Okay, so I’ll admit it, last weekend (as in the one a week ago) I bought a new BBQ. My old one was a bit beat up and the parts needed to fix it were almost the cost of a new one.
So, I decided to buy one, and got a not horrible price on it (for a cheapskate like me). Yet I didn’t unpack it until this past Saturday. Here it is, in its inaugural BBQ!
You will notice that small bottle of propane down below. That is an 11 pound bottle of propane and it took some doing to track down someone who sold one.
It was more expensive than a 20 pound bottle but I wanted the small size and light weight, because I didn’t want to lug around and try to store an extra 20 pound bottle.
You may be wondering why I didn’t just get that special RV hose and connect the BBQ directly to Wanda’s propane system.
Well, the short answer is you need a more expensive BBQ, one that can bypass its internal regulator, and the cheap ones don’t do that (as far as I know).
As well, it seemed simpler to just get this little bottle and refill it now and again.
Well, that led to a bit of a problem. You see, the first fill of a propane tank is a bit of a big deal and requires that the tank is “Purged.”
They do a certain procedure to it, so if you have a new tank, and are getting it filled for the first time, let the propane attendant know that before they get started.
Okay, so my usual truck stop that I buy propane from couldn’t purge the tank, so I went to another place that specialized in selling propane.
So far, so good.
Well, as was the case the last time that I bought propane (in the summer, sometime) I was overcharged.
You see, I pulled up to get my little 11 pound tank purged and filled. I decided that since I was there to get the 30 pound propane tank (that I had been using since I got Wanda back from repairs) topped up.
The attendant told me that it was about half full but he could top it up. I decided, why not.
Well, when he was done, he did not hand me any paperwork saying how much propane he had used in either tank. He just told me to tell the clerk that he had filled “one 30 pound tank and one 10 pound tank.”
I questioned this, saying the 30 pound tank was half full, and he replied “we flat-fee now.”
True to form, despite what I said to the clerk, I was charged for 35 pounds of propane, (at $0.99 per pound) plus taxes despite being given much less.
This happens at all of the propane retailers in my area that I know of. This means that they are not charging for what they actually give you, but whatever price they can pull out of their butts (just for more money).
I have contacted the govt, the propane retailers association and the press, but I expect that no one will care. It is just frustrating to not be given a fair deal on something so vital to me.
Ah well, I will carry on, rip-offs notwithstanding.
(But I did have two nice BBQ’s this weekend, and will have many more in the future.)
As always: Keep your head up, your attitude positive, and keep moving forward!
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