Gas prices completely out of control

[Davis Lawn Mowing, LLC]

I posted yesterday about gas prices in my area. I said they were up to $2.65. Well, that was Thursday. I saw last night they had went down to $2.51. Was out paying some bills this morning and prices were still the same. Came back through town an hour later and they were up to $2.81!!!!!!!!!!!!! 30 cents in a damn hour. It is all over the news here in Mid-Michigan. I said I was trying to get out of the industry possibly this winter and it is looking like an even distincter possibility now. They said we may see relief after Labor Day, well that sounds about right anyway, usually does go down after Labor Day since Summer is all but over. This is getting god damn ridiculous, pardon the language but it is just ruining my business and this entire industry. I should have laid the $1500 down on this website I saw a couple weeks ago that was offering 30-1 odds on gas prices reaching $3.00 a gallon by Labor Day weekend. :angry:

[topsites]

skru it, this is my best year ever, I just spent MORE money for MORE new equipment lol (an fs-85r by stihl :)

[protouchlawn]

Matt,
Not quite as bad but... I decided to go fishing Sunday morning.(Decided Saturday afternoon kind of late) Filled the truck and boat up at 5:00 A.M. Sunday morning for 2.39.9. I went this morning Monday at 6:00 A.M. to the same Chevron station that I try to patronize because a local family has owned it for almost 27 years. Price: 2.53.9.
I have no idea where it will end. Between the gas prices and a half-ass drought in this part of the country, it is getting pretty damn tough.

Scooter

[rodfather]

I said enough already. Purchased a 500 gallon tank and pump last Friday and had it filled this morning for $2.39 a gallon.

[MrFangs]

I said enough already. Purchased a 500 gallon tank and pump last Friday and had it filled this morning for $2.39 a gallon.


Smart idea! I'd be scared of any sparks, though!

[HighGrass]

I don't know about you guys, but my thoughts of buying a diesel truck anytime in the near future are on hold. I like the idea of longevity but paying as much if not more than high test...I think I'll stick with gas.

[rodfather]

AOL this morning show station signs with diesel in LA at $3.19 a gallon. That just plain sucks big time.

[The Captain]

You may be right on the future costs but I hope not. I think the increases are almost media driven. These costs aren't news any more.They seem to be a way to get our focus off the middle east and the lack of anything else to fill the space. Some of us (motorists) are our own worst enemy in this battle. How many times have you seen someone (usally in a SUV or min-van) pull up to the pumps and fill up, paying with a credit card. They have no idea what they're spending because it isn't hard cash. The bill will go into the hat and may be paid (minimum amount due) at the end of the month. Why do they need 35-45 gallons of fuel? They're usually only going to take the kids to school or go to the market. They in effect are rolling storage tanks for the petroleum industry, helping keep the available supply down and prices up. I put only enough in my tank and cans to get by day to day, as I pass stations each day. If the oil companys had to store the stuff produced, I think the price (mho) would have to drop due in part to a lack of storage tanks. They certinly aren't reinvesting in refinerys or production equipment.

Sorry if I'm venting but I have had to raise the costs (minimally) to my accounts but sure don't like doing it. It makes us all look as greedy as the oil companys.

Jim

[Mike (MLC)]

it went from 2.19 to 2.45 overnight .

[mcwlandscaping]

Captain, the reason they do that is to avoid a higher price a day or two later. If they fill up now, they get one price per gallon, if they do it day by day, each day they could be paying more and more. Just because they are homeowners doen't mean that they don't use there vehicle less then you do. My mom runs around all day doing errands. My dad drives me to clients. Both like to fill up when they have the money to do it to avoid higher prices a day or two later. Just my 2 cents, not trying to start anything.

[Davis Lawn Mowing, LLC]

I filled my stuff up Thursday and actually saved money. Decided to do it then instead of Sunday my normal day because I had a wedding this weekend and was too busy to worry about it. Shoulda done it Wednesday night though seeing as prices always go up Thursday.

As for a diesel, I wouldnt get one, ever. My brother has a 2000 Dodge 3500 and last week his water pump went bust. Want to know the damage? $4000!!!!!!!!! My Chevy half ton, $250 tops. So just for that simple fact, oh hell no will I ever buy a diesel, EVER.

[rodfather]

I filled my stuff up Thursday and actually saved money. Decided to do it then instead of Sunday my normal day because I had a wedding this weekend and was too busy to worry about it. Shoulda done it Wednesday night though seeing as prices always go up Thursday.

As for a diesel, I wouldnt get one, ever. My brother has a 2000 Dodge 3500 and last week his water pump went bust. Want to know the damage? $4000!!!!!!!!! My Chevy half ton, $250 tops. So just for that simple fact, oh hell no will I ever buy a diesel, EVER.

4 grand for a water pump? Somebody got hosed (literally). The tranny in my F-350 PSD was replaced by Jasper for less.

[lawnmaniac883]

IMO gas prices would have to be lower if all these damn tree huggers would shove it and let us build some more refineries. I love these commercials where they say something about pollution and how they want you all to make sacrifices towards conservation, then they step back in to their 8mpg SUV. Its bullsh!t, TREE HUGGERS WHO ARE READING, GO #$@% YOURSELF.

[djlawn]

Actually the per mile cost to run a diesel, fuel aspect only is cheaper than a gas. I pay $0.29/mile with my 2000 Ford F250 with the 5.4L Gas. I pay $0.19/mile for my 05 GMC Sierra with the 6.6L Diesel. That is with paying $0.30 more per gallon for diesel. Now as far as the the increased cost of the engine, that's another story. You have to keep a diesel for about 5 years to see the savings, but the resale is higher for diesel vehicles.

[valleylawn79]

went up last night 20 cents here. funny thing about it its 16 cwents cheaper across town. anyway i know someone is sticking it to us!!!!!!! AND YES I AM GOING TO HAVE TO ADD SOME TYPE OF CHARGE TO MY PRICES. people dont understand this high priced equipment we use dont run on water. fuel has doubled here in 15 months. YOU CAN BET FREIGHT ANMD UPS; FED EXPRESS RAISED THERE RATES; SO SHALL WE. STARTING TOMMOROW. i didnt get into this business to lose money and i know yall didnt either. the truckers{independepent } are staging a sit out; just dony buy any fuel this friday; if everyone does that there will be an immediate SURPLUS. i dont know what to do except for the us to supply there own oil

[Metro Lawn]

I saw regular unleaded as low as 2.37 and as high as 2.99 while driving around today. That is more than a 60 cent gap. The oil companies are just sticking it to us and the worst is Speedway and it's affiliates. These bastards will jump the price as much as 50 cents at a time and hope the other chains follow. I read in the WSJ last week the relationship of crude oil price to gas price. It states that for every dollar a barrel of crude costs, it reflects 2.5 cents on a gallon of gas. ie: crude 60.00 a barrel = gas 1.50 a gallon then add in the fuel taxes.. let's say .50 and we are at 2.00 a gallon. The rest is the profit being made by the oil companies. Ain't that a kick in the crotch?

BTW - OPEC increased production last week or so, and crude oil prices are dropping... yet gas keeps going up... :realmad:

[cushman]

I wonder why no one complains about the price of bottled water, it is often more expensive than gasoline.

Water should be less costly to produce than gasoline IMHO.

[Metro Lawn]

I wonder why no one complains about the price of bottled water, it is often more expensive than gasoline.

Water should be less costly to produce than gasoline IMHO.

I get 30 bottles at Sams Club for under $3. That is 360 oz. or almost 3 gallons. If you buy ia single bottle at a store, then you pay more.. just like soda ect. These are luxury items. You don't really need them, but you are willing to buy them because you want them. We need fuel to run our business, unless we go back to a horse drawn wagon with push reel mowers, and sling blades, ect.

[Evan528]

Because Gasoline is a nessesity. Bottled water is not.

[Davis Lawn Mowing, LLC]

Water pump for his diesel was 4 grand, no foolin. He did get hosed, literally, which is why I will never buy a diesel, period, especially Dodge. Not many diesel mechanics around here either. Hell, the Dodge dealer here has 1 diesel mechanic and he hates working on them. His truck is up for sale starting next week when he gets home from Vegas this weekend. He was over 100,000 miles so his warranty is not valid anymore. I really have no clue why the price was what it is, I thought he was full of crap too until he showed me the bill. So he called around to dealerships in Flint and Lansing and the local dealer wasnt pulling his chain either. Hell, the local dealer even told him if he could find another dealer in the area that would do the work for less they would knock his price down to whatever he got quoted at. He found no one cheaper. Believe me rodfather, I am still puzzled about this one. I had an engine replaced in my old Astro Van about 5 years ago for 3 Gs. Go figure. Maybe it is just a Dodge thing, christ I dont know.

[rodfather]

Wow Matt, that is unreal...I feel sorry for your brother btw.

[lawnmaniac883]

Well, thats ashame about the water pump. I suppose your friend is not mechanically inclined to save money. You can get a new pump from cummins for certainly no more than 500 bucks, from there all it is is removing shroud, radiater, ect. Diesels are great engines but repair prices can be rather pricey. 4000 bux is flat out gettin hosed.

[Metro Lawn]

We have a bunch of Dodge trucks with Cummins diesels. One is over 400,000 and never been apart. Never had a problem with them. You can buy an engine for 4000.00. I think someone is yanking someone.

[HighGrass]

Because Gasoline is a nessesity. Bottled water is not.

....and from a marketing point, you buy smaller quantities so the customer is apt to pay more without wincing.

[Lake Claire Lawn Ranger]

Around here at a couple of places I buy gas, I've noticed the pumps are running slower than they used to. Probably trying to make us feel like we're still getting our money's worth. :dizzy:

[GreenQuest Lawn]

$2.80 a gallon here

[Davis Lawn Mowing, LLC]

Diesel repair aint cheap period. Working on a regular gas engine, those mechanics are a dime a dozen. Working on diesels aint. I believe more than anything it was the hourly rate that screwed him, plus a water pump for a diesel aint exactly cheap either. I believe they bill out at $200 per man hour, so if the dude has a helper I am sure that is even more too, but I am not sure on that. Like I said, it aint cheap and I truly think their are about 3 diesel mechanics here in my area, I aint crappin ya either. My bro was actually going to take a diesel mechanics program at Lansing Community College last year but he got offered $25/hr to become a forman for a local concrete business here in town so he took that instead since he has been doing that since he was 15. Diesel mechanics make awesome scratch too, at least $25/hr, most make more I do believe. If you ever want to get into good work that is always needed, become a diesel mechanic. This is the reason his truck is getting traded in next week. He is either going with and F-250 or his new wife is gonna splurge and let him get an H2. He really wants the H2. Hell, add the $4000 to the $15Gs they shelled out for their wedding on July 23rd and the current honeymoon to Vegas as we speak and they are having a bad month. LOL At least his wife makes more than he does and gets a company car with a company credit card for gas so I guess they are gonna be ok. LOL

[RedWingsDet]

I have strong belief that once march rolls around, gas prices will be like 2.10

[HighGrass]

I have strong belief that once march rolls around, gas prices will be like 2.10

And you base this on.....?

[RedWingsDet]

And you base this on.....?

Honestly. Nothing. But I think it'll go down.

Hopefully, everyone will get scared that prices will continue to soar. Thus people will get out of the business, just leaving like 20 landscaping companys instead of hundreds, litteraly. Then once Feb or March hits, gas will be like 2.10. Ive had a few people tell me that they have heard gas is going to get to be like 3.50 by october, but then drop way back down in march.

[bugspit]

Hey, it could be worse...

http://money.cnn.com/pf/features/lists/global_gasprices/

[Runner]

They said on the national news tonight that it is apt to drop after Labor Day. Yeah, it will drop alright. It will drop about 10 cents.

[Woody82986]

I am with Premier... I think gas prices will level off for the winter at the 2.10 or 2.15 mark. Last year around here, they leveled off at 1.65 to 1.70 for the winter months. Don't get me wrong, once April and May roll around I believe they will shoot up to a high amount again.

[Lux Lawn]

We are up to $2.69 a gallon now.

[Lake Claire Lawn Ranger]

Dear customers,

We will resume your lawn service when gas prices come back down.

Thank you

[Pro-Scapes]

I added a 5% fuel surcharge onto most accts. Everyone seems to understand. I think its how you do it is what makes the difference.

One complaint but that's from a 1400 a month acct so we let him slide but he agrees if they top 2.80 he will compensate us. Just seen 2.47 this morning. Rodfathers idea is great. You can get local petro distributors to deliver generic gas cheaper. Some have different minimums. If your going thru a lot of fuel even 20 cents on 500 gallons adds up quick. Its reasonably safe with a quality transfer tank and pump.

[djlawn]

You can have a tank set up at your shop but just check about your local laws regarding diking and such. You should be able to find out from your local dec or codes officer

[arborist-28]

I have to agree the prices are out of control .. I wanna thank all are friends in the middle east.. Strange coincidence that are commander and chief has strong ties with the oil industry ..No there can't be any connection there ... It's not just our industry though it every industry making most if not all consumer products cost that much more ...the problem is going to get alot worse before or if it ever gets better ...c

[rob1325]

Water pump for his diesel was 4 grand, no foolin. He did get hosed, literally, which is why I will never buy a diesel, period, especially Dodge. Not many diesel mechanics around here either. Hell, the Dodge dealer here has 1 diesel mechanic and he hates working on them. His truck is up for sale starting next week when he gets home from Vegas this weekend. He was over 100,000 miles so his warranty is not valid anymore. I really have no clue why the price was what it is, I thought he was full of crap too until he showed me the bill. So he called around to dealerships in Flint and Lansing and the local dealer wasnt pulling his chain either. Hell, the local dealer even told him if he could find another dealer in the area that would do the work for less they would knock his price down to whatever he got quoted at. He found no one cheaper. Believe me rodfather, I am still puzzled about this one. I had an engine replaced in my old Astro Van about 5 years ago for 3 Gs. Go figure. Maybe it is just a Dodge thing, christ I dont know.

Just replaced my water pump on my Dodge Cummins with just over 98,000 miles, $ 125 at Napa and took me 15 minutes.

[HighGrass]

I have to agree the prices are out of control .. I wanna thank all are friends in the middle east.. Strange coincidence that are commander and chief has strong ties with the oil industry ..No there can't be any connection there ... It's not just our industry though it every industry making most if not all consumer products cost that much more ...the problem is going to get alot worse before or if it ever gets better ...c

You wanna thank everyone in the middle east? For what? Try thanking all of the tight restrictions and lack of incentives for building more refineries. Also, you might thank everyone in America who is pegging out the gasoline demand index. As far as our commander and chief and all of his oil friends, can you name one? And even if you could, I doubt that you could really produce enough evidence for a connection. And don't cut and paste some left wing blog either. :realmad: I might add that the real profit making folk here are wearing funny little towels on their heads, not some dude that knows the pres.

[KLBCCTALLY1]

I'm with Metro. The news never talks about the record $25 billion profit Exxon/Mobil made last year. All oil companies on track to set even better records this year. Hell, most companies are bought for under $50 billion. I'm for ethanol production myself. Cheaper, cleaner, and better for the farmers.

[landcare pa]

didnt we win the war in middle east seems to me they really are the winners as far as the left wing or right wing crap there all crooks . no elected officials are saying squat about the fuel increase`s . why would they we pay for there fuel cost and health care , plus the poor crooks all got there raise`s here in pa, always think about those poor bums in Washington how hard they have things, and why would a oil tycoon like bush want a job for $250,000 when he makes more than that with just his stocks and side deals.

[SproulsMowingService]

There was a customer that I was talking to the other day who knows a gas station owner in the area. He said that while the truck was unloading fuel into the tanks the delivery guy got a call that the price was to go up $.10. Apparently he raised the bill by $.10 a gal in the middle of filling the holding tanks. Didn't set to well with the station owner.

[HighGrass]

didnt we win the war in middle east seems to me they really are the winners as far as the left wing or right wing crap there all crooks . no elected officials are saying squat about the fuel increase`s . why would they we pay for there fuel cost and health care , plus the poor crooks all got there raise`s here in pa, always think about those poor bums in Washington how hard they have things, and why would a oil tycoon like bush want a job for $250,000 when he makes more than that with just his stocks and side deals.

Hmmm...Actually, the president did make a statement/comment at a recent press gathering in crawford. He did acknowledge there was a problem with high prices. The demand has reached the highest it's ever been and supply can barely keep up. So, when you hold all the cards (OPEC), you charge what you want, when you want. And if you think that the president only becomes president for the 250K, you may want to do a little more research.

[topsites]

There was a customer that I was talking to the other day who knows a gas station owner in the area. He said that while the truck was unloading fuel into the tanks the delivery guy got a call that the price was to go up $.10. Apparently he raised the bill by $.10 a gal in the middle of filling the holding tanks. Didn't set to well with the station owner.

No but what we do is get someone to call *us* while we're working on a yard to inform us that the price is to go up by $2 and do this for every yard for about a month and do it while we're servicing them, we just raise the price right in the middle of things, lovely :dizzy:

[freddyc]

No but what we do is get someone to call *us* while we're working on a yard to inform us that the price is to go up by $2 and do this for every yard for about a month and do it while we're servicing them, we just raise the price right in the middle of things, lovely :dizzy:



I guess you'd get that call when you were the only one in your town with a lawnmower and it was the day before memorial day!