# vegetable oil?



## miketysonwins (Oct 13, 2008)

What's with those vehicles that run off of old grease from someone's deep fryer or whatever? How is that stuff even combustible and how do you convert your vehicle to run off of it? I mean what's the main principle behind converting your vehicle to run off of it? Don't you have to purify it so food particles don't clog up your engine?


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## spittinfire (Oct 10, 2008)

That oil will burn. The easiest way to do it is filter the oil, mix it 50/50 with desiel and run it in a desiel engine. One of the biggest things you'll fight is the fluidity of the oil which the desiel helps and making sure its filtered enough. A close freind of mine has been running it 50/50 in his trucks for the past several years, 35k + per year with no problems. I can give you some more detail if you'd like, thats just hitting the high spots.


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## landshark (Oct 13, 2008)

So the diesel engine requires no modifications in order to utilize this as an additive to lower fuel costs?


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## plangry (Oct 13, 2008)

I've heard that the exhaust smells like french fries too !


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## Jerseyzuks (Oct 13, 2008)

I have quite a few friends who are doing it.

You can either...

1. modify a vehicle to run on waste veggie oil (WVO if you want to google it), which requires preheating the oil in the tank and line

2. Use a mix. My one buddy uses about 75% WVO in the summer, but cuts down to about 25% in the winter 

3. Make bio-diesel out of WVO. This will work just like regular diesel.


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## spittinfire (Oct 10, 2008)

Nope, you don't have to modifiy the engine at all.


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## teachv (Oct 15, 2008)

landshark said:


> So the diesel engine requires no modifications in order to utilize this as an additive to lower fuel costs?


None - the diesel engine was originally designed to run on peanut oil. You do have to filter the oil before you use it, though, and you typically have to install a second fuel tank for the oil (usually in your trunk) with a cutover switch. The oil is not thin enough until it's heated up, so you start up in diesel, run the car until the WVO is hot enough, then flick the switch to draw fuel from the WVO tank. Just before you end your trip, you switch back to diesel so the fuel lines are cleared of WVO. If you live in the frozen north, you're limited to using it only in the summer, or converting it to bio-diesel, or some combination thereof.


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## guyfour (Oct 15, 2008)

Where are some good places to get the WVO


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## spittinfire (Oct 10, 2008)

teachv said:


> None - the diesel engine was originally designed to run on peanut oil. You do have to filter the oil before you use it, though, and you typically have to install a second fuel tank for the oil (usually in your trunk) with a cutover switch. The oil is not thin enough until it's heated up, so you start up in diesel, run the car until the WVO is hot enough, then flick the switch to draw fuel from the WVO tank. Just before you end your trip, you switch back to diesel so the fuel lines are cleared of WVO. If you live in the frozen north, you're limited to using it only in the summer, or converting it to bio-diesel, or some combination thereof.


This is a method I didn't mention because I'm not a fan of it although I know it has worked well for some. A 50/50 mix is easier to get started with and you don't have to worry about gumming up your fuel lines with oil as much. It also doesn't require you converting your trunk to a second fuel tank. Both methods work and work well, it's really up to the individual.


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## Jerseyzuks (Oct 13, 2008)

nine said:


> Where are some good places to get the WVO


Any place that fries foods.

A warning to all who are thinking about trying this... as more people do this, WVO is becoming harder to come by in certain areas.

Before you start dumping large sums of money into a vehicle, WVO conversion, or bio-diesel setup, check your local availability.

veggiebus.com has some good stuff to read


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## guyfour (Oct 15, 2008)

Do they usually just let you take their grease? What do you put it in?


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## Jerseyzuks (Oct 13, 2008)

nine said:


> Do they usually just let you take their grease? What do you put it in?


Some places must pay to dispose of their waste veggie oil, so they are very happy to give it away.

My buddy has a tank in the back of his truck (I would guess it's around 100 gallons?), and he has a small crank operated hand pump that he uses to transfer the oil from their tank to his.


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## dksac2 (Nov 27, 2008)

My son is a Diesel mechanic and gets kerosene that is drained from fuel tanks at an airport he does work at sometimes. They have to drain a little out of the bottom of the tanks every day. He adds automatic transmission fluid to it and runs it in one of his old diesel trucks. It seems to work good. So if vegie oil is not available, kero might work in a pinch. I don't know how well it would work in the newer diesel powered vehicles, but would be great for old diesel powered vehicles or small diesel engines. 
Rancid veggie oil can also be burned in oil lamps.

JK


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## Rooster (Feb 4, 2009)

From The Fryer To The Fuel Tank by Joshua Tickel is a great book for $30.00 tells you how to make your own bio diesel the theories and history behind the diesel engine, and has soap recipes. I have been making bio fuel going on 4 years made 1600 gallons last year for the tractors on the farm. Oh Ya if you smell the fumes they smell like the exhaust from Burger King kind of a flame broiled smell. So eat a big lunch before you follow a vechicle burning this stuff.


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