bio diesel

marc7, leave m62 at j27 head down to birstall you get to crossrds with carpet place on left go straight over then just before you get to main crossrds bit further down, you will see sign for birstall fuels just before grass bit starts.
in there if you get there before next monday let us know what its like pls, and will let you know if i get there first.

A 1989 110 is not going to naturally be an original 200tdi, but both the tdi and the td will burn pretty much any old ****e.

everlatesparky said:

Buy yourself a fuel filter and have the tools you need to change it at the roadside.
The bio itself won't block the filter but it is a very good cleaner and will happilly remove all the years of crap from your tank and fuel lines and dump it in your filter.
Apart from that enjoy the saving.:clap2:

BTW please don't buy any of the ebay bombs that people laughingly call reactor's.
NO PLASTIC DRUMS WITH IMMERSION HEATERS IN THEM!!!

Feel better for that

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Why?? what's wrong wth the plastic ones?? they are cheaper and do the job just fine!

you wouldn't run your can without a thermostat, fan and temp guage? becuase you couldn't see the temperature? and if no fan once the temperature started to creep up you wouldn't be able to cool it!!

So why would anyone buy or sell a plastic tank without a thermal cut off?? the oil doesn't need to be like larva!!!

anyway here is my set up and YES it's PLASTIC!! has a thermal cut off and has no problems what so ever!!


Yellow hose on top is for mist washing the Bio, I just connect it to my garden hose and add water from the tap - the 20 litre tank over the main tank is for the Methoxide and is fed through the red hose.



Oil temperature can be monitored at all times and only needs to be between 49 and 56 deg - No where near plastic melting temperatures!!



if you are building your own - make sure you use PTFE tape and not thread locker as the methanol will eat away and you'll spring leaks everywhere!! and when I say use PTFE put on at least 10 wraps then double it!! not the usual 3 times round ;-)

This is where the Methoxide enters the mix - the yellow hose comes from my compressor via a water trap and is used to add air to the washed bio diesel to help dry it quicker, but this really isn't needed

seems to me, as a low miler using new bought cooking oil,
its just not worth the hassle of home brewing bio.
ok, I know I only do about 8000 miles or less a year,
really how much would I gain from home brew?

I just pop to the shops and by drinkable new cooking oil
(yuk at the thought - but)
if its "ok" for me,
its gotta be fine for my 200 disco doosel..
mixed with derv or a dash of my lawn mower petrol.

Now, I have an airstrip very near me,
its got an fuelling tanker for fuelling the light aircraft.
wonder if hi octain FULL leaded stuff would be a better additive to my cooking oil?
would I get a better/cleaner bang inside the engine, being leaded?

anyone know?

easye1 said:

seems to me, as a low miler using new bought cooking oil,
its just not worth the hassle of home brewing bio.
ok, I know I only do about 8000 miles or less a year,
really how much would I gain from home brew?

I just pop to the shops and by drinkable new cooking oil
(yuk at the thought - but)
if its "ok" for me,
its gotta be fine for my 200 disco doosel..
mixed with derv or a dash of my lawn mower petrol.

Now, I have an airstrip very near me,
its got an fuelling tanker for fuelling the light aircraft.
wonder if hi octain FULL leaded stuff would be a better additive to my cooking oil?
would I get a better/cleaner bang inside the engine, being leaded?

anyone know?

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Why oh why would you even bother???

i think that adding petrol into any form of diesel engine isnt going to be the best for it.

I believe the idea was the petrol was added to slightly thin the veg oil... but id rather not risk it. The engines are designed to run on oil... not petrol (ok a refracted derivative of oil it may be.. but its not oil!)

Home brew requires no such risk, as its effectively diesel, and for the rather minimal cost of getting set up, can save you thousands over the years of use you will get out of it.

Another idea might be to get a group of mates together and run one reactor together to power all your landys and that way the cost can be spread around (though some poor sod does have the reactor shoved in his/ her shed or what have you. But just think of all the free soap you will be able to make with the glycerine you remove. You can go all tyler durdan aka fight club!

I think the concern with the plastic tanks was if something were to go wrong with the thermostat controls and the oil overheat etc, and there have been accidents with spackers making up bodged systems over the years which makes everyone go crying around saying its dangerous blah blah blah, anyone with half a brain can use even the most dangerous of equipment safely. But plastic tanks if used appropriately are just fine.

Anyway thats just my 2 cents

Yes, well said! Because if the thermo switch fails then the heater won't come on or if already on it will turn off - they don't fail in the "on" position? So Plastic tanks – easier to set up – lighter – cheaper – easier to clean – and just fine (unless you’re a spaz)

I add petrol when I'm making Black diesel - but I do not add to bio!

Bio is fine to run on all year long – if you are running Veg oil you will have to play around with the mix of veg oil, dino diesel and petrol especially in winter!!

Also - NEVER mix bio and black diesel!!

Maximum amount of petrol in diesel must not exceed 20% and if you are mixing in petrol then you must think about settling as petrol and diesel will split! add to your tank mineral 2 stroke oil.


The biggest thing you must do (anyone wanting to use alternate fuels) is research research research!!!!

i think alot of the problem revolves around their being so much crap on the internet about it, it takes ages to figure out what is genuine and whats utter tosh. I spent ages researching it and talking to various companies about it.

Definetely worth it though as it makes running a thirsty beast a bit more bearable

vilguy said:

i think alot of the problem revolves around their being so much crap on the internet about it, it takes ages to figure out what is genuine and whats utter tosh. I spent ages researching it and talking to various companies about it.

Definetely worth it though as it makes running a thirsty beast a bit more bearable

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I found a website that gives the same instructions for making bio diesel by using WMO (waste motor oil)

trust me this will never work!!!

MWO = black diesel or you have pass through a still and catch what comes out of the condenser

not that I would do this ;-) ;-)

not even im that tight! and im a duck!

you must be sewn up....

He also tried eating coal.. just incase

vilguy said:

not even im that tight! and im a duck!

you must be sewn up....

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I'm not tight!!

I am just making use of something I happen to be able to get hold of for free in large quantities

Anyone looking into running on black diesel then you MUST pay your fuel duty as this is not a bio fuel!!! And you get caught running on this and you will be in for a big fine!! And no doubt they will be taking your car too, don’t think you’ll get away with it as it’s easy to spot as it’s well errr Black?!

However, using a still (just like the moonshine boys) you can very easily remove the black and what comes out of the condenser is a clear oil – but hold on it’s not quite ready for your tank yet!! You will need to leave it to cool and settle for around a week, as you will also find trace amounts of asphalt that will require filtering out. Now pass this through a 0.5 micron filter and a water trap and straight into your tank – mix with up to 20% petrol for extra poke or any amount of regular diesel you fancy. Get pulled over running on this stuff and it’s virtually undetectable.

DO NOT MIX WITH BIO!!

i think its all the waste products that put me off that stuff...eugh... i know bio is messy but black... still if its free then do it!

vilguy said:

i think its all the waste products that put me off that stuff...eugh... i know bio is messy but black... still if its free then do it!

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you have a lot more waste product from making Bio - yes I know it's none toxic and can be used to make soap (if your name is Tyler) but really?? waste from bio just scoop it out and throw it in the composter! waste from black save it up and take it to the tip in 6 months!

Make sure that you carry a spare fuel filter with you...

running on bio seems to clean all the old crappy varnishy stuff out of the tank and the lines...

has been known to clog an injector ...

changing the filter often til it clears...

do a search, theres a thread on here about it.

@johnnycrash
Nice setup bud!!
The problem we find with the plastic tanks are not so much the oil overheating and melting the tank but human error in powering up the heater with an empty tank and then melting and setting fire to the plastic.
I process at 65 as i find it takes less time to process especially with and eductor on the pump line.
I also reclaim at least 50% of the methanol back through a condensor so the temp then top's out at 90 which plastic doesn't like.
If your happy with the way you do things carry on!!
Nice feeling driving past the tax station's innit??

JohnnyCrash said:

Why oh why would you even bother???

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It was a question matey,
not a life breaking decision.

petrol as an addative to diesel has been used for more years than I can remember,
as I`m nigh on 65 years old, as such, the good `ol boys I knew in road haulage must have been using leaded petrol back in the days when we had, 2,3,4 & 5 star fully leaded fuels to choose from.
there reason was to enable their old lorries to start & run for their before dawn early starts.
Was "winter" diesel available back in the good `ol days,
not like these days of poncy motoring factors.

the referance to cheap 2T is a good one, as i splash a dash in my tank even if its not petrol perked.
factually, I have fully sythetics I use in my scooters, knowing if they were just "standard" old plodders, cheap 2T would lubricate the reciprocating parts just fine, but being "stressed" my fully synth not only holds everything together just nicely, but smells good when burnt.
cheap 2T just smells !
WILKO stores do a cheap 2T in green, quite a good choice if used in bio type fuels.

everlatesparky said:

@johnnycrash
Nice setup bud!!
The problem we find with the plastic tanks are not so much the oil overheating and melting the tank but human error in powering up the heater with an empty tank and then melting and setting fire to the plastic.
I process at 65 as i find it takes less time to process especially with and eductor on the pump line.
I also reclaim at least 50% of the methanol back through a condensor so the temp then top's out at 90 which plastic doesn't like.
If your happy with the way you do things carry on!!
Nice feeling driving past the tax station's innit??

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as I currently get methanol for free no point wasting time and money reclaiming, but expect some mods as soon as I have to start paying haha