Some Oregonians are now allowed to pump their own fuel

[Patandlinda]

Originally Posted by KarenH

Speaking of leftover foreign coins, I finally found a solution to the stash that I had accumulated over the years. I mounted them (by country) on a log pole in my cabin. I believe there are coins from 18+ countries with five countries not represented. I treasure these coins as many are from countries that no longer have their own national currency. I also have some from the GDR which no longer even exists. So pull out all those coins that are dumped in a drawer and do something with them!

Any Canadian coins or paper money I have gotten I still have . If I get any foreign currency I have too. I just think it is cool to have . Pat

[rbryan4]

Originally Posted by SpokanEscape

Dave - there are many disabled folks who have hand controls if their lower extremities don't function well. Your comment would be considered "ableist" in the post polio groups of which I am a member.

I don't know about the term "ableist", but I have a niece who has cerebral palsy and is confined to a wheelchair. She can drive a minivan that has been equipped with hand controls. She might even be able to pump her own gas if she had to, but obviously not without alot of difficulty.

[SpokanEscape]

Originally Posted by Dave Walter

Fueling up a car/truck is really a pretty simple task. It does not give me a lot of confidence regarding someone's driving abilities if they have a physical impairment that would not allow them to refuel their tank, but are still out their driving on the roads. Maybe the trend towards driverless cars is a good thing.

Dave - there are cars with hand controls for the use of folks with lower extremity weakness and or paralysis. It's wonderful that a polio survivor for example can still drive and maintain independence and mobility with these adaptions.

I'm sure you meant no offense but I think a lot I'd disabled folks would find your comment quite condescending and rude.

Jan

[SpokanEscape]

Ableist refers to the assumption of able biodied folks that the lives of the disabled are somehow "less than".

[rbryan4]

Thanks Jan. I learned something new. Yes, I suppose the able bodied, including myself, sometimes assume that.

[float5]

Originally Posted by KarenH

Speaking of leftover foreign coins, I finally found a solution to the stash that I had accumulated over the years. I mounted them (by country) on a log pole in my cabin. I believe there are coins from 18+ countries with five countries not represented. I treasure these coins as many are from countries that no longer have their own national currency. I also have some from the GDR which no longer even exists. So pull out all those coins that are dumped in a drawer and do something with them!

Great idea! Wish we had kept paper money from everywhere but we do have just a little, as well as a few coins. We also have a collection of mini flags from the countries we have visited.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by Mike Lewis

I've seen this as well and assumed it was an ADA requirement, but I don't know for sure. That's one reason I found the unattended pumps in Palouse interesting-- there's no one there to pump the gas if needed.

Cardlock stations are normally for commercial customers only - you need to register an account with them to use them - so drivers unable to pump their own fuel would be unlikely. Most of the cardlocks I've seen sell only diesel, since they are for heavy trucks.

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by floorpanel

Okay, someone with more economic sense than me explain how it is the same price whether you pump your own gas or have a $20.00 per hour attendant pump it.

Given a choice of having a poor job done by an incompetent attendant after waiting in line for it, or doing it myself, I always chose the self-serve lane. Clearly I was not alone, and the stations with a choice went away (in this area).

Around here, there are still some stations which distinguish themselves by offering full service - the entire Domo chain, for instance. While they have their loyal customers, I don't go there because they're not the same price, and because I don't want their staff putting fuel in my car. They also claim to clean windshields, but in the rare instances when I went there the staff didn't seem inclined to actually do it.

And do pump jockeys really get paid $20/hour? Why?

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by wetzk

For the same reason it's the same price cash or credit. Visa credit is 1.51% + .10 cents per transaction surcharge so you would think the cash would be cheaper at all stations. Same with everywhere else. Pay cash, the store thanks you I guess.

Cash has lots of problems, including its tendency to "evaporate" from the till. There are advantages to the business of avoiding cash, in some cases more than compensating for the fees associated with other forms of payment (credit or debit).

A friend of mine runs a specialty wine store, and doesn't take cash at all - he doesn't need to handle it at all in the business. Of course that wouldn't work for fuel, but it works well for him.

Different credit card companies charge different service fees, and now they are even starting to charge different fees for different cards (if the customer is getting a cash back benefit, the card company will charge the retailer more). Why don't retailers charge VISA and American Express customers different prices? It's just not manageable, administratively or for marketing purposes. Everyone's price includes an averaged-out cost of servicing the payment method.

[rubicon327]

So I'm sitting at Wawa (in NJ) on Saturday morning and it's around 5F. I'm thinking about this thread and basking for only a brief moment inside my truck (that really wasn't even warm yet) while the attendant pumps my gas. Short lived. The nozzle clicks off and the attendant is off dealing with other customers. So I'm out in the cold resetting it anyway. Then I go to pull away and my truck won't start. Perfect...I just got a NOCO lithium jump starter for Christmas and get to use it. Didn't work! So I'm freezing now and go inside to warm up. Still carry jumper cables so a nice guy gave me a jump. Ironic that I was on my way to Pep Boys to exchange a battery that failed on my fathers truck the day before. Got a new battery for myself while I was there.

Several lessons learned: Dress for the conditions even if you are just running an errand as you never know when you could get stranded (I'm sure those in colder climates are better versed at this already). Always carry jumper cables even if you have a fancy jump starter gizmo. An older battery that is not in peak condition may be fine at 25F and warmer, but won't like 5F.

[Mike Lewis]

Originally Posted by Brian B-P

Cardlock stations are normally for commercial customers only - you need to register an account with them to use them - so drivers unable to pump their own fuel would be unlikely. Most of the cardlocks I've seen sell only diesel, since they are for heavy trucks.

I was still curious about this so I looked it up. You're right-- the site in Palouse is a cardlock station; it is owned by Busch Distributors. This one has both gasoline and diesel pumps.

I also found the "Visit Palouse" website, which has a good photo of the RV park I stayed in last June:

RV Park – City of Palouse

[mizterwizard]

I live 17 freeway miles from Oregon. The fuel price in Ontario is almost always lower than in Boise so I go to Ontario when it is convenient. I drive a diesel so I can pump my own fuel and have for years. That means I don't have to wait for the attendant to become available. The price of fuel in different areas is more a matter of politics and market control than anything else.

I have noticed that there is usually some trick to pumping fuel in Oregon. Typically you have to input how much fuel you intend to purchase before you pump. I always fill up so I never know the answer in advance. The trick is to just hit enter and the pump starts without a limit.

When dealing at a station that offers full and self service my experience has always been that full service costs significantly more. That's fine. You pay for someone to do something for you or you do it yourself. I haven't seen the option in a long time though. All of the full service islands have been converted to self serve when it is legal.

I'm not an idiot. I can figure out how to pump fuel just as well as any minimum wage worker, which is what you get as an attendant. I'm sure Oregonians are happy to have all of these low grade jobs available to their people who can't find something better though.

At least Oregon doesn't have all of those horrific news stories about conflagrations at filling stations caused by the untrained motorists operating complicated and dangerous fueling equipment that you read about everywhere else.

Oh, wait a minute. I've never read or heard of such an incident. But there must be many such occurrences, just like razor blades in caramel apples at Halloween. You see it on TV shows all of the time. There must be a conspiracy by the press to keep us in the dark. After all, the press never likes to report bad news.

I don't believe in boogeymen, Sasquatch or the inability of the average person to pump gas safely. The buying public has spoken and full service has gone the way of the Dodo everywhere that self service is offered.

[dfandrews]

Originally Posted by mizterwizard

I live 17 freeway miles from Oregon. The fuel price in Ontario is ...............................................
I don't believe in boogeymen, Sasquatch or the inability of the average person to pump gas safely. The buying public has spoken and full service has gone the way of the Dodo everywhere that self service is offered.

David,
I don't know what the forum moderators will think of it, but I sure enjoyed reading, applauding, agreeing with, and laughing with, your post. Thanks.

[mizterwizard]

I just think the arguments supporting the mandate against self serve refueling are ridiculous. Safety isn't an issue. Training is only an issue until you do it once, then it's more like, "What was I worried about?" Exposure to the elements may be a legitimate concern but if that is your issue then how about a law requiring that an attendant be available, not that self-serve be outlawed.

And the whole jobs thing is a joke. They are the lowest end jobs with the least pay and no prestige at all. One might as well advocate that garbage trucks have people to come get your cans from the house and haul them to the street for you. I'd much rather pump my own gas than take out the garbage. They could sort the recyclables too and their pay would be the deposit on cans and bottles. How about a law that you can't mow your own lawn? Lots more people get hurt by lawnmowers than by gas pumps. Lawn care should be the province of teenage boys and illegal immigrants, not Oregonians.

If the moderators don't like me poking fun at Oregon then perhaps they should delete all of the post poking fun at Idaho, Texas, Montana and the other locations mentioned in this post: http://www.escapeforum.org/forums/f3...aho-11944.html

When did we get so touchy that someone can't comment on the ridiculous things in life?

[Brian B-P]

Originally Posted by Mike Lewis

I was still curious about this so I looked it up. You're right-- the site in Palouse is a cardlock station; it is owned by Busch Distributors. This one has both gasoline and diesel pumps.

That Palouse location is really small for a cardlock. I looked into cardlock stations because they're always open and the more typical locations serving trucks are sized to handle large vehicles such as my motorhome, and would work well for a tug and trailer as well. Those towing with a diesel might like them for the same reasons, plus they all have diesel, and many have DEF right at the pump island.

It didn't work out for me because the major cardlock chains here were often diesel-only; however, I see in a search of Petro-Pass locations now that most of them now have gasoline. As an individual consumer, I'm not sure I could get a SuperPass card for them anyway.

[Donna D.]

Tell me again, why I should be unhappy I don't pump my own fuel?

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by mizterwizard

When did we get so touchy that someone can't comment on the ridiculous things in life?

Because many members do not believe these things ridiculous, so in effect you are knocking their point of view. We all have differing points of view on many topics, but to call other's view ridiculous is generally no accepted.

I pumped gas when young, and was trained to do things as they should be done. I was quite happy to have that job, as were many of my friends. My nephew has a job pumping gas here in town to supplement his income while going to school. Some work as bag boys (girls) in grocery stores. Sure you could carry your bags out yourself, but for many the assistance is greatly appreciated. I believe helping others is a good thing.

There are places where garbage collection is done from the residents yard. My brother in law in Mountain Lakes, New Jersey, is not allowed to have the garbage out in front of their house. The garbage collectors come into his back yard and bring it to the street to the truck and dump it. When they bring the cans back they also bring a broom and sweep up the area before replacing the cans.

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by Donna D.

Tell me again, why I should be unhappy I don't pump my own fuel?

Because you have to get out of the vehicle an pump it yourself when weather is terrible.

You might be wearing good clothes and don't want to risk getting some on yourself.

You like to help support the pump jockeys if you can.

Do any of these see close?

[gbaglo]

I got fired from my first job, pump jockey.
Best thing that ever happened to me.

[Jim Bennett]

Well, I have a site meeting at 7am, and a fuel tanks that says I have 30km until empty. It is -22°C (-8°F) with high winds out there, and I am headed out for fuel. Guess which lane I am using?