Fuel Savings Tips for 2022 Why are your business’s powersweeping fuel costs higher than necessary, and what can you do about it? Monthly fuel expenses in many average-sized power
fuel waste. Send trucks onto the road during hours with
sweeping companies are tens of thousands of dollars.
the least traffic congestion.
A significant percentage of those costs can be saved.
USE OVERDRIVE: Make sure drivers are using overdrive
There may be little the industry can do about high
on any vehicles that have that feature.
diesel and gas prices, but deficiencies in operating
REDUCE RPMS WHILE SWEEPING: For example,
practices for maximizing fuel economy add up to a
have operators run rear engines at around 1100 if
substantial amount of wasted fuel. So, below is an
appropriate, vs. 1800 RPMs during sweeping. Consider
update of our 2021 list of great fuel-saving tips for
restricting fleet vehicles to 60 or 65 mph instead of 70
power sweepers and field services vehicles.
mph on the highway.
HOW TO SAVE POWERSWEEPING FUEL COSTS
MONITOR DRIVERS’ HABITS: Use your remote
From how you maintain your power sweeper fleet
monitoring technology for queues to coach your
to how your operators manage fuel economy while
operators to improve fuel-wasting driving habits, like
working in the field, it’s worth adopting ways to cut
excessive acceleration on highways, etc.
fuel waste. Here are some ideas provided by industry
AVOID BRAKE-RIDING: Train operators in the art of
experts to help you add up monthly savings that make
maintaining safe sweeping speed without riding the
it well worth the effort over the period of a budget year.
brakes. Sweeping at a few more miles per hour without
CONVERT TO PROPANE: Propane costs are about
using the brake, vs. sweeping slower but riding the
50% less per gallon than diesel and 30% less than
brake can sweep much more linear distance while
gas. Mileage performance is similar to gas. Propane
burning the same amount of fuel.
also contains less carbon than diesel or gas. Engine
DUMP WASTE WATER: Unnecessarily carrying the
conversion can cost $8,000 to $9,000, but for a truck
waste can significantly reduce fuel economy.
logging around 100 miles per day, the savings can start
RESTRICT AUXILIARY ENGINE USE: Ensure operators
to recover the initial investment very quickly
are not running auxiliary engines while traveling
REWORK ROUTING: Increase fuel use efficiency by
between accounts.
having drivers on the most practical routes for avoiding
DON’T LET ENGINES IDLE: Turn off engines when continued on page 18
1 6 NORTH AMERIC AN S WE E P E R JA NUA RY 2022
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