r-us]

Inverted octane curve. 

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[trout-r-us]

Gas prices dropping.
10 yr treasuries @ 5%
No call  2 yr CDs @ 5.5%

LIFE IS GOOD

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[driver]

Got gas in Morganton Sunday, $3.05
Filled up the work vehicle Monday morning in Durham, $3.50

[greg]

Spartanburg 3.05. Got in Georgia over weekend for about 2.85

[streamereater_101691]

LIFE IS GOOD

Must not be watching the news across the pond

[trout-r-us]

Ran across this Thanksgiving Weekend. 😳

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[troutboy_II]

Ok, I am curious - why buy 88 octane vs 87 octane?

 

TB

[rbphoto]

Non-ethanol?

[Woolly Bugger]

Ok, I am curious - why buy 88 octane vs 87 octane?

 

TB

Non-ethanol?

WHEN TO USE UNLEADED 88

This leaves us with Unleaded 88, also known as E15. Unleaded 88 is a bit newer, coming out in 2009 after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved the ethanol industry to make a blend that included 15% ethanol, thus creating E15.

There are a lot of gas stations in our area that carry the fuel. But what is it and is it safe for YOUR vehicle?

Unleaded 88 is a blend of 15% ethanol and 85% gasoline that burns cleaner and has higher octane that's better for your engine, environment, and wallet. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, this fuel is approved for cars 2001 and newer. It is highly recommended to check your vehicle's warranty to confirm your vehicle's make and model can use this fuel.

So why not cars before 2000? Well, the EPA said those older vehicles have a number of variables. Some vehicle models lack the computer controls in today's vehicles to adjust for fuel variations, which is why the EPA didn't approve it.

This is the technical meaning behind it. However, many, are still skeptical about putting this fuel in their cars. Why take the chance of damaging the engine or lowering your average mile per gallon when you know unleaded 87 works for you?

Unleaded 88 has just 5% more ethanol than E10, which was approved in 2009. Thus far, there have been more than 6 million miles of testing by the U.S. Department of Energy and no problems have been found.

Auto manufacturers have also been approving the use of Unleaded 88. Things change from manufacture to manufacture though. For example, General Motors recommends using Unleaded 88 on vehicle models from 2012 and newer, while Ford recommends it for 2013 and newer.

Unleaded 88 has also been approved by Volkswagen, Audi, Toyota, Land Rover, Porsche, Jaguar, Honda, Subaru and certain Mercedes-Benz and Lexus models.

If you are thinking of taking advantage of any gasoline sale during Thanksgiving or any upcoming holiday sale, the best thing to do is check your owner's manual or contact your car manufacturer.

For more information about all the different gasoline types, you can visit the Department of Energy's Website.

[FlyChamps]

Don't forget that alcohol has 30% less energy and, therefore, gets 30% less gas mileage than pure gasoline. E88 gets 4.5% less mileage than pure gas and 1.5% less mileage than gas with 10% alcohol. It simply comes down to the comparative cost to determine which is actually better.