Biodiesel - Using 100% Homebrew.

[johnson]

this must have been covered before but thought i would put it up anyway.

 

ive got a 1998, s-reg, 1.9td galaxy.

running it on 100% home made biodiesel made from waste oil, only had it a few weeks but its running fine, if not better - cooler and quiter and not noticed any drop in power.

 

anybody else running on it?

cheers chris

Edited October 25, 2011 by johnson

[Amarok]

this must have been covered before but thought i would put it up anyway.

 

ive got a 1998, s-reg, 1.9td galaxy.

running it on 100% home made biodiesel made from waste oil, only had it a few weeks but its running fine, if not better - cooler and quiter and not noticed any drop in power.

 

anybody else running on it?

cheers chris

 

Welcome to the forum.

 

It will run cooler and quieter than regular diesel as the octane rating is much lower which by its very nature will be down on power I'm afraid (If you popped it on a rolling road you will see around 10 -20 bhp drop)

 

Morrisons used to have a 30% bio 70% regular mix diesel on their pumps but after a number of complaints from mostly VW owners have now dropped it to 8% bio. The fundermental problem with bio diesel is it's total lack of lubrication which over time wears out your motor ^_^

but hey you have a 13 year old motor , your call friend

 

regards

Edited October 26, 2011 by Amarok

[sharalaxy]

this must have been covered before but thought i would put it up anyway.

 

ive got a 1998, s-reg, 1.9td galaxy.

running it on 100% home made biodiesel made from waste oil, only had it a few weeks but its running fine, if not better - cooler and quiter and not noticed any drop in power.

 

anybody else running on it?

cheers chris

 

Welcome to the forum.

 

It will run cooler and quieter than regular diesel as the octane rating is much lower which by its very nature will be down on power I'm afraid (If you popped it on a rolling road you will see around 10 -20 bhp drop)

 

Morrisons used to have a 30% bio 70% regular mix diesel on their pumps but after a number of complaints from mostly VW owners have now dropped it to 8% bio. The fundermental problem with bio diesel is it's total lack of lubrication which over time wears out your motor ^_^

but hey you have a 13 year old motor , your call friend

 

regards

 

I'm not sure I get the total lack of lubrication Biodiesel unless I am mistaken is made from 100% oil only the dirt and scum is taken away leaving pure oil?

Originally Diesel engines were designed to run on peanut oil which again is 100% oil?

[cyborg]

this must have been covered before but thought i would put it up anyway.

 

ive got a 1998, s-reg, 1.9td galaxy.

running it on 100% home made biodiesel made from waste oil, only had it a few weeks but its running fine, if not better - cooler and quiter and not noticed any drop in power.

 

anybody else running on it?

cheers chris

 

pictures of process please ,thanks

[johnson]

cyborg, will add photos later.

 

do i just copy and paste the "IMG" code from photo bucket?

 

cheers chris

[johnson]

cyborg, will add photos later.

 

do i just copy and paste the "IMG" code from photo bucket?

 

cheers chris

 

http://i1176.photobucket.com/albums/x331/chris7679/11062011179.jpg

[johnson]

photo above is the oil that i start with.

 

gets heated up to 65' and circulated to get rid of any risidual water, notice how its clearer now!

http://i1176.photobucket.com/albums/x331/chris7679/11062011181.jpg

 

once its been dewatered, i carry out a titration test, mix in the methoxide (methanol & potassium hydroxide) and let it settle over night, the black stuff at the bottom is the glycerine, top is now biodiesel

http://i1176.photobucket.com/albums/x331/chris7679/12062011187.jpg

 

with the glycerine drained off it now needs washing, no need for any fancy misters or foggers this works just fine

http://i1176.photobucket.com/albums/x331/chris7679/09062011177.jpg

 

gets washed several times until the water drains off is clear, the last wash is allowed to settle over night.

http://i1176.photobucket.com/albums/x331/chris7679/11062011182.jpg

 

it then gets heated up and circulated again to get rid of any remaiining water before being passed through a 5 micron filter.

 

built a few of these now and been running on it for 2 years. not sure if this is what you where after Cyborg, let me know if you need owt else.

http://i1176.photobucket.com/albums/x331/chris7679/08102011376.jpg

 

http://i1176.photobucket.com/albums/x331/chris7679/11062011182.jpg

 

it is a good lubricant its just if its not washed correctly it can still be acidic and therefore corrosive.

but DONT put it through a Lucas pump.

 

cheers chris

Edited October 26, 2011 by johnson

[gregers]

holy s... thats some kind of cottage industry you have there fella,hats off to you,;):lol:

 

so after building all of that,and the cost etc,how much has it saved you in fuel duty,and are you required to tell powers that be,so they can have there 6 pieces of silver?.

[johnson]

hi gregers,

 

it cost me about 20p a litre to process , thats:

15p for methanol.

2p for potassium hydroxide

3p for elcetricity

i dont pay for water (M.O.D House) but add about 1-2p a litre if you do.

 

a machine can cost as little as

Edited October 26, 2011 by johnson

[seatkid]

Well done there chris.

 

As far as the lubricity is concerned I wonder if using some additive such as Millers would help.

 

Obviously you have a source of cheap or maybe free used chip fat. Not something that is readily available to most of us.

 

Does the 5 micron filter need replacing often?

 

I'm a bit confused about the washing with water bit. What do you wash? You don't say what happens to all that water - poured down drain?

Edited October 26, 2011 by seatkid

[cyborg]

Impressive 'Mirez MIREZ sorry you are no longer my leader .. All hail Johnson the new king

 

Oh my goodness , Totally like wow Insert 'Jaw dropping on floor gif'

 

King Johnson

 

Any chance of a complete idiots guide on how to shopping list etc cheers cyborg

[johnson]

Seatkid, you wash the biodisel, this is to remove the final parts of gylcerin & methoxide that are still in the oil, as the water sinks the remaing gylcerin & methoxide gets stuck in the water and taken to the bottom, you then drain it off, if you use potassium hydroxide then yes you can put it down your drain (it is accually beneficial to the water treatmeant plants as its high in potash and helps the correct bacteria grow)

i replace the filter every 1000L but they only cost a few quid and Millers wouldnt hurt but ive been ok without it (but i do take my time making it.

 

 

THIS IS JUST A QUICK GUIDE.

 

 

How to make biodiesel from waste vegatable oil

 

Here are the basic steps to make biodiesel

 

1, collection and de-watering

 

Collect your oil and let it settle (longer the better) any water, waste food produce and fat will go to the bottom. Once settled Pour your oil in to your processor [tank] and switch your heater on, heat up to 65

Edited October 26, 2011 by johnson

[johnson]

Cyborg - sorry forgot to add shopping list but im in the middle of building another one (for the father in law) so may be better for you if i add to this with a quick photo build how to?

 

cheers chris

[Mirez]

Impressive 'Mirez MIREZ sorry you are no longer my leader .. All hail Johnson the new king

Awwww damnit lol http://www.fordgalaxy.org.uk/ford/public/style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif

 

Certainly an impressive setup - it's always nice to screw the taxman a little ;)

 

My only caution would be for those considering this on Mk2's. In theory, the earlier TDI engine should run quite nicely on bio, indeed Johnson says his is - however the later Mk2 PD engine absolutely hates biodiesel, there are enough cases for me to say its frequently known to eat pumps and injectors after less then 10K miles when running on Bio. Although not often mentioned or pushed by dealers you could get an "upgrade" kit when buying the car new for the PD which replaced certain components to allow it to run on Bio - if you vagcom 01-Engine and find you have "2G0" in the "Extras" box then it should be ready to rock & roll.

[johnson]

Impressive 'Mirez MIREZ sorry you are no longer my leader .. All hail Johnson the new king

Awwww damnit lol http://www.fordgalaxy.org.uk/ford/public/style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif

 

Certainly an impressive setup - it's always nice to screw the taxman a little ;)

 

My only caution would be for those considering this on Mk2's. In theory, the earlier TDI engine should run quite nicely on bio, indeed Johnson says his is - however the later Mk2 PD engine absolutely hates biodiesel, there are enough cases for me to say its frequently known to eat pumps and injectors after less then 10K miles when running on Bio. Although not often mentioned or pushed by dealers you could get an "upgrade" kit when buying the car new for the PD which replaced certain components to allow it to run on Bio - if you vagcom 01-Engine and find you have "2G0" in the "Extras" box then it should be ready to rock & roll.

 

Mirez,

 

i knew i was safe with an older one and it was because of this that i got an early one. i did get told that 1996 - 2004 vehicles should be ok (can you confirm this?)

 

maybe i should have pointed out that this will only tell people how to make it and not if there car will run on it, i am no where near as clued up on the later engines as yourself, so folks please do your own research to satisfy yourself that your happy to run on it before you damage your pump, im sure the likes of Mirez and others on here will guide you on that.

 

thanks chris

[chrispb123456]

Looking in with interest obviously there is a market for this sort of thing in the right environment, not trying to put a downer on it but what about the legal side of having that sort of equipment and process going on at a family home, residential area, fire risk, insurance etc and storage of the old oil and the finished product.

I used to drive a tanker a few years ago delivering edible oils and later fuel oils and know there's going to be a certain amount of smell involved, does this cause you any problems with neighbours?

[johnson]

Looking in with interest obviously there is a market for this sort of thing in the right environment, not trying to put a downer on it but what about the legal side of having that sort of equipment and process going on at a family home, residential area, fire risk, insurance etc and storage of the old oil and the finished product.

I used to drive a tanker a few years ago delivering edible oils and later fuel oils and know there's going to be a certain amount of smell involved, does this cause you any problems with neighbours?

 

hi chris,

 

there is a massive market and industry behind this, KFC, McDonalds and Stagecoach to name a few are all running on it, do a search on ebay or google and see what comes up to see the size of it.

 

i dont store any vast excess of oil or methanol, i only ever store a maximum of 80l of methanol and never had more that 150l of oil, i tend to use it as i get it. theres no limit on the amount of oil its just like houses that have heating oil in tanks

 

fire risk of the oil is minimal - if you store any old gloss paint then thats more of a risk, however the methanol is very flammable but council regulations allow you to store 205 litres of the stuff, i have however as i know them informed my local fire station of what may be stored on my property, but they wernt concerned and thanked me for letting them know.

point to note is that if methanol does go on fire it is flameless (as in you cant see any) they throw sugar at where they think the fire is to see it caramalise.

 

insurance - its a domestic operation so no need for third party/liability insurance.

 

smell - is very minimal as it doesnt get heated to any high temperature, my neighbours know i make it but have never complained and i have asked them to let me know if they can smell it, most of the time they dont even know im doing it.

 

hope that helps - anything else just ask.

 

cheers

Edited October 27, 2011 by johnson

[seatkid]

How much do you pay for the used oil? And what is the "market price"?

 

I imagine that a lot of local sources already have buyers or contracts.

[johnson]

How much do you pay for the used oil? And what is the "market price"?

 

I imagine that a lot of local sources already have buyers or contracts.

 

im lucky and get mine for free, it goes for about 40p/l on fleabay, most places have either someone like me collecting it or if they get there fresh oil delivered then the same company takes it away for free (nice of them seen as theres no contract to return any),

 

most takaways ive known/used are just happy to get rid of it, offer them 10p/l and see what they say, or if you catch anybody putting takaway leflets through your door ask them, two of the places i collect from i got like this.

 

cheers chris

[zorgman]

good reading this thread, me and my bro were going to do it years ago but trying to get the old oil was nearly impossible as a local firm got in first, i used to buy aldi cooking oil at 36p per l and run it in my xantia with bosch pump and never had a problem whereas my mates had a lucas pump which wore out its bearings or something. does your bio smell when engine running as mine stunk of the burnt oil and i mean it stunk like a chip pan fire.

sure the names for oil was svo ( straight veg oil ) and wvo (waste veg oil ) when i got my sharan was told never run on bio turns out having read the aux heater info from erbaspacher it turns out that the engine is ok but dont run aux heater with bio thats if it does run.

whats the score in winter does the engine start up ok and do you have to put anti freeze stuff in the bio.

[johnson]

good reading this thread, me and my bro were going to do it years ago but trying to get the old oil was nearly impossible as a local firm got in first, i used to buy aldi cooking oil at 36p per l and run it in my xantia with bosch pump and never had a problem whereas my mates had a lucas pump which wore out its bearings or something. does your bio smell when engine running as mine stunk of the burnt oil and i mean it stunk like a chip pan fire.

sure the names for oil was svo ( straight veg oil ) and wvo (waste veg oil ) when i got my sharan was told never run on bio turns out having read the aux heater info from erbaspacher it turns out that the engine is ok but dont run aux heater with bio thats if it does run.

whats the score in winter does the engine start up ok and do you have to put anti freeze stuff in the bio.

 

hi buddy.

 

yes the old XUD Peugeot 1.9d (td) would run on anything you can get through it (inc hydraulic or transformer oil).

the smell was because you were burning pure oil, if you convert it to biodiesel there is very little smell - more like linseed than a bad takeaway.

Lucas pumps die with biodiesel (i would love to tell you other wise but) - the seals rot with it, they were paid by the oil companies to develope them this way.

 

dont no anything about the aux heater - i just see that as something i would like to disconect, why do i need the rear to be 2' hotter than the front, why? can i get rid of it???

 

in winter - i have made a special biodiesel barometer - maybe i should have this copywrited, but all it is, is a jar of my last batch in the shed, if it starts to get cloudy or gel then i run on a mix of 50-50 (only happened once in two years) but the biodiesel barometer works.

 

many thanks chris

[johnson]

now covered a 1000 miles on biodiesel - no problems to report, will let you know if there are.

 

cheers chris

[zorgman]

lots of questions answered many thanks, just wish i could get the old oil as ive got the ideal place to make it now. once ran out of derv near a lidl just bought 10L of oil and stood at side of road pouring it in got some wierd looks. and yes the xud engine would run on absolutly owt you put into it as seeming french derv is crap. now then transformer oil when i worked for neeb used to get 50gal drums of that stuff for a mate to flush engines out before a oil change wish i could get drums of it now.

[johnson]

zorgman, glad its helped, you have to get out there and ask the takaways, dont be shy and offer them 10p a litre if you have to, also offering evening collections has swung it for a few people i know (have built machines for) if you need any other info then just ask and i will do my best to answer.

cheers chris

[zorgman]

going to take plunge and knock up a system but what do you do with the waste and byproducts after your bio has been taken off