Price of LPG swap-a-bottles - big variation in price

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lorenzo

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#119388 30-May-2013 10:24

I bought a Swappa 9kg LPG last week at BP Coventry (Tristram Ave/Wairau Rd) cost $31.68. Just bought another swap a bottle from Mobil on Constellation $37.49. I thought I must have misread the earlier purchase but no ...WTF. I (naively) thought that prices were similar. My mistake.

What are you paying and where - is there a cheap swap a bottle on the North Shore?

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#828224 30-May-2013 11:45

i know Bunnings in Rotorua is $34.30

Common sense is not as common as you think.

lucky015

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#828290 30-May-2013 13:55

Odd, The last one I bought was about $38 at that same BP, However that was about 4-6 months ago.

bazzer

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#828295 30-May-2013 14:00

Is that unexpected? By way of comparison, the Z (and the Gull) on Greville has 91 for 199.9, a lot of other nearby petrol stations have it for 208.9. I don't see any reason why LPG similarly wouldn't vary by location too?

Klipspringer

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#828296 30-May-2013 14:00

Here in Wellington I have found its cheaper to take the bottle to a Caltex garage as they offer a refilling service.

damianh

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#828304 30-May-2013 14:20

Local Caltex in Kapiti has $26.95 refill Tuesdays.

Kiwi Gas do refills in Lower Hutt for around $28 anytime.

mad01

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#828306 30-May-2013 14:23

You should monitor those coupons websites (grabone, treatme, whatever), they seem to run a $25 deal delivered - that's for Christchurch but I'm sure they have it for other cities as well...

Just this morning I got an email from another one of these sites:
http://www.groupy.co.nz/Christchurch

Still $25 delivered. (I've never actually used that site, but I've done it through treatme and grabone without any problems)...

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ajw

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#828328 30-May-2013 14:55

damianh: Local Caltex in Kapiti has $26.95 refill Tuesdays.

Kiwi Gas do refills in Lower Hutt for around $28 anytime.

Just filled a 9KG bottle with Kiwi Lpg for $26.50 and every 12th refill free with the loyalty voucher.

JimmyH

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#828492 30-May-2013 21:22

bazzer: Is that unexpected? By way of comparison, the Z (and the Gull) on Greville has 91 for 199.9, a lot of other nearby petrol stations have it for 208.9. I don't see any reason why LPG similarly wouldn't vary by location too?

Be careful with the Gull comparison. My understanding is that they achieve the lower price by blending in 10-15% ethanol. This makes it cheaper, but also has a lower energy density than petrol so it also means that a litre won't get you quite as far.

mattwnz

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#828494 30-May-2013 21:27

Klipspringer: Here in Wellington I have found its cheaper to take the bottle to a Caltex garage as they offer a refilling service.

It was $15 in the wairarapa for a refill a few years ago. But the problem with refills is that the cylinder has to be regularly serviced and checked, which is expensive. They won't fill an older bottle that hasn't been checked. So swap a bottle is partly paying for that service.

lorenzo

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#828497 30-May-2013 21:44

JimmyH:
bazzer: Is that unexpected? By way of comparison, the Z (and the Gull) on Greville has 91 for 199.9, a lot of other nearby petrol stations have it for 208.9. I don't see any reason why LPG similarly wouldn't vary by location too?

Be careful with the Gull comparison. My understanding is that they achieve the lower price by blending in 10-15% ethanol. This makes it cheaper, but also has a lower energy density than petrol so it also means that a litre won't get you quite as far.

Ethanol 66 power of gasoline.

At 15.pc dilution that would yield approx 95.pc of the power of 100.pc gasoline. Simple comparison Gull need to sell fuel 10-12c cheaper price litre for same energy/dollar yield. Plus or minus
Ref http://environment.about.com/od/ethanolfaq/f/ethanol_perform.htm

Interesting I hadn't thought about that before now .. Thanks

Goosey

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#828500 30-May-2013 21:50

a long time ago our family business was in fuel retailing.

The LPG price increases about this time each year and then reduces after winter.
On occasion there might be 1 or 2 other increases / decreases depending on supply of local sourced vs imported product.

The price per KG simply depends on the LPG retailer you see. Always best to find a retailer who fills them so this way you acutally pay for what you use as opposed to what you use plus service fees for the guy who has to deliver the filled bottles to the retailer.

Edit: amazes me that the price per KG has almost doubled over 10 years !

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pinkydot

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#828524 30-May-2013 22:39

for the home that using twin 45kg LPG bottles..
those price can be different too

They don't put up those price on their website. Always have to call to ask for per bottle price so can compare n get the cheapest one in the area.

Would be nice there is What's My Number (LPG edition) lol

sep11guy

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#828527 30-May-2013 22:43

But whats more surprizing than just comparing 9kg with another 9kg is, comparing the PER KG rate of 9kg cylinder, with the big type cylinder ( 45?kg)

I think the big one works out to be far, far cheaper. I know you buy in bulk and hence the less cost, but surely last time i was discussing this with a friend, the difference was quite huge. Anyone can shed some light on this.

Is it then worth getting the big one installed?

Fred99

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#828532 30-May-2013 23:25

sep11guy: But whats more surprizing than just comparing 9kg with another 9kg is, comparing the PER KG rate of 9kg cylinder, with the big type cylinder ( 45?kg)

I think the big one works out to be far, far cheaper. I know you buy in bulk and hence the less cost, but surely last time i was discussing this with a friend, the difference was quite huge. Anyone can shed some light on this.

Is it then worth getting the big one installed?

I believe that different regs kick in for systems using >15kg. Things like separation distance from doors/windows, sub-floor vents, drains, gully traps etc, so if you're set up for 9kg bottles, it may not be as simple as getting a gasfitter to change connections etc. as you may need to shift the storage area and change all the existing piping.
I guess it depends what you're using it for - we cook almost every night on a gas cooktop, and use a kettle instead of an electric jug. One 9kg bottle costs $24.95 to fill, and lasts about 3 months. It's absolutely not worth going to larger bottles in our case, but YMMV.
The 9kg bottles can usually be bought "on sale" for about $40 - they are able to be used for 10 years from date of manufacture/test - so check date in store before you buy in case they're quitting old stock.

sep11guy

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#828534 30-May-2013 23:42

One 9kg bottle costs $24.95 to fill, and lasts about 3 months. It's absolutely not worth going to larger bottles in our case, but YMMV.
The 9kg bottles can usually be bought "on sale" for about $40 - they are able to be used for 10 years from date of manufacture/test - so check date in store before you buy in case they're quitting old stock.

$25 is a really good price. I havent seen any were filling up for less than approx $38 in Akl. Were can i get it filled for less?

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