Whether it’s a special-purpose vehicle or a regular one, as long as it’s fuel-powered, refueling is necessary. Most vehicles refuel at gas stations, but sometimes a vehicle may unexpectedly run out of fuel on the road, in which case a fuel dispenser truck is needed to provide refueling.
1. When is the best time to refuel?
Many people like to wait until the fuel gauge light turns yellow before refueling, especially concrete mixer truck drivers, who believe the vehicle can still run quite far after the warning light comes on. In fact, doing this can easily damage the cement truck’s fuel pump because of delayed refueling. The correct practice is to refuel when the fuel level is down to one-quarter of the tank. Choosing the right time to refuel is also important. Generally, refueling at midnight or in the evening is the most cost-effective. This is because fuel is a liquid and is subject to thermal expansion and contraction. At night or early morning, fuel contracts due to cooler temperatures, while at noon it expands because of higher temperatures. Since we pay for fuel by volume, refueling at night is the most economical.
2. Can you continue refueling after the fuel nozzle clicks off?
Many truck drivers like to “round up” the amount after the nozzle clicks off during refueling. There’s a saying online that the fuel nozzle has an intake port for vapor recovery, and if you keep refueling after it clicks, you’ll lose out. This understanding is not accurate. Modern fuel nozzle sensors are quite sensitive—they detect fuel vapors at the top and trigger the click, not because the fuel level has completely covered the nozzle. Therefore, when the nozzle clicks off, the tank is not actually 100% full. Even if you add a little more, the fuel level is still far from the vapor intake port.
3. Does it matter which gas station you choose?
It’s best to refuel at gas stations with good-quality fuel and stick to relatively fixed ones. Frequently changing gas stations increases the risk of filling up with poor-quality fuel, which can affect vehicle performance—especially for heavily loaded concrete mixer trucks, where this is particularly harmful. Also, avoid refueling when a tanker truck is delivering fuel to the station. At that time, sediment from the bottom of the station’s storage tank may get stirred up, and those impurities could end up in your vehicle’s fuel tank, negatively impacting engine lifespan.