15 Fuel saving tips

Read in the morning paper that the petrol price is about to sky rocket yet again somewhere April. This is not a small increase mind you it’s a massive 65c per litre for petroleum and up to 1.35c per litre for diesel! This would mean that the price of fuel would go up to more than R2.00 per litre in little less than two months. It seems to me the world is going energy crazy as Eskom (South Africa’s parastatal electricity provider) wants to increase the price of electricity by 53%. That is on top of the 14% increase it was awarded by the national power regulator! We live in some churning times, I tell you.

I’m wondering how this is going to affect my budget as every Rand I save is a Rand closer to my million bucks!

Turns out that even the last increase of +-65c was hurting my efforts and I quickly started making some calculations:

·        My car has a 45 litre fuel tank.

·        I get an average of 550km per tank driving “normally”.

·        I drive roughly 1600km per month.

·        That’s almost 3 tanks each month.

	Total fuel bill pre-price increase	Total fuel bill post price increase	Difference
Non saving mode	R1008.57	R1113.89	R105.32

 

That’s a whole R105.32 less per month or R1321.87 per year calculated at 9.75% interest. The figure looks even more frightening if you calculate over 60 months (5 years) a whopping R8102.02! That is if all things remain true.

I calculated that if I were to drive economically I could get up to 600km per tank and save a whole 126.25 per month. This is looking very attractive to me because as you will notice in the table below, the price is lower than my fuel bill pre-price increase of 65c per litre. And by the time I reach 30 I would have saved at least R9712.10!

	Total fuel bill post price increase	Difference between non saving and saving
Saving mode	R987.64	R126.25

 

Here a few tips for improving your fuel economy on your car:

1.    

1. Only buy or fill up your car or bakkie in the early morning when the ground temperature is still cold. Remember that all service stations have their storage tanks buried below ground. The colder the ground the more dense the fuel, when it gets warmer petrol expands, so buying in the afternoon or in the evening….your litre is not exactly a litre.
2. In the petroleum business, the specific gravity and the temperature of the petrol, diesel and jet fuel, ethanol and other petroleum products plays an important role.  A 1-degree rise in temperature is a big deal for this business. But the service stations do not have temperature compensation at the pumps.
3. One of the most important tips is to fill up when your tank is HALF FULL. The reason for this is, the more fuel you have in your tank the less air occupying its empty space. Petrol evaporates faster than you can imagine. Petroleum storage tanks have an internal floating roof. This roof serves as zero clearance between the petrol and the atmosphere, so it minimizes the evaporation. Unlike service stations, at fuel pipelines, every truck that is loaded is temperature compensated so that every litre is actually the exact amount.
4. If there is a fuel truck pumping into the storage tanks when you stop to buy, DO NOT fill up–most likely the petrol/diesel is being stirred up as the fuel is being delivered, and you might pick up some of the dirt that normally settles at the bottom.
5. When you’re filling up do not squeeze the trigger of the nozzle to a fast mode. If you look you will see that the trigger has three (3) stages: low, middle, and high. In slow mode you should be pumping on low speed, thereby minimizing the vapours that are created while you are pumping. All hoses at the pump have a vapour return. If you are pumping on the fast rate, some of the liquid that goes to your tank becomes vapour. Those vapours are being sucked up and back into the underground storage tank so you’re getting less worth for your money.
6. Don’t start and stop engine needlessly. Idling your engine for one minute consumes the fuel amount equivalent to when you start the engine.
7. Never exceed legal speed limit. Primarily they are set for your travelling safety, however better fuel efficiency also occurs. Travelling at 100 km/h give you up to 21% better mileage when compared to the legal speed limits of 120km/h
8. Drive steadily. Slowing down or speeding up wastes fuel. Also avoid tailgating – the driver in front of you is unpredictable. Not only is it unsafe, but if affects your economy, if he slows down unexpectedly.
9. Think ahead when approaching hills. If you accelerate, do it before you reach the hill, not while you’re on it.
10. Use alternate roads when safer, shorter, and straighter. Compare travelling distance differences – remember that corners, curves and lane jumping require extra fuel. The shortest distance between two points is always straight.
11. Regular tune-ups ensure best economy; check owner’s manual for recommended maintenance intervals. Special attention should be given to maintaining clean air filters… diminished air flow increases fuel waste.
12. Inflate all tires to maximum limit. Each tire should be periodically spun, balanced and checked for out-of-round. When shopping for new tires, get large diameter tires for rear wheels. Radial designs are the recognized fuel-savers; check manufacturer’s specifications for maximum tire pressures.
13. Remove excess weight from trunk or inside of car – extra tires, back seats, unnecessary heavy parts. Extra weight reduces mileage, especially when driving up inclines.
14. Stoplights are usually timed for your motoring advantage. By travelling steadily at the legal speed limit you boost your chances of having the “green light” all the way.
15. Park car so that you can later begin to travel in forward gear; avoid reverse gear manoeuvres to save gas.

 

Let me know what you thoughts and/or experiences are on this topic!

Declutterfication 101

A lot of exiting things happened since I last wrote a few days ago. As you recall I wrote about setting up of a frugal budget and simplifying my home (nice speak for throwing away junk out of my home). Let me share them with you.

I decided I needed quick wins to start my pace and morale high. I tackled the most visible area in my home the dining room table! I had CD’s & DVD’s, books, a web cam and a power drill on the table. I thought man I can get rid of this pretty quickly. I packed everything into a bag and headed over to my local Cash Converters. I know these guys are pretty bad at offering good prices for your goods, but in the end it‘s the convenience you pay for. That is the convenience of not having to place an ad in the paper and waiting for somebody to respond. I was a man on a mission! Not necessarily desperate but definitely looking to prove to myself that I can do this simplifying-your-overly-complex-lifestyle-in-short-amount-of-time thing!

I left that shop with the biggest sense of self achievement since my degree graduation! This is despite the fact that I only managed to get about 1/3 of the price I actually paid for all of the stuff! Nevertheless it wasn’t about the money it was about me actually taking my first active steps in simplifying my life and reducing my debt burden! I drove straight to my nearest bank and deposited the money into my account!

What an awesome feeling when you bank balance increases!! :0)

So what does my place look like after the big “declutterfication”?

I will attach some photos later!

Here are some tips to get the most cash for your unwanted goods:

1. Stores expect to buy used items, but not abused items. All items must be in working order.
2. Make sure your items are clean. The buyer sometimes takes the item at face value. So the better it looks the more money you are likely to get.
3. Bring your electronic items with their accessories, like remotes, manuals etc
4. Try to ensure that items have batteries and/or are charged so that you can show the buyer that it works.
5. Sell technical items like cellular phones and computers as soon as possible. These items lose their value over time as new models come out continuously. So if you have an item like this, sell it now to ensure the model is still sought-after by someone else.
6. Keep in mind the supply and demand for items. For example, there is not much of a market for heaters during summer so you will make more money if you sell it in time for winter, but you will get it for a good price if you buy it in summer.
7. Have a look through the retail area in your local second-hand store. See what similar items are being sold for. They still have to sell your item/s for much less than they are currently being sold new. This will give you an idea of what you can expect to get for it.
8. Save time by bringing in a few unwanted items at a time. This way the buyer can give you a higher value by including some smaller things.
9. It is a good idea to look at what your item is being sold for now. The price of your item, new at the moment has probably changed since you bought it. Stores like Cash Converters value items according to what they are being sold for at the moment and what they can sell them for at a greatly discounted price.
10. If you have the original packaging for an item, take it with to sell. This can improve the amount you get for it.
11. Original invoices also help. It helps the buyer to determine what you paid for the item and provides a proof of ownership.
12. Cash Converters stores have a zero tolerance policy on buying stolen goods. If you want to sell something to them, take some form of identification and if possible proof of ownership. If you no longer have proof of ownership, they have other ways to determine if the item is yours.
13. When selling a printer (or similar item), ensure that it has all the software and cartridges.
14. When selling a computer, you will be offered more money if it has a valid Windows licence.
15. Stores pay more for trade-ins. In other words if you give them an item as part payment on something else that you want to purchase from them.
16. You can make more money by selling items when they are in demand. For e.g.: Lawnmowers in summer.
17. If you want to sell unwanted gifts, try to keep them in their original boxes.

Debt elimination draft plan

You can have the best of intentions of doing something but if you don’t have a plan to make it happen it will amount to nothing more than the best of intentions.

How do you go about getting out of debt? Searching for the term on the internet definitely delivers more than its fair share of solutions all claiming to be the gospel of the debt free sinner. Fair enough, some solutions certainly have value and can surely assist the sinner to get into the right mindset of things, but the problem is that most solutions are missing one key feature; customisability. One should always consider how relevant the plan is to your current lifestyle and culture.

I have compiled my own unique plan when it comes to getting out of debt. You can be sure it’s going to need some refinement as time goes on, but I’m confident that as a first pass it has some value and we should be able to see some real results in the next few weeks. Here are 73 Great Debt Elimination Tips from zenhabits.net

After applying my mind for five minutes I came up with five key points – projects as I like to call them – to reach my goal of getting out of debt

1. Create a frugal budget.
2. Generate extra income
3. Review my wasteful habits
4. Continue to decrease as much of my current debt as possible (pay less interest)
5. Simplifying my home (getting rid of all the white elephants that litter my abode)

That should keep me busy for the next few weeks!

I will apply myself to project 1 & 5 over the next few days and try and come up with some creative solutions to post.

Pictures are of my little place pre-simplification. Some serious effort is required to get this place into shape!

The Quest Begins

Sunday, March 09, 2008 – Day 1

 

So begins my quest for a million.

I’m 25 year old South African male and my financial situation at present looks dire. My liabilities exceed my assets and my cash flow barely makes it per month. In business they call the above scenario being bankrupt. I just like to call it “being financially disabled”! I think it sounds less harsh and it doesn’t have that HUGE negative connotations associated with it. Like any other disability it can be cured or at the very least rehabilitated so the individual can function better

To be honest the quest for a million (from now on affectionately known as QFAM) started little over a month ago when I was in an even worse situation than now. Basically what it came down to was that my expenses were by far exceeding my income. Fifty percent of my pay check was going towards paying off all sorts of debt. Mortgage, car payment, loan from parents, credit cards, clothing store accounts was bleeding me dry slowly. Every month I was going deeper into my savings account until there was nothing left.

I then opened an overdraft facility with my bank and started eating into that. That meant I ran out of credit completely and was faced with the hard fact that if I don’t settle my debts completely I will be facing judgments etc. Not a very pleasant thought for somebody who has always been a responsible citizen.

I started doing some research on the internet on how to effectively manage debt problems. And found some interesting options. The solution that caught my attention was debt consolidation where you consolidate all your debt into one big loan with a much better interest rate and pay it off over a longer period. This has a very positive effect on your cash flow as the repayments are much lower.

The problem most people fall into however is that they consolidate their debts, but continue to use their newly paid off credit facilities instead of closing them completely. They usually become indebted once again, but this time they are in a far worse position than last time. If they have the credit available they can once again consolidate, but for most people it’s too late and they have to declare bankruptcy.

Being a little sceptical about banks and how they feast off the general population in terms of loan interest repayments, I decided to approach my parents for a loan. I figured that by being transparent is probably the best starting point and that there is no shame in admitting you have a problem. After all, you cannot deal with something if you deny its existence! The positive side for my folks would be that they could pocket the interest instead of the commercial banks!

Consolidating the loan improved my cash flow and at least I was not going into the overdraft every month. I cut up all of my credit cards and paid off most of my debt with the exception of my clothing accounts and my overdraft facility. That was end of January 2008.

Up until now I have managed to stay clear of overspending and I’m slowly making progress in becoming debt free. Once I have achieved that I am aiming for my first million!

It’s not easy denying yourself nice things in life and it’s definitely not easy when you actually deserve it! You might deserve that new item, but the question is can you afford it? That get’s you thinking doesn’t it? One of the common mistakes we make as human beings is making financial decisions based on our emotions. The sooner we make our financial decisions based on fact the better we’ll be in the long run.

My posts will mainly focus on my QFAM, reducing my debt, living frugally – sounds funny hey – simplifying my life and most of all having FUN. Hopefully there is somebody out there in the same kind of boat, looking for inspiration to change their circumstances, maybe my blog will be a little beacon of hope, which inspires them to try and change their lives too! Writing in English is a whole new experience for me so please bear through some of my posts. I’m am very open to your comments as to further improve my English and writing style and just to improve the blog in general

The picture above is a “snapshot” of my financial balance sheet as of today. As you can see it’s not looking to healthy. In fact I’m technically bankrupt as my liabilities by FAR exceed my income.

Wish me luck as this will be a very interesting experiment!