marine fuel markup, my rant.

[eseyoung]

Here in the upper Chesapeake Bay I am finding prices +/- 4.05/gal

I just happened to fill up my truck today and that is the going price for on road too. The station just happen to have offroad for $3.50/gal, and offered .10 off with 100+gal. i am quite sure they are still making a profit selling it for that too.

So because you arrive in a boat they charge you up to 65 cents more /gal?

Not a huge deal for me (.75gal/hour) but it seems that an marina who would be willing to sell closer to the offroad price would have boats lined up to fuel.

I suppose that marinas will price what the market will pay. Just my rant for today.

 

[yachtbrokerguy]

So how many gallons of fuel is sold at that gas station each week? How many gallons of fuel are sold each week at the marina in December, January, February and other cold months? Most gas stations I go to have one employee who also stocks the store to sell soda, candy, coffee and the high profit items. Does your marina have someone to help with lines when you arrive? Do you see cars pull in and fill a water tank?
Does your marina put in stabilizer for fuel to sit in a tank for long periods?
Ever price out the cost of a dock compared with an asphalt parking area?
As someone who has worked in many boat yards and marinas I know that many marinas would rather not sell fuel at all but they have to service their clients.

 

[eseyoung]

ok perhaps rant was a little strong.


I do understand that they have expenses that land based fueling points don't have. That said, i have never been charged $100+ to park my car at a gas station overnight.

I know, not necessarily a fair compression.

I was trying to say that:
1) i had no idea of the at the pump price of ORD and 2) if a marina were able/willing to sell at a closer to pump price for ORD they would sell a high volume.

Any commodity is worth what a buyer is willing to pay, no more and no less. I will continue to pay the going rate.

 

[Ski in NC]

There are some pretty onerous environmental regs regarding fuel tanks, especially near the water. One local fuel dock (3.99/gal) recently shut down their pumps. Apparently the cost to do the upgrades was higher than they can justify. Not sure that was the only reason, though. The roadside quickmarts apparently make their profit of the sodas, not the gas.

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
Mr. e. I agree. It's enough to drive a person to drink but it's all relative. Makers Mark whiskey is on average $110/gal and of that 55% is water (90 proof) so you're paying about $2/oz for water which is about $256/gal for water if I've done my cyphering right....

 

[eseyoung]

Good thing they decided not to water MM down that would have been the tipping point for me...NOT.

That reminds me my barrel is ready sometime this spring. I feel a trip to KY coming on. their membership program is pretty cool. they send neat Xmas gifts.

 

[Ski in NC]

Milwaukee's best $6/12pack: 1.125gal, $5.33/gal. Diesel $4.00/gal. So the diesel's bad habit is still cheaper than mine!

 

[Anthonyd]

I brew my own beer and after the 3rd batch the equipment was paid for. The cost is about 61 cents a bottle, not counting my time. I can run a batch in two hours from start to on the couch. Not bad. Hopefully this summer I'll get a chance to build a still and start making my own Whiskey.

 

[twistedtree]

They are scattered about, but here and there are marinas doing exactly as the OP suggests - breaking from the pack and selling at a more modest markup. Top Rack Marina just before the start of the Virgina Cut and the Dismal Swamp sells for around $3.60. In my home port fuel prices vary by $0.40 per gal.

 

[Ski in NC]

Once word gets around that a dock has good fuel prices, the big boys (sportfish, MY, shrimp boats, tugs, etc) go there and buy THOUSANDS of gallons at a time. Better to make 10c/gal on a thousand gal than 50c/gal on 10gal for a sailboat.

Swan Point in NC is always good, about 30mi north of Wrightsville Beach. Too far to go to just buy fuel for me, I use the truck.

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
Mr. S. "...10gal for a sailboat." WOW. You must know some extravagant sail boaters....

 

[fryedaze]

Here in the upper Chesapeake Bay I am finding prices +/- 4.05/gal

I just happened to fill up my truck today and that is the going price for on road too. The station just happen to have offroad for $3.50/gal, and offered .10 off with 100+gal. i am quite sure they are still making a profit selling it for that too.

So because you arrive in a boat they charge you up to 65 cents more /gal?

Not a huge deal for me (.75gal/hour) but it seems that an marina who would be willing to sell closer to the offroad price would have boats lined up to fuel.

I suppose that marinas will price what the market will pay. Just my rant for today.

$3.71 in Solomons Md.

 

[N4712]

We get ours from Port Consolidated(truck).

 

[rwidman]

There are some pretty onerous environmental regs regarding fuel tanks, especially near the water. ..........

Yep, blame our own government for part of the markup. Another thing, in many parts of the country they can only sell fuel part of the year, yet their overhead is pretty much the same for twelve months.

We are all free to shop around for fuel or bring it to the boat in five gallon jugs.

It's all part of the cost of boating. Just wait until the government adds a fee on our boating costs to buy boats for people on welfare like they do for telephones.

 

[Underway]

The two states where I normally get fuel grant off-road status to marinas. But they have to apply. If your favorite fuel stops don't have the exemption...complain. Regarding amount of fuel pumped...the manager of the local municipal marina gets a 5 cent bonus on every gallon they pump....his number one priority, of course.

 

[Chrisjs]

Did not read all the postings, so perhaps this was covered. When we fill up we usually take on between 500 and 800 gallons. Best prices are usually from fuel barges. Here in MA, the best deal is in New Bedford where they fuel the fishing fleet. In FL, we also got fuel in Lauderdale from the barge, and also from the delivery truck.

 

[THD]

Mr RT-although expensive, drinking Maker's Mark (my 2nd favorite, Knob Creek is 1st) is a lot better for you than drinking diesel fuel!

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
Mr. T. I concur. Just using MM as an example. I suspect if we were all using steam this would be about the price of coal and low sulfur coal as well. I've heard that in Canada gasoline is upwards of $5/gal. So, again, it's all relative.
CNN/Money: Global gas prices

 

[BandB]

I think sometimes people don't realize all the costs of building and operating a marina and then offering fuel at one. Then the permits and environmental issues. Insurance. I know people think Marinas are making a lot more money than most do. In Florida right now there are well over 100 marinas for sale. When we first got involved in boating in Fort Lauderdale a year and a half ago, there were seven for sale here that we know of. And the reason the vast majority are for sale is lack of profits. Even something as simple as building a dock to put the dispensers on and running the hoses for fuel.

Also, be sure you are talking the same fuel with the same additives. Ultimately look around at the ones who are making money on selling fuel. Generally convenience stores with at least ten dispensers with heavy traffic and operating 24 hours a day. Also, except in Oregon, self service. Another difference.

 

[N4712]

I think sometimes people don't realize all the costs of building and operating a marina and then offering fuel at one. Then the permits and environmental issues. Insurance. I know people think Marinas are making a lot more money than most do. In Florida right now there are well over 100 marinas for sale. When we first got involved in boating in Fort Lauderdale a year and a half ago, there were seven for sale here that we know of. And the reason the vast majority are for sale is lack of profits. Even something as simple as building a dock to put the dispensers on and running the hoses for fuel.



Also, be sure you are talking the same fuel with the same additives. Ultimately look around at the ones who are making money on selling fuel. Generally convenience stores with at least ten dispensers with heavy traffic and operating 24 hours a day. Also, except in Oregon, self service. Another difference.

+1 Variables in fuels places. Our shop used to have 3 30k gallon tanks (off-road,on road, gas) they were just fine but after a regulation law came out that required them to be double walled we had rip them out and chose to go with 3 2500 gallon above ground tanks since it was cheaper and met our needs a booming days have passed. It would of cost 900,000 to replace the in ground ones when above ground if memory serves 250,000.

And between taking the tanks out of the ground you have to have test wells drilled. After 25 plus years fuel has seeped into the ground which means you have to haul out all the contaminated fill which you have to dispose of which also costs money and put new fill in which also costs money. 100k later the ground was better with the city.

 

[BandB]

+1 Variables in fuels places. Our shop used to have 3 30k gallon tanks (off-road,on road, gas) they were just fine but after a regulation law came out that required them to be double walled we had rip them out and chose to go with 3 2500 gallon above ground tanks since it was cheaper and met our needs a booming days have passed. It would of cost 900,000 to replace the in ground ones when above ground if memory serves 250,000.

And between taking the tanks out of the ground you have to have test wells drilled. After 25 plus years fuel has seeped into the ground which means you have to haul out all the contaminated fill which you have to dispose of which also costs money and put new fill in which also costs money. 100k later the ground was better with the city.

In many areas now you even have to post a bond or show proof of insurance to cover remediation and clean up in the future.

At home we get filled by a fuel barge but the majority of our fuel purchases aren't at home. As we're 3000 miles by land and 8000 by water from home right now, a bit far to go for fuel.

 

[O C Diver]

Few years ago, MD added a marine fuel tax which raised everyone's price and then they added state sales tax on top of that. Now I know what you're thinking,"they're taxing a state tax". Nope, the state comptroller's office said they weren't.

Ted

 

[N4712]

In many areas now you even have to post a bond or show proof of insurance to cover remediation and clean up in the future.



At home we get filled by a fuel barge but the majority of our fuel purchases aren't at home. As we're 3000 miles by land and 8000 by water from home right now, a bit far to go for fuel.

Yeah, thankfully 50 million+ gallons later we never had a serious incident that required a clean up or goto insurance, looking in hindsight that's pretty good. Just takes common sense.

 

[BandB]

Yeah, thankfully 50 million+ gallons later we never had a serious incident that required a clean up or goto insurance, looking in hindsight that's pretty good. Just takes common sense.

But still the remediation took $100,000. Now had one person just done one really stupid thing along the way, could have been much more.

 

[N4712]

But still the remediation took $100,000. Now had one person just done one really stupid thing along the way, could have been much more.

Yeah, guess were lucky the contamination in the ground that had to be cleared was stuff we knew was there it's just something you can't avoid as it happens slowly over time.

 

[Egregious]

In SC it is 3.79 / Gallon. off road diesel the pink stuff. This is cheaper than you can get in a gas station in NC. Or fuel up where ever the commercial guys do and pay cash.

 

[Moonstruck]

The chain gas retailers are usually owned by company with an oil distributorship. This cuts out a mark up along the way. They don't like providing restrooms, but they bring people into their store. This is where the big markups are made. The fuel is priced for a few cents per gallon for the retailer and a larger markup for the distributor part of the company.

Marinas on the other hand are small volume fuel retailers in an environmentally sensitive area. I don't care for paying higher prices per fuel, but I can understand the marina needing to make more markup. Besides I have paid near $7.00/gal. in the Bahamas. In the area I am in now the street price and marina prices are within 10 cents per gallon. That's not too bad.

 

[BandB]

The chain gas retailers are usually owned by company with an oil distributorship. This cuts out a mark up along the way. They don't like providing restrooms, but they bring people into their store. This is where the big markups are made. The fuel is priced for a few cents per gallon for the retailer and a larger markup for the distributor part of the company.

Marinas on the other hand are small volume fuel retailers in an environmentally sensitive area. I don't care for paying higher prices per fuel, but I can understand the marina needing to make more markup. Besides I have paid near $7.00/gal. in the Bahamas. In the area I am in now the street price and marina prices are within 10 cents per gallon. That's not too bad.

The large convenience stores and gas stations don't need much markup when they're filling hundreds of cars a day, all self service. And while there are big profits inside, don't underestimate their fuel profits either.

 

[Xsbank]

$0.519 x 3.78 = 5.74 Canadian for a US gallon of regular gas. Plus the Canadian dollar is about 0.90 US. Stop bitching.

 

[BandB]

$0.519 x 3.78 = 5.74 Canadian for a US gallon of regular gas. Plus the Canadian dollar is about 0.90 US. Stop bitching.

So converting to US $ that's about $5.17. Of course US varies a lot by state but none that high. And then Canadians have no reason to complain compared to Europeans.