For those of you living under a rock (or using public transportation) I just want to let you know that gasoline prices are astronomical! Here in upstate NY, it’s about $3.34 a gallon. Geez!
So of course everyone is looking for ways to save a bit of money on gas. One thing I started doing last winter was to stop “warming up the car” before we head out someplace. Many of our car trips are short, as in less than 5 minutes. It would take longer to let the car heat up than the time for the actual trip! Instead I started keeping a couple of blankets in the car for the kids.
Now when we go someplace the each pull their blanket over their laps-sometimes up to their chins-and off we go. I use two knit baby blankets (one we were given, one that I had knit with double strands of yarn-very warm) that are made out of acrylic yarn. The great thing about acrylic yarn is that EVERYTHING washes right off of it. After all, it’s plastic. Soft fuzzy plastic maybe, but plastic none the less. So if mud from boots or dirty snow get all over it, I just chunk it in the wash.
Now if I could figure out how to keep the windshield from icing over so I don’t have to scrape it. . . .
{ 9 comments… read them below or add one }
I guess because my parents never did, I have never warmed up the car! I think we did a hand full of times when our second child, born in November, was a tiny infant. Other than that the kids have to freeze! snort! Poor things!
that is a good idea to save on the heater.
You might want to remember that the actual turning on of the car and letting it run for a few minutes is for the car engine…not for your family. I actually tore up an engine one year b/c I didn’t let it warm up before I drove it.
cw
Good suggestion.
For your other question, the only solution I know of is a garage.
Gas is more than that here. It is just crazy and they say it may go up to $5.00 a gallon. I sure hope not. To get more gas for the same price because, gas expands and you get less gas in the day they say to fill up at night if you can. Circle K is giving out coupons if you buy 12 gallons of gas you can get a free 6 pack of soda pop ( including diet). This turns out to be a good deal. You may want to research gas prices too. It is really hitting a great deal of people hard. Good luck. Annette P.s. don’t forget to call Cirlce K first because, not all of them are participating.
To give you a comparison…
In the UK petrol (gas) is measured by the litre. A litre is around £1 at the moment, and there are 3.79 litre s to the american gallon. If my maths is right that makes a gallon of petrol at UK prices 3.79 (ish) – or 7.67USD.
(and okay, I appreciate America is a lot BIGGER, but I doubt the average trip to work etc is much different)
A couple of thoughts:
- Walmart sells gas 3 cents cheaper per gallon if you buy a pre-paid shopping card and use it to pay at the pump.
- Windshield de-icer is a spray-on chemical that you can use to de-ice your car pretty quickly. Of course it’s a bit of an investment, but it might be worth it.
I keep a heavy blanket in the car this time of year in case I break down.
Throw a couple of cheap car floor mats on the windshield when you park and just peel them off the next time you have to go out. You’ll still have some scraping to do where they didn’t cover but it will go more quickly. Great for ice, not so great for heavy snow. You can also throw plastic grocery bags over your mirrors if ice is expected.
cw has a good point. I would check your manual or with your mechanic about how long your engine needs to warm up. Not as long it it takes to warm up the inside this week for sure.
The grocery stores up this way – P&C, Price Chopper and a local Big M with pumps are all offering cents off if you swipe your store card each time you shop and we are taking advantage of that but not changing the way we shop.
I live in Istanbul Turkey and gas is 3.05 YTL/liter, which is about USD 10/gallon depending on the exchange rate. The traffic is absolutely horrible here and although the distances may not be as long as it would be in the US, total time spent in the traffic can be real bad. My personel record is 2 hours 15 minutes for an 18 mile drive! Now I am closer to work and I do not have to pay for gas which is really great. My company provides a car and all its expenses.