Any business owners here suffering with $7/g fuel prices?

L.R.S. said:
This thread did the standard GD.com direction change.  Maybe it can get back on track.  I am a business owner and the $7/gal fuel is affecting me huge.

Tomorrow my son leaves on a 5600 mile trip hauling three different 40' to 45' 5th wheels.  Starts in LA, heads to Ramona for the first 40' 5th wheel, then to Lindale TX to drop it off.  From here he heads to our friends house in Duncan, Oklahoma to chill for a day, then up to Tulsa, OK to pick up a 45' 5th wheel and take it to Bend, OR.  From there he'll go to St. Anthony for a 45' 5th wheel being delivered to Fesno, CA.  Then he comes back home (Los Angeles area). 

He tries to keep himself at 600 miles per day but that can vary a little depending on if he has a safe place to layover for the night.  The trip should take him 9 days of driving but he will make a few stops for some R&R in Oklahoma and again in Wichita, Kansas.  Hoping he makes it home before 4th of July.

He will have 4211 miles while towing 5th wheels and 1389 miles dead heading.  We added a 100 gallon aux tank plumbed to the stock 36 gallon tank.  The main goal to never buy fuel in CA unless absolutley necessary.  We did top the truck off today in our town for $6.59/gal.  He will also top off tomorrow before picking up the first 5th wheel in Ramona so he can hand calculate his unloaded mileage from our house, about 140 miles.  I recently had a new tune put on my truck and the tuner was claiming 22-24mpg not towing.  I also have some other stuff done to the truck but I can't post about it. 

Regardless the tuck is down on power and feels slugish.  I DGAF if it gets me near the MPG's my tuner is claming.  I had a new Stage I turbo installed and without a new tune the truck got 18.33mpg from Glamis back to my home about 240 miles doing 75-80mph the entire way.

Fortunately fuel is $1 to $1.50 per gallon cheaper outside of CA.  My son will log all fuel purchases and miles driven for this long trip.

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Sounds like an epic road trip. Hope he has a safe journey. 

 
So, I had 53 locations in Az that need servicing. The company that has the contract would hire us. They are in a hurry to find a provider. Which means the company they used before either shut down, isn’t performing at all or the current company is not getting paid and has stopped service.  Normally I’d jump at the chance to pick up 53 accounts in one swoop. After doing a little research on the company it shows contractors have always had a hard time getting paid. Before, we could spend the time and resources to get paid, but now I think I will see how they feel about putting up some kind of bond/lease for them to submit the money to so we know funds would be available. Still not sure if it’s worth it. I’m having fun watching “middle man” companies still try to skim off the top. I think they will be going bye bye bye as the “customer” will start seeing that it’s to expensive to pay their “consultation fees” other than calling me direct.

can’t take the risk to use all that gas and then not get paid or have to fight to get paid!

 
L.R.S. said:
This thread did the standard GD.com direction change.  Maybe it can get back on track.  I am a business owner and the $7/gal fuel is affecting me huge.

Tomorrow my son leaves on a 5600 mile trip hauling three different 40' to 45' 5th wheels.  Starts in LA, heads to Ramona for the first 40' 5th wheel, then to Lindale TX to drop it off.  From here he heads to our friends house in Duncan, Oklahoma to chill for a day, then up to Tulsa, OK to pick up a 45' 5th wheel and take it to Bend, OR.  From there he'll go to St. Anthony for a 45' 5th wheel being delivered to Fesno, CA.  Then he comes back home (Los Angeles area). 

He tries to keep himself at 600 miles per day but that can vary a little depending on if he has a safe place to layover for the night.  The trip should take him 9 days of driving but he will make a few stops for some R&R in Oklahoma and again in Wichita, Kansas.  Hoping he makes it home before 4th of July.

He will have 4211 miles while towing 5th wheels and 1389 miles dead heading.  We added a 100 gallon aux tank plumbed to the stock 36 gallon tank.  The main goal to never buy fuel in CA unless absolutley necessary.  We did top the truck off today in our town for $6.59/gal.  He will also top off tomorrow before picking up the first 5th wheel in Ramona so he can hand calculate his unloaded mileage from our house, about 140 miles.  I recently had a new tune put on my truck and the tuner was claiming 22-24mpg not towing.  I also have some other stuff done to the truck but I can't post about it. 

Regardless the tuck is down on power and feels slugish.  I DGAF if it gets me near the MPG's my tuner is claming.  I had a new Stage I turbo installed and without a new tune the truck got 18.33mpg from Glamis back to my home about 240 miles doing 75-80mph the entire way.

Fortunately fuel is $1 to $1.50 per gallon cheaper outside of CA.  My son will log all fuel purchases and miles driven for this long trip.

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Do you use a trip planner to determine fuel stops like Gas Buddy's (https://www.gasbuddy.com/tripcostcalculator)?

 
That's a long road trip, very cool....be safe @L.R.S. son.

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Rockwood said:
Do you use a trip planner to determine fuel stops like Gas Buddy's (https://www.gasbuddy.com/tripcostcalculator)?
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GasBuddy works ok as a guide but relies on user reporting which can get pretty sketchy a lot of the time. When I'm shopping around for fuel prices I will usually start with GasBuddy and then kinda cross reference that with Google maps. Google has pretty accurate price reporting but I haven't figured out how to use it to search for the lowest price which is why I look at GasBuddy first. I go to the trouble of doing this when I'm buying a couple hundred gallons at a time making it worth the trouble. I've also been using an app called mudflap that sometimes generates some pretty major savings on diesel. 

 
Rockwood said:
Do you use a trip planner to determine fuel stops like Gas Buddy's (https://www.gasbuddy.com/tripcostcalculator)?
Click to expand...
I use Gas Buddy when I'm trying to find diesel, E85 and I'm in an unfamiliar area or just need fuel ASAP. The last 6 months the listed prices have not been as accurate as they used to be. 

With having 136 gallons of fuel we try to find the best price we can and take on at least 100 gals at a time. My son was in Phoenix yesterday and got diesel for $5.39/gal. 

He just crossed into AZ this morning with the 5th wheel from Ramona heading to Lindale, TX.

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L.R.S. said:
I use Gas Buddy when I'm trying to find diesel, E85 and I'm in an unfamiliar area or just need fuel ASAP. The last 6 months the listed prices have not been as accurate as they used to be. 

With having 136 gallons of fuel we try to find the best price we can and take on at least 100 gals at a time. My son was in Phoenix yesterday and got diesel for $5.39/gal. 

He just crossed into AZ this morning with the 5th wheel from Ramona heading to Lindale, TX.

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Nice.

The trip planner you put in your MPG and tank size, and it'll tell you the cheapest way to do your trip and where to fill up.  I've used it on longer tows and it's pretty good.  

 
Rorschach said:
GasBuddy works ok as a guide but relies on user reporting which can get pretty sketchy a lot of the time. When I'm shopping around for fuel prices I will usually start with GasBuddy and then kinda cross reference that with Google maps. Google has pretty accurate price reporting but I haven't figured out how to use it to search for the lowest price which is why I look at GasBuddy first. I go to the trouble of doing this when I'm buying a couple hundred gallons at a time making it worth the trouble. I've also been using an app called mudflap that sometimes generates some pretty major savings on diesel. 
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Haven't heard of mudflap.  I'll have to look that up.

GasBuddy can be behind a little (I usually look at the last report time), but it still generally works out from a "this place is generally cheaper than that place" standpoint.

 
Rockwood said:
Do you use a trip planner to determine fuel stops like Gas Buddy's (https://www.gasbuddy.com/tripcostcalculator)?
Click to expand...


L.R.S. said:
I use Gas Buddy when I'm trying to find diesel, E85 and I'm in an unfamiliar area or just need fuel ASAP. The last 6 months the listed prices have not been as accurate as they used to be. 

With having 136 gallons of fuel we try to find the best price we can and take on at least 100 gals at a time. My son was in Phoenix yesterday and got diesel for $5.39/gal. 

He just crossed into AZ this morning with the 5th wheel from Ramona heading to Lindale, TX.

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im in okc if he needs anything

 
L.R.S. said:
I use Gas Buddy when I'm trying to find diesel, E85 and I'm in an unfamiliar area or just need fuel ASAP. The last 6 months the listed prices have not been as accurate as they used to be. 

With having 136 gallons of fuel we try to find the best price we can and take on at least 100 gals at a time. My son was in Phoenix yesterday and got diesel for $5.39/gal. 

He just crossed into AZ this morning with the 5th wheel from Ramona heading to Lindale, TX.

View attachment 35417
Click to expand...
and did you ever think you would be happy finding diesel for 5.39 wow 

 
Jersey_Jeff73 said:
and did you ever think you would be happy finding diesel for 5.39 wow 
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My son and I can only laugh about being happy to see it under $6/gal. But being in CA we are used to fuel dropping $1/gal when we go out of state. 5 years ago I was doing all the transports myself and going to Phoenix weekly. I had a 50 gal aux tank in my 06 Dmax and went 6 months without buying fuel in CA. That little but makes a big difference for 700-800 gallons of fuel per month.

 
zilla68 said:
i replied, what ever you need man, I have a storage facility in moore okla, right off i35, you can park as long as needed
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Thank you!  I'll know later Thursday what the plan is.

 
I ship my products all over the US and shipping cost have gone through the roof! As a courtesy I cover the freight cost for my customer and have seen it significantly go up. 

 
Just received my credit card statements for the company. I'm afraid to open them and discover the fuel costs last month. This ones going to hurt. Peace

 
Carwashguru said:
I ship my products all over the US and shipping cost have gone through the roof! As a courtesy I cover the freight cost for my customer and have seen it significantly go up. 
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We shipped a fairly light weight pallet of stuff to Pennsylvania yesterday.  $1k..

 
Kraut_n_Rice said:
We shipped a fairly light weight pallet of stuff to Pennsylvania yesterday.  $1k..
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My guy's broke a lens for a 2" X 4' light fixture. the lens cost me $16.00, they charged me $150.00 to ship it. We are talking about a 3" round cardboard tube 4' long that weighs more than what is in it.

 
Free shipping and free estimates are going to be considered….

 
We charge $500.00 for Quotes. Walking a warehouse for hours / driving to their facility isn't free anymore. If you accept the quote, you can deduct the $500.00. Peace  

 
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