If your family is like mine, gasoline is one of the larger line items in the monthly budget.

Here are a few tips to bring those costs down.

~Be sure to utilize member perks at wholesale clubs like Sam’s and Costco. They usually offer a 5-10 cent per gallon discount for members.

~Take advantage of gas discounts offered by some grocers. Some stores offer a discount on gasoline purchases based on your grocery purchases. If you’re buying your groceries there anyway, you might as well take advantage of the gas discounts too.

~Find the best price on gas in your area by using www.gasbuddy.com/ . If your area isn’t listed, go ahead and start listing the prices you see at the stations in your area. Others will likely join in.

~Use a credit card that offers rewards or discounts for gas purchases. But pay it off every month to avoided interest. Otherwise you’ll be paying the highest possible cost for your gas. It’s expensive enough!

Once you’ve filled the tank, make it go as far as possible!

~Always fill up at a ¼ tank. This allows you to plan to fill up at the best price rather than being forced to fill up somewhere pricier when the needle hits E.

~Take a “Zen” approach to driving. Drive gently! No jackrabbit stops and starts. Keep it at the speed limit. I challenge you to try this for a full tank of gas and see how much it improves your gas mileage. And your blood pressure!

~Combine your errands. Several short trips at a cold start use twice as much fuel as one trip, covering the same distance, when the engine is warm.

~Get those bodies out of the trunk! Removing 100 pounds of weight in the trunk can improve your fuel efficiency by 2%.

~Do not idle. Idling uses ¼ to ½ gallon of gas per hour.  And it makes the planet sad. 🙁

~Some say that gas is statistically less expensive on Wednesdays.

Last, but not least – Drive less!