Info on using Cooking Oil in Diesel powered cars

[frotter]

Heh - thats crazy cos my 405 has CAV pump and the Bosch one i have came from a 306!
So - to switch to a Bosch i would need the bosch set of pipes ideally then? It certainly seems the Bosch setup is better - as a year older Xantia we recently broke had bosch pump (identical 1.9 engine) and was much more lively.

Frot

[PEMTEK]

The Bosch pump is certainly easier for the DIYer to adjust.

I would certainly recommend the bosch pipes and injectors. It is possible the pre injection of the pump wont work properly if you dont change the injectors because the opening pressures will be different.

Phil

[frotter]

Pffff!  Modern life can be SO complimacated!!

 

[stephen]

Dear Doctor Frotter. (well you said trust you , you’re a doctor).
I recently followed your instructions marked on the tin with regard to filtering oil.
The first 15l I added 5 % petrol stir well then waited until Christmas (honest). when I checked the wvo it looked the same as the day i got it. i added a further 5-7% and waited again. nothing happened.
My second 15l of much cleaner oil was treated in the same manor. again nothing seems to happen. Some of the finer particles are still suspended.

Any thoughts, Is it too cold for the oil?

[frotter]

What is the oil youre starting with like? If it is cloudy and or thick and lumpy you would be best to keep it till warmer weather when it will start to clear up. Yes the cold is a BIG factor. The better your oil looks at the beginning, the more useable fuel you will get out quickly. The temperature sometimes only needs to get a few degrees higher for you to see a difference. Some used oil, if you are lucky, will be nice and runny even in the cold. This is the good stuff as far as Bodgodiesel (pat. pending.) goes!
It sounds like you may be starting off with fairly nasty oil..  This combined with low temperatures is probably the problem. I get quite a lot less immediately useable stuff in the winter mixing it outside.
You can try -
Better oil to start off with (I know, I know!)
Store it till summer.... 
Wait longer - some should settle eventually..
Put some more petrol in.

Not ideal i know but should still be cheaper than buying new oil.....

Incidentally - in my Peugeot Boxer 1.9D i have a twin tank system with a heated pickup in the veg container so that i can burn solid (yes SOLID) fat. I warm and prefilter the gunge before decanting it into a plastic cube to set. This lives in the passenger doorwell - the electrically heated copper tube pickup is thrust manfully to the bottom. I have to drive for 15-20 minutes on 'nice' fuel to get a pool of molten fat at the pickup. On changeover the melted fat is circulated as normal (via another inline heater) and gradually the whole container becomes hot and clear and runny - lovely! I can get about 125 miles on a fullish 20litre cube. It is best to let the fuel actually run out so the pipes suck in air to stop lard forming in them (REALLY difficult to shift in winter!). This system obviously is best only for long journeys.
Using this stuff does cause a few stops in laybys to knock deposited lumps and muck out of the gauze filter! Good way to use up shitty stuff that even in summer is only soft at best. Makes one feel quite intrepid somehow to drive on this stuff and most people when they see it reckon i'm winding 'em up! LOL!
You need to not mind a bit of mess though..... 

Ho hum.......

XX

[stephen]

I will let my biomass boiler go cool and put the oil container in it to heat it all up nice and warm 40C should do it.
I can get as much solid lard oil as I want but was not sure how it would fair. I hope to build a donut tank around my biomass flue to feed the Lister which will sit behind the boiler puffing away making electricity. If the solid stuff works then I could easily rig a trough up to go inside the boiler when its on cool down mode and siphon off the liquid, let it go solid again in cubes. Then pop it into the donut for use?
I shall persevere. Getting mucky and oily  is an every day normal thing.

Thanks.
Frotter where abouts do you live are you in the UK.

[frotter]

I am in Exeter, Devon.
Great if you can run a Lister on Lard. Heaven!
I am hoping to do something similar with a 6kw Kubota twin cyl genset i have.... I am hoping that in a static installation it should be fairly possible to rig up permanent fat-heaters etc. What you really dont want is to let the lard go cold in the IP.
I get a fair amount of palm oil type gunk from a local chip van. Its ok for the 'fat van' but No good at all for normal, sensible road cars It has loads of power in it though! Just gotta unlock it
*fiendish grin

Frot

[stephen]

Frotter,
As its a static installation i am anticipating using a port valve to swap from fat / wvo to diesel if either 1, the wvo runs out or 2, the fat goes below a set temp the lines are then always flushed out with diesel. making for an easy start next time.

 

[frotter]

Everything will be fiiiiiiine!

 

[PEMTEK]

You really need to be filtering your oil before putting it in any car.

I use a 10 inch filter housing bought from ebay similar to this >

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/10-WATER-FILTER-HOUSING-Drinking-Water-Aquarium_W0QQitemZ4408898867QQihZ001QQcategoryZ20684QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItem

and a 1 micron filter element from screwfix for £1.99

The cheap elements last for hundred of litres and you wont be wrecking your fuel system.

[frotter]

You're right, of course. But i AM from Devon.
And ginger....

I bet the stuff that comes from my local chip van wouldnt EVER go through a 1 micron filter....   

[PEMTEK]

 

You would be surprised how well it goes through if its a little warm, however a pump is advisable

[stephen]

Hi,
I have a few lts of wvo now and one 15-18lts still looks a little like Semolina. I have put quite a bit of petrol (As per Doc Frotter) in now but nothing seems to change its thick state.  Would it be wise to warm the oil and filter it through 25 and 1 micron filters?? I am going to warm a little in a pan to see what happens.
Any suggestions anyone.

[frotter]

I think yer 'semolina' will start to clear nicely if you warm it. You will struggle to use this thick stuff in colder weather unless you have a twin tank system with heated pickup or a way of heating everything before using it.
If you just put it in a warm room to settle at least some of it should clear. Your oil ideally needs to be properly liquid at ambient temperature for it to settle properly. Doesnt matter if its cloudy - but when it looks like pudding you mayl have to wait for summer to use it! Sorry!
Keep tinkerin'!

X

[Alan]

Quote  "  I have put quite a bit of petrol In  "  " Im going to warm a little in a pan and see what happens  "

Before giving up with petrol lawnmowers completely. I remember having lots of spark in the right place at the right time, pulling bit off string like training for Olympics. She not start.
   Petrol drained, new petrol filled up. Pull sting She started.
Old petrol environmentally disposed of on compost heap. Thought to my self, wonder if you can set fire to it. No compost heap left. Windows just about stayed in.

Maybe trying to warm concoction could have same result.

Now have sit on mower running on L.P.G. with electric starter motor.

Regards

Alan