Gas Price Watch

We have Smith's here in New Mexico which are owned by Kroger. Kroger also owns Ralph's, Fred Meyer and several other chains in the US. Does anyone else get discounts on gas by using your rewards card? I usually get around $0.50 a gallon discount each month just by shopping there. Not much choice for me they are the only store in town out side of the tiny food coop. They do surveys as well on your receipts. I can fill out a survey in 30 seconds and get 50pts each time ($0.05). You can purchase up to 40 gallons IIRC. That really helps when filling up the Expedition and my little Honda S2000 that uses super premium (94 Octane). At times especially during the Summer and Holidays they will do 2X or even 4X bonus points and I have had over $1.00 gallon discount. Always fun to pay ~$1.00 a gallon for gas!

ibglowin said:

We have Smith's here in New Mexico which are owned by Kroger. Kroger also owns Ralph's, Fred Meyer and several other chains in the US. Does anyone else get discounts on gas by using your rewards card? I usually get around $0.50 a gallon discount each month just by shopping there. Not much choice for me they are the only store in town out side of the tiny food coop. They do surveys as well on your receipts. I can fill out a survey in 30 seconds and get 50pts each time ($0.05). You can purchase up to 40 gallons IIRC. That really helps when filling up the Expedition and my little Honda S2000 that uses super premium (94 Octane). At times especially during the Summer and Holidays they will do 2X or even 4X bonus points and I have had over $1.00 gallon discount. Always fun to pay ~$1.00 a gallon for gas!

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Our Giant gives a point per dollar spent, but the "block" size needed is 100 points to get $0.10 per gallon. Oh, and there is a 25 gallon limit, so that wouldn't work as well for the Expedition. The prices vary depending on the demographic of the local area, so Mechanicsburg has been $2.43 for a while, Dillsburg just went to $2.43 the other day, and Hanover Giant was $2.55 this morning. The "strip" in Hanover attracts a lot of Marylanders since Hanover is only 10 or so miles from the border. It is nice though, has a Walmart, Giant, State Store, Home Depot, Lowes, Kohls, Target, soon a Sams Club, Furniture places, lots of national chain restaurants, car dealers, etc. So it is quite the shopping magnet. And you can take the UTZ factory tour and visit the UTZ store and get bulk snacks pretty cheap.

I am going electric next year, put down my deposit for Tesla Model 3

geek said:

I am going electric next year, put down my deposit for Tesla Model 3

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I'd love to but don't want my electric bill to be too high, since it's only once month. What's the chance I'd take the money I'm not buying gas with and actually putting it in savings. NOT!!

ceeaton said:

I'd love to but don't want my electric bill to be too high, since it's only once month. What's the chance I'd take the money I'm not buying gas with and actually putting it in savings. NOT!!

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Forgot to mention, I also have solar panels on the roof, 32 panels total..

geek said:

Forgot to mention, I also have solar panels on the roof, 32 panels total..

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Yea I was thinking about investing in some of those when I get the roof replaced here pretty soon. Our electric coop (Adams Electric) is really helpful and encourages homeowners to invest in panels where it's feasible. So I'd probably do the panels before I do the car. Wonder if I can get the roof and panels cheaper than the Tesla? What does the model 3 run up in your area?

ceeaton said:

Yea I was thinking about investing in some of those when I get the roof replaced here pretty soon. Our electric coop (Adams Electric) is really helpful and encourages homeowners to invest in panels where it's feasible. So I'd probably do the panels before I do the car. Wonder if I can get the roof and panels cheaper than the Tesla? What does the model 3 run up in your area?

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Well, Model 3 was recently released but only employees are getting it now, once they ramp up production then everyone else in the list will start getting the delivery. Mine I estimate will be here end of 2018

The price is the same for everyone regardless of state, I think. The starting price will be $35k but adding stuff could get it way up to around $60k (premium package is $5k, 19" wheels $1,500, auto pilot $5k...and on and on).

Long answer, so the short one is $35k for the base model.

BTW - my solar panels are only 165 watts, nowadays you can get them in 300 watts or more.

Did you buy or lease? Are you afraid your electric utility will "change the rules" for PVP owners and start charging you large monthly fee to help them "maintain" the electric grid.....

We get over 300 days of sunshine a year here. I have a nice South facing roof along the backyard. House is paid off next month so looking for some income tax deductions needless to say.

The utility companies like their monopoly and if too many people start moving in on their territory you know they will do something to make it less desirable to compete with them.

Our local utility is a not for profit run by the county and even they are making noise about charging an offset fee for customers who have PVP installed.

They also sent out a questionnaire about interest in a solar "garden" of sorts. Sorta like a garden coop where you could buy in as much as you wanted to and then they would build and maintain the solar panels, you don't have to have "ugly" panels on your roof and they give you a credit each month for whatever your panels provided in electric power. Win/Win perhaps.

geek said:

Forgot to mention, I also have solar panels on the roof, 32 panels total..

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Wait so you are gonna pony up $50K for an electric car but think $500 for a Pit Boss Kamado grill to to much.......

geek said:

The price is the same for everyone regardless of state, I think. The starting price will be $35k but adding stuff could get it way up to around $60k (premium package is $5k, 19" wheels $1,500, auto pilot $5k...and on and on).

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ibglowin said:

Did you buy or lease? Are you afraid your electric utility will "change the rules" for PVP owners and start charging you large monthly fee to help them "maintain" the electric grid.....

We get over 300 days of sunshine a year here. I have a nice South facing roof along the backyard. House is paid off next month so looking for some income tax deductions needless to say.

The utility companies like their monopoly and if too many people start moving in on their territory you know they will do something to make it less desirable to compete with them.

Our local utility is a not for profit run by the county and even they are making noise about charging an offset fee for customers who have PVP installed.

They also sent out a questionnaire about interest in a solar "garden" of sorts. Sorta like a garden coop where you could buy in as much as you wanted to and then they would build and maintain the solar panels, you don't have to have "ugly" panels on your roof and they give you a credit each month for whatever your panels provided in electric power. Win/Win perhaps.

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What's a PVP? Polyvinylpyrrolidone? People Viff Panels? Personal Voltage Protection?

ibglowin said:

Did you buy or lease? Are you afraid your electric utility will "change the rules" for PVP owners and start charging you large monthly fee to help them "maintain" the electric grid.....

We get over 300 days of sunshine a year here. I have a nice South facing roof along the backyard. House is paid off next month so looking for some income tax deductions needless to say.

The utility companies like their monopoly and if too many people start moving in on their territory you know they will do something to make it less desirable to compete with them.

Our local utility is a not for profit run by the county and even they are making noise about charging an offset fee for customers who have PVP installed.

They also sent out a questionnaire about interest in a solar "garden" of sorts. Sorta like a garden coop where you could buy in as much as you wanted to and then they would build and maintain the solar panels, you don't have to have "ugly" panels on your roof and they give you a credit each month for whatever your panels provided in electric power. Win/Win perhaps.

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I purchased it a few years ago, all paid off now. Never been afraid of the electric company for that reason but I guess anything is possible.
The "service fee" used to be $16/month and it is now I think $19.

Sounds like NM is a GREAT place to go electric.

If you go solar, try to get the highest voltage panels if you can, their capacity keeps increasing every day sort of speak and they're making them more efficient.

If I were to do it again, I'd try to go through a company promoting at Costco.

BTW - Mike, congrats on the mortgage and welcome to the mortgage free life
I paid mine off July last year and it feels like a good relief, although the CT taxes are a KILLER...

ceeaton said:

What's a PVP? Polyvinylpyrrolidone? People Viff Panels? Personal Voltage Protection?

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LOL. Photo Voltaic Panel

Wow, so Hurricane Harvey has come and gone. What has happened to gas prices in your neck of the woods? My family in San Antonio reports many stations are out of gas due to people panicking about a gas shortage. There is plenty of gas but if everyone freaks out and runs to go fill up with gas then you create the disaster you wish to achieve more or less like a run on a bank. Blame it on social media. No shortage here and no panic. Gas has however gone from $2.06 in Lost Almost all the way up to $2.45 in 7-10 days time. Costco in ABQ is up to $2.21 and IIRC we paid ~$1.90 two weeks ago when we made a run.

$3.29 a gallon on the way to Yosemite.

2.95, up .30 and our gas comes from canada, we're 1600 miles from harvey

From 2.15 to 2.65 in two days at least we don't pump our own.Yet!

They do it because they can who's to stop them?

2.89, last Thursday it was 2.59.

Even at Costco, paid $2.65 for premium gas two days ago, up about 30 cents in just a couple days.
It must be higher by now.