Sonpotlight
Weights & Measures
Cathy V. Neville
Agricultural Commissioner/Sealer
Editor: Fernando Vasquez
June 2009
Mark Hanson
Chief Deputy Sealer
Weights & Measures and the Local Economy
Budget reductions
are a reality, and
our programs are
not exempt. The
Sonoma
County
Board of Supervisors
mandated that all
departments reduce
costs by 5% by the
end of June, and
develop plans for a 15% reduction to take
effect in September.
We met the challenge through reductions
in services and supplies and a modest fee
increase. To help the Board determine
priorities, they conducted a public survey
asking for a ranking of departments and
programs. Weights and Measures had
predominantly favorable responses, for
which we are grateful. The public benefit
for consumer protection and fair business
practices is a bargain at an annual cost of
less than $2 per citizen.
During the county budget hearings, as
representatives of other departments stated
their priorities and program cuts, we realized
the beneficial impact Weights and Measures
has on other departments, and indirectly,
on the taxpayers.
Revenue at the transfer stations is
determined over the vehicle scales we inspect
annually, and now that refuse is trucked out
of the county, the scales do double duty
determining revenue on inbound loads and
expenses on outbound loads. The increased
flights into and out of the airport mean
more fuel sales through meters sealed by
our standards specialists. Road materials
from fill dirt and road base rock to concrete
and asphalt are all weighed on scales
under our jurisdiction. The Weighmaster
program reviews the documentation of each
weighment for those materials and resolves
complaints as they arise.
The benefits of an effective Consumer Law
Division, which we have referenced many
times, were reported. We have a mutual
purpose: to ensure that a dollar of goods or
services is received for each dollar consumers
spend. Our prosecutors have received over
$4 million in the last four years, in fines,
penalties, and restitution, based on our
department’s documented investigations.
Sonoma county weights and measures division
133 aviation blvd., ste. 110 * Santa Rosa, CA 95403
Phone: (707) 565-2371 / Fax: (707) 565-3850
www.sonoma-county.org/agcomm/weights_measures/
Fuel Tank Capacity
Our office receives many
types
of
petroleum
complaints
throughout
the year - ranging from
ambiguous
pricing
practices by local service
stations to the quality of
the fuel being sold. One
common situation pertains to the fuel tank capacity.
Though sometimes difficult to explain to consumers, it
is a fact that a vehicle’s fuel tank holds more fuel than
the amount referenced in the vehicle’s owner’s manual;
therefore you may dispense more fuel in the fuel tank.
Since it is possible that a malfunctioning dispenser is at
the root of these types of complaints, we typically start
our inspections by verifying that the dispenser is, in fact,
measuring and performing correctly. Once the tank
capacity is verified (using online reference material), the
possibility of a malfunctioning dispenser is eliminated,
the meter measures accurately, the computer register
and receipt match, there are no leaks or diversion of
measured product, and the vapor recovery system is not
being over-ridden, we must conclude that the owner was
able to dispense more fuel into the vehicle’s tank than the
volume stated in the service manual.
This statement at face value seems impossible, especially
if the complainant was able to drive to the service
station with presumably some fuel remaining in the
vehicle. There is a simple explanation behind how this
can happen. To explain this, we should look at a typical
design of a fuel tank found in most vehicles (indicated
by the diagram below). The vehicle’s rated tank capacity
is an approximate value of the “true” holding capacity of
the fuel tank. Most fuel tanks are designed with a “vapor
head space” located above the fuel tank. Tanks also have
a fill pipe that can hold a small amount of fuel (.16
gallon per foot for a 2” diameter fill pipe). These two
volume spaces are not typically included in the tank’s
fuel capacity rating.
These additional spaces can easily be filled if the vehicle
is parked on uneven ground (i.e., sloping away from the
dispenser). If this is the case, the person dispensing the
fuel may be able to force fuel in to the tank’s vapor head
space, especially if dispensing at a slow rate. Additional
Spotlight on Weights & Measures ~ June 2009
fuel can occupy the fill pipe if the customer continues
to dispense fuel even after the dispenser has clicked off.
This is known as “topping off,” and is a great way to
spill fuel all over nice clothes and shoes. The dispenser’s
auto shut-off is designed to turn off the dispenser when
the tip of the dispenser’s nozzle is submerged in fuel. If
the customer continues to dispense fuel, not only will
fuel be dispensed to the vapor space and the fill pipe,
but the nozzle may also force fuel into the dispenser’s
vapor recovery hose that is designed to recover only fuel
vapors.
Another type of complaint, though rare, is the practice of
counting miles driven in order to determine how much
fuel was in the fuel tank to begin with. Counting miles
and relying on the vehicle’s fuel gauge to determine how
much fuel is in the tank and how much fuel should go in
the vehicle tank is not a very reliable way to measure the
fuel tank’s true volume or the dispenser’s delivery accuracy.
With these types of complaints, people emphatically
proclaim that they are shopping at their usual fuel
station and typically get “300 to 320” driving miles per
“fill up.” They state that the last fill up “only allowed
them to travel 260 miles,” for example. They assume that
they were shorted on their last tank fill because, how
else could their mileage have dropped by 10% to 15%?
It is common knowledge the several criteria affect your
vehicle’s mileage, including how you drive, the condition
of the vehicle and the weather. Counting miles driven
from your last fuel fill up in order to determine how
much fuel was is in your fuel tank to begin with is not an
accurate way to measure. The values of fuel gauges and
fuel indicators are approximations of how much fuel is
in the vehicle’s fuel tank. If you have any questions or
doubts about a particular service station and their fuel
dispensers, contact our office for assistance.
Metric or Inch-Pound?
Have you come to terms with the metric system or are
you holding steadfast to the familiar inch-pound system
of measure? If someone asked you how many liters are in
a five gallon jug of water, would you know the answer?
As consumers, we are comfortable with that which is
familiar. So when someone says, “I purchased a gallon
milk,” we know approximately how much volume and
weight we are talking about. When that one gallon
volume is referenced as 3.78 liters, most of us become
uneasy, and our minds somersault so we may relate it to
our comfortable units of measure.
When talking about distances, we are comfortable using
the term miles (e.g., we live 2.5 miles from town). When
talking about how tall we stand, feet and inches in pairing
seem just fine. One of the tricky parts of the inch-pound
system is when you have to combine units such as inches
and feet. For example, when you order new carpet for
your living room, you have to convert and multiply
inches and feet to get the square footage of the room. If
the carpet is sold in square yards, your starting value will
need to be converted further in to square yards. This is
where the inch-pound system of units gets bogged down
in conversions.
If combining units like feet and inches wasn’t challenging
enough, when you throw in additional units for a type
of measure such as volume (gallon, the pint, the quart
and the fluid ounce), the list of conversion factors you
have to carry with you quickly grows longer. Even the
units can have multiple meanings; one pound equals 16
ounces, and a pint also equals 16 ounces, but a pound is
weight and a pint is volume, and there is no link between
the two “ounce types.” The metric system eradicates these
conversions and uses of multiple units of measure.
The trick is to broaden your knowledge and to give
yourself a reference point in order to bridge the gap
between the two systems. You can do this by memorizing
the three rules of “10.” For distance, use 10 miles as the
reference. The distance of 10 miles is approximately
equal to 16.1 kilometers. Once you have memorized this
you can easily convert 10 miles to one mile, which is
equal to 1.6 kilometers. If you happen to forget what the
conversion is, the next time you are in your vehicle, look
down at the speedometer. At the indication of 100 miles
per hour you should be able to find its metric equivalent
of 161 kilometers per hour.
For the measure of volume, use 10 gallons as your
reference. The volume of 10 gallons is approximately
equal to 37.8 liters. Having this reference memorized,
you can then easily convert one gallon to 3.78 liters, or
100 gallons to 378 liters.
For measuring mass, use the reference of 10 pounds.
The weight of 10 pounds is approximately equal to 4.5
kilograms. Ten pounds ratioed to one pound becomes
0.45 kilograms and 100 pounds becomes 45 kilograms
simply by moving the decimal.
Notice how easy it is to traverse the metric units of
measure. The strength and simplicity of the metric
system is in its base unit that can be multiplied and sub
multiplied by powers of 10 of the base unit. That is to
say, meters can be used to describe the largest measures
of one kilometer (1,000 meters) to the smallest measure
of one millimeter (1/1000ths of a meter).
Why should you care as a consumer? Think of the
amount of money and time that can be saved if American
companies that purchase, manufacture and sell products
throughout the world only had to deal with one system
of units of measure. Conversions for net quantities of
products in both production and labeling, shipping cost,
fuel cost and monetary compensations for quantities
sold would be a thing of the past. Savings in production
and shipping could be passed on to consumers through
lower prices.
What is the most expensive inch-pound metric conversion
error? According to a 1999 CNN news report, an internal
NASA peer review determined that a 125 million dollar
Mars orbiter was lost because one NASA engineering
team used metric units while another team used English
units in the design of one of the key operations of
the spacecraft. Just another expensive example of why
standardization of units is very important in all aspects
of our daily lives.
June 2009 ~ Spotlight on Weights & Measures