My First Biodiesel Endeavor

[KB3GZW]

I made my first batch of Biodiesel using the Dr. Pepper method last weekend. Another batch is settling as I write this.

In the picture, the jar on the right is the oil I started with. I used waste oil that came out of my countertop deep fryer. The middle jar is the final Biodiesel product. And the jar on the left is the Glycerine which is a by-product of the process. This is usually given to Soap-makers or used as a cleaning agent.

The most dangerous part of the process is mixing Lye with Methanol. The fumes from this can make you go blind if you breathe enough of them, but if you do it correctly and safely you should be fine.

After the reaction has occurred, you will get Biodiesel and Glycerine. Both of these are safe to touch with your bare hands and can be spilled outside with no side effects to the earth. Biodiesel is also better to use in a boat because it can be spilled into water and it will just biodegrade away.

My next step is to build an Appleseed processor.

 

[yotetrapper]

Neat. Have you used it in anything yet?

 

[KB3GZW]

Nope its going into my home heating oil soon. I have tested it on a slip of paper with a torch and it lit pretty well.

 

[heatherv]

Thanks for sharing!

I'd be too scared to mix things that could make me blind! Keep us updated on your endeavors!

 

[yotetrapper]

Once you try it in a diesel truck, and it runs ok, I'll make some too lol.

 

[KB3GZW]

Im thinking of getting a Diesel VW and putting it in there. I found a few on ebay and autotrader that look attractive.

 

[BrookValley]

Ah, the VW TDI. My dream car. I don't even care which model, I just want one. Unfortunately, they are a little out of our price range right now. They hold their value very well.

Glad you posted this over here. I saw it over on The Easy Garden, right? I think it's fascinating, though my husband is even more fascinated by the thought of producing his own biodiesel. We'd love to run biodiesel in our tractor, but apparantly you void your warranty if you do so and, well, that was just far too large a chunk of change for something to go wrong with it and us be stuck without the warranty.

We could also possibly use it for home heating. Our wood-burning furnace has an oil backup that we rely on far too often.

 

[ticks]

How much did it cost for you to make? or was it free.

 

[KB3GZW]

Yes right now the VW TDI is my dream car. I have seen some on ebay and yahoo for 10 to 15 thousand and I can afford that now. Even if it is $15,000 and has 100,000 miles on it, its a good deal because they can last into the 300,000s of miles, which is nice.

Using biodiesel voids the tractor warranty? That seems very stupid to me, I would think it would extend the warranty if anything. Because of the solvent properties it cleans the engine at the same time, so it will make the engine run longer.

The cost to make mine in about $1.40 per gallon. I bought a jar of Lye at the hardware store and 2 bottles of Heet at Walmart. If I would have bought them both in bulk it would have been down around $0.70. If I was going to mass produce it I would definitely go bulk. My oil was also free, because I used the oil from my countertop deep fryer. A guy I work with cooks at a local gun club and he says he will give me all of his oil for free. I also have a friend that has over 100 gallons stored in his garage waiting to be made into Bio.

I was directed to make a thread over here from Easy Garden, due to an interest over here and I found one.

 

[Tutter]

Different engines use different compositions of seals, which might be why.

We had a problem here with cars with an additive in the fuel; seals broke down.

Also, we had some real trouble with our generators at that time; as did ds with the ones he was working with. (He's a service tech.)

Anyway, just a thought as to why the warranty may be voided if the recommended fuel is not used, or one they feel could be a problem, or has been for someone already, is used.

Very interesting project, btw!