LOST JEEPS :: View topic - Biodiesel dilemma, need suggestions!

Easy way to take care of the microbes would be to buy a bottle of biocide and treat the fuel in the storage drums as soon as it's delivered.

Also, bio has an affinity for water, and there's the possibility of condensation in a partially full drum. I'd make sure you had a good water sep filter on your fuel transfer setup, and also take a sample in a glass jar when you do top off the truck - that's an easy quality check to see if you're putting any water, dirt, dead microbes, etc, from the drums into your truck. And if so, an early warning that you may need to start getting your fuel from a different supplier!

As much as the truck is sitting idle by your account, probably wouldn't be a bad idea to add some biocide to the fuel tank once in a while as well.

Given your driving habits I would stay far away from bio-d. You don't drive enough. The worst thing you can do is let bio-d sit in a tank for months.

Is anyone else in your town interested in bio diesel? Given the distance you are from the distributor, might be worth getting together a little bio-diesel co-op with your neighbors.

I was kinda thinking the same. Or possibly buy B99 before a trip and splash mix 20% bio when filling up during the travel. What do you think?

Threeweight wrote:

IToo many farmers complained about Bio clogging fuel filters and causing engine problems.

dieselenthusiast wrote:

Threeweight wrote:

IToo many farmers complained about Bio clogging fuel filters and causing engine problems.

they are clogging their filters cause all the gunk left behind from dino is coming out

05infernoCRDL wrote:

dieselenthusiast wrote:

Threeweight wrote:

IToo many farmers complained about Bio clogging fuel filters and causing engine problems.

they are clogging their filters cause all the gunk left behind from dino is coming out

You’re exactly right, all the rust in the tanks and other years of collected gunk. You gotta realize, these farmers out here are old school. They still take their used Rotella from their trucks and tractors and pour it into fuel tanks. These guys still use old rusty storage tanks, transfer tanks, and holding tanks.

So what about these do it yourself machines that you can put old fry oil in are they no good?

Author:	dieselenthusiast [ Sat Jan 12, 2008 8:36 pm ]
Post subject:	Biodiesel dilemma, need suggestions!
Here’s my dilemma. I would like to run B5 - B10 in my Cummins. However, the nearest distributors of Biodiesel (strait soy oil) are located in the same town about one hour away. I think one guy gets his bio from Denver and the other gets his from Cheyenne. Anyway, here are my two choices. Choice #1, The distributor can sell me B99 into a storage container (which I will have to buy) and take it home and mix it as needed to my likings. Or choice #2, the distributor can blend 200 gallons of bio for me and haul it to my house for FREE. Naturally in this case scenario I would have to store it. Keep in mind that I do not have a storage tank, although I would consider buying a tank. Just to give you a better picture. I do not drive my truck very often. I may make a 1,500 - 2,000 mile run once every few months and park my truck before making another big run. Just to keep my truck happy, I try to start it once every two weeks and drive it to Amarillo, Colorado Springs, or Kansas City to buy groceries, shopping, that type of thing. I’m not sure how long bio (blended or straight) will stay good in a storage tank without microbes growing like mad. Anyway, any suggestions would help!

Author:	hatchetman [ Sat Jan 12, 2008 10:38 pm ]
Post subject:
I have 55 gal drums that I fill with 99% bio and bought a hand pump and splash fill the CRD and Passat. About 4 gals for the jeep and 3 gals for the Passat per tak fill-up.

Author:	retmil46 [ Sun Jan 13, 2008 12:32 pm ]
Post subject:
Easy way to take care of the microbes would be to buy a bottle of biocide and treat the fuel in the storage drums as soon as it's delivered. Also, bio has an affinity for water, and there's the possibility of condensation in a partially full drum. I'd make sure you had a good water sep filter on your fuel transfer setup, and also take a sample in a glass jar when you do top off the truck - that's an easy quality check to see if you're putting any water, dirt, dead microbes, etc, from the drums into your truck. And if so, an early warning that you may need to start getting your fuel from a different supplier! As much as the truck is sitting idle by your account, probably wouldn't be a bad idea to add some biocide to the fuel tank once in a while as well.

Author:	dieselenthusiast [ Sun Jan 13, 2008 2:07 pm ]
Post subject:
retmil46 wrote: Easy way to take care of the microbes would be to buy a bottle of biocide and treat the fuel in the storage drums as soon as it's delivered. Also, bio has an affinity for water, and there's the possibility of condensation in a partially full drum. I'd make sure you had a good water sep filter on your fuel transfer setup, and also take a sample in a glass jar when you do top off the truck - that's an easy quality check to see if you're putting any water, dirt, dead microbes, etc, from the drums into your truck. And if so, an early warning that you may need to start getting your fuel from a different supplier! As much as the truck is sitting idle by your account, probably wouldn't be a bad idea to add some biocide to the fuel tank once in a while as well. Where is the best place to order the Biocide? Also, how do I test a fuel sample? THANKS, you guys are really helping me figure this out!

Author:	retmil46 [ Sun Jan 13, 2008 3:27 pm ]
Post subject:
You could Google "diesel fuel biocide" and probably come up with a gagillion websites that sell it. Marine or boating supply/hardware store, large truck stop, Cat or Cummins service center, indy diesel service garage, could probably even get the local NAPA or Autozoo to order it for you. As far as testing the fuel sample - Eyeball Mark I. Just a basic go/no go check. If you can see chunkies and other nastiness settle out as soon as you pour it in the jar, you know you've got problems. Otherwise, let it sit for a couple hours to overnight, preferably out in ambient temps, and see if it clouds up or anything settles out.

LOST JEEPS http://www.lostjeeps.com/forum/phpBB3/

Biodiesel dilemma, need suggestions! http://www.lostjeeps.com/forum/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=28500	Page 1 of 2

Author:	Threeweight [ Sun Jan 13, 2008 4:39 pm ]
Post subject:
Is anyone else in your town interested in bio diesel? Given the distance you are from the distributor, might be worth getting together a little bio-diesel co-op with your neighbors.

Author:	onthehunt [ Sun Jan 13, 2008 9:32 pm ]
Post subject:
Given your driving habits I would stay far away from bio-d. You don't drive enough. The worst thing you can do is let bio-d sit in a tank for months.

Author:	onthehunt [ Sun Jan 13, 2008 10:21 pm ]
Post subject:
Quote: I was kinda thinking the same. Or possibly buy B99 before a trip and splash mix 20% bio when filling up during the travel. What do you think? Sounds good but if everyone is having problems with it why risk it? Wait till the quality is better. Let others do the testing for you.

Author:	05infernoCRDL [ Sun Jan 13, 2008 11:26 pm ]
Post subject:
dieselenthusiast wrote: Threeweight wrote: IToo many farmers complained about Bio clogging fuel filters and causing engine problems. they are clogging their filters cause all the gunk left behind from dino is coming out

Author:	dieselenthusiast [ Mon Jan 14, 2008 12:20 am ]
Post subject:
05infernoCRDL wrote: dieselenthusiast wrote: Threeweight wrote: IToo many farmers complained about Bio clogging fuel filters and causing engine problems. they are clogging their filters cause all the gunk left behind from dino is coming out You’re exactly right, all the rust in the tanks and other years of collected gunk. You gotta realize, these farmers out here are old school. They still take their used Rotella from their trucks and tractors and pour it into fuel tanks. These guys still use old rusty storage tanks, transfer tanks, and holding tanks.

Author:	05infernoCRDL [ Mon Jan 14, 2008 12:40 am ]
Post subject:
dieselenthusiast wrote: 05infernoCRDL wrote: dieselenthusiast wrote: Threeweight wrote: IToo many farmers complained about Bio clogging fuel filters and causing engine problems. they are clogging their filters cause all the gunk left behind from dino is coming out You’re exactly right, all the rust in the tanks and other years of collected gunk. You gotta realize, these farmers out here are old school. They still take their used Rotella from their trucks and tractors and pour it into fuel tanks. These guys still use old rusty storage tanks, transfer tanks, and holding tanks. i was talking to a guy from BP about 1.5 years ago in an airport. and we got on the subject of biodiesel... he said that they were having problems in MN with filters being clogged on test vehicles (Big Rigs) so i let him know why that was happening. dunno if he relayed the info or not... he also told me the BP was putting like 5% of thir yearly revenue into developing biofuels in europe hopefully with a transition to the US soon. He also said the BP knows that petrolium is going to run out and they are trying to find new fuels.

Author:	onthehunt [ Mon Jan 14, 2008 1:14 am ]
Post subject:
Yeah- MN mandated all diesel have 5% or 10% bio in it a couple years back. First winter came and they had big time problems with quality,supply, and gelling issues. Truckers avoided MN diesel like the plague. A little too much , too soon I think. They have since suspended the mandate.

Author:	05infernoCRDL [ Mon Jan 14, 2008 1:20 am ]
Post subject:
I have only Flew through MN but i hear it gets real cold.... i am sure any fuel will gel there on certian days

Author:	retmil46 [ Mon Jan 14, 2008 1:46 am ]
Post subject:
I can guess why it's getting difficult for the biodiesel producers to find feedstock - the IRS ruled a while back that the oil companies could take advantage of a provison in the previous energy bill, as long as they added in a certain amount of bio feedstock somewhere in the process at their refineries, they could call it "renewable diesel" and get the same $1/gallon tax credit that was intended strictly for biodiesel producers. That and the "splash and dash" loophole seems to be drying up the supply. I know what you mean about biodiesel fuel quality. Truth be told, it's been some months since I bought any locally available B20 because the quality went to crap - cloudy right out of the pump, and you don't want to know what settled out of it overnight.

Author:	KeighJeigh [ Thu Jan 17, 2008 5:43 pm ]
Post subject:
I run two CRDs on biodiesel as well as my F350 Powerstroke (which has been burning B100 for 4 years). Here in the Seattle area biodiesel is everywhere so availability is not an issue. Price can vary quite a bit so it pays to shop around. I just paid $3.50/gal for my B100 next to a pump that showed $3.59 for regular diesel. But, some people were selling B100 for as high as $4.28. I am near completion of a biodiesel storage shed that holds about 800 gallons. This way I can do dollar cost averaging and make large purchases when the prices look decent. It also helps us budget and track our fuel usage and gives us a 24 hour per day gas station that requires no out of the way stops. The shed is completely self-contained with a 12 volt diesel pump that runs on a Trojan deep cycle battery that is kept charged by a solar panel. I also insulated the tanks in new fueling shed to keep them at a more consistent - and slightly warmer - temperature during the winter. All the framing was done using lumber cut from our property and milled by our neighbor, the pump was used, the tanks were recycled, the roofing was excess material from a job site, the lights are super bright fog lamps from a wrecking yard, so the whole thing with tanks and all was about $500. I'm by no means a cheapskate but it was really quite easy to do it this way. Decent quality biodiesel stores for a long time in an airtight container - especially if you add biocides and use water abosorbing filters. I did not drive my truck very often last winter and it took 6 months to go through a tank of B100. Never had any problems whatsoever - even with it sitting in the gas tank in variable weather. (although I would not recommend this and, yes, I do keep the filters and water separators clean and do filter it as it goes into the tank.) Much of this issue comes down to knowing your feedstocks (just ask!) and knowing which is best for your climate and which is most sustainable in terms of production. I now have a total of 150,000 combined miles of experience with B100 and the only thing I am doing this winter is adding 10% kerosene to the mix to lower the gel point - thus I am actually running B90 this winter. In the future, I intend to solve all issues of fuel gelling - including potential petrol gelling when in cold weather away from the biodiesel - by adding a heated fuel line. If it is in the teens temperature-wise, simply flick a switch and a wait a couple minutes; problem solved. However, I must also say that as of yet, I have never actually had my fuel lines gel on me in temps as low as 18 deg. F so the problem thus far is only theoretical. Concerning availability: There are lists of distributors your area. Here is a list: http://www.biodiesel.org/buyingbiodiesel/distributors/showstate.asp?st=WA There are also maps (easier to use): http://www.biodiesel.org/buyingbiodiesel/retailfuelingsites/default.shtm And here is another map: http://www.nearbio.com/ Here is my fueling station nearing completion. Now all it needs is some pain!: Enjoy! Chris

Page 1 of 2	All times are UTC - 5 hours [ DST ]
Powered by phpBB © 2000, 2002, 2005, 2007 phpBB Group http://www.phpbb.com/

Author:	JHCRASH [ Mon Jan 14, 2008 2:08 am ]
Post subject:
So what about these do it yourself machines that you can put old fry oil in are they no good?

Author:	onthehunt [ Mon Jan 14, 2008 4:06 am ]
Post subject:
Last I heard the chems required to make bio have really gone up in price and have become unavaliable in certain areas. Drug dealers make meth or something out of the some of the same chems that bio uses. You also have to know what your doing and pay close attention to final product. Government is also after people who don't pay fuel taxes. Just seems kind of a no win sitiuation right now for home brewers.

Author:	Threeweight [ Mon Jan 14, 2008 3:44 pm ]
Post subject:
JHCRASH wrote: So what about these do it yourself machines that you can put old fry oil in are they no good? THey work great, but they are expensive. It is also a hassle in sourcing the waste oil, going and picking it up, filtering it, etc... You also need to put the time and energy into maintaining good quality control. Out here in Portland, bio-diesel has been a big deal for a decade or more. The locals solved the logistical problem by forming a co-op to spread out the cost of the equipment. You give the co-op a certain number of hours of volunteer labor, and you in turn are eligible to buy the fuel (cheap, something like 50 cents a gallon the last time I checked).