Gas prices are increasing fast

(CNN) – President’s Day weekend is here, and many are expected to hit the road.

But you might notice as you fill up your car that gas prices are higher than they were even a week ago.

If you feel like you are paying more to fill up your car lately, you are not imagining it. Gas prices have begun their annual seasonal increase as winter winds down.

“We tend to see it right around Valentine’s Day, Presidents’ Day. That’s really when gas prices tend to start rising more noticeably,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy.

He says this is the time of year that Americans start to see that rise at the pump and feel the effect on their wallet.

De Hann said refineries also start doing maintenance in preparation for the summer driving season, which causes maintenance shutdowns and less gasoline being produced. He also cited a switch over to summer gasoline as a contributing factor.

According to AAA, the national average for gas is $3.28 a gallon, up 11 cents in the last week alone.

For now, De Hann says that is well within the normal range of about 35 to 85 cents a gallon from winter to spring break, which tops out around Memorial Day weekend.

But refinery outages due to cold weather and electrical issues in the last several weeks could push prices up even higher.

However, there are lots of ways to save at the pump.

De Haan says these include loyalty programs at gas station, credit cards with rebates and rewards and even a GasBuddy card that save up to 25 cents a gallon that links to a checking account.