Fueling for the load vs. filling up??

I hear some o/o’s say that you should only put enough fuel for the trip. But I can’t understand why you wouldn’t just fill up when you need fuel.

It seems I remember one guy saying that it was taught this way in lease purchase orientation.

Is it a money management thing? Because it seems like that’s just a line of thought when you are low on funds.

So is there a solid business strategy behind it, or is it just sign of someone running a business on a shoe string budget?

 

I’ve never understood that. I always fill 100% when my day is done, even if it’s 25 gallons.

 

I guess it could be “money management” or a way to make the weekly settlement look better. But it, the $, will always roll back around on your next settlement. If you have your own authority chances are you begin to look at things monthly and quarterly anyways, and maybe break the numbers down by the week just to know if you want to.

I can see if someone has a lease deal where they don’t pay ifta, and they’re in PA needing fuel but will soon be in OH or MD. Grab a little for the load or to get to the next pumps to avoid the .50 or so fuel tax. But. For the most part, my opinion is, it’s just time wasted at the pumps and makes it more difficult to do miles traveled divided by gallons to fill up equation to do accurate mpg tracking.

plus, filling up for the load can leave you in a pinch if after delivering you book a load that’s a great opportunity for you but it’s a 3 hour deadhead and you only got 4 hours to get there AND YOU DONT HAVE ENOUGH FUEL to get there. Now your double rushing to get into and off a pump before you get there.

 

I generally just fill up,but sometimes I’ll get enough for a shower credit if I know somewhere else to get it cheaper.

 

The less number of times at the pumps the better.
I think some people are taught that to make their weekly settlements more consistent. If they have weekly truck, insurance, etc payments. Say you have a slow week and then do a large fill up, you may be left with not much cash. But so what, the following week it’ll balance out. And certainly by years end it’ll come out a wash.
By doing a complete fill up you’ll save many hours sitting in line at fuel stops and have less transaction fees.

 

If I'm taking the time to stop for fuel I'm filling up, that's my general rule.

 

FILL. Slosh it full over flowing at the caps.

Fill again at half tanks in winter always.

The only time we play with fuel is when we come into Maryland or Dumfries nazi scales and have to have the drives at 34000. SO we will leave 10 gallons in truck until just past there, unhook bobtail to a gas station hand over a 100 dollar bill and sit for 30 minutes pumping that little bitty bit.

 

Fill up. Especially right now I’d try and have a full tank as much of the time as possible.

If you can’t afford to fill up then quit now. lol Not funny I know but I’m serious.

 

The short answer is: No, do not fuel for the load trip—fuel wherever it is cheapest.

The reason contractor programs teach to fuel for the load trip is so the contractor’s weekly pay is more consistent. You want your new contractors to see profit and consistency right away, or else they’ll think they’re being cheated. Many new contractors don’t understand that business profit fluctuates, and so if they filled their tanks on very cheap fuel 100 miles before delivering, then the next check will show a low profit, and this can freak out some contractors. Now, if you’re an experienced owner operator or you understand numbers, then fuel wherever it is cheapest. You will save more money in the long run with this method.

 

Google Gimli Glider .. sometimes running on fumes isn’t smart..