EvansBlue

Thats an awesome setup. Thanks for sharing!
Does the veggie oil temp have to be 105, or the engine temp?

Blurple Suburban

We live in a VERY small town in NE WA state, so we have our little cafe and little bar here in town that we get most of our oil from. Sometimes we will go to "shows" that are in the park where they sell food and ask the people that are selling food if we can have their oil. (I usually provide them with a 5 gallon bucket with a lid, and pick it up the last day of the show). They are usually more than happy to give it to you, especially when they find-out what we use it for.

I have read a couple places online about someone doing the saddle tank thing and putting a heating element right in the tank. I wouldn't mind having saddle tanks, just to have the room in the back. Although, I haven't really had our tank get in the way when I am doing anything. If I need plywood, I just make a "shelf" out of the top of the tank and the armrest on the other side and it works just fine. we built the wooden thing around the tank because I didn't want that foil crap to get trashed.

They also sell a 40 gallon tank that you can purchase when you get the kit, but we didn't want something that big in the back of the truck.

The cutouts on the front bumper are more for looks than anything from what I can tell, lol. There is nothing there for them. I was going to install fog lights in them, but the casing inside of them is black flimsy plastic. The holes in the bumper have nothing to do with the veggie system.

I also thought that there was a chin spoiler on most Suburban's, but I have seen a few without, so who knows, lol.

My next thing I want to put on it is a brush/bumper gaurd so that I will have somewhere to REALLY install fog lights as opposed to the fake holes in the bumper, lol. I guess the holes would work well to step up to look in the engine bay, but I usually just get-up on one of the tires.

You Suburban looks AWESOME! Of course, I am always a fan of black. But the 2 women in my life that drive it most of the time liked purple, so that is what it got painted before we brought it home. (It used to be white).


^^^Ewww! it looked like a city vehicle!

Anyway, feel free to ask me anything about it. I will try and answer as best I can.

Blurple

Blurple Suburban

The oil has to be up to 105.

The oil is thick when it is cool. After 105, it is more watery looking. I heat it up to over 200 degrees before I put it through it's last 6 micron filter before I put it in the truck. That is part of the process is to be sure to "boil" the water out of the oil before using it in the system.

On a regular day and running around town, it usually runs about 162-167. Pulling a fully loaded 24 ft. flatbed trailer across the state, it got up to about 200.

I have noticed that the system doesn't care for steep inclines. It "skips" (is what I would call it) when going uphill, but I think that because the pumps are so small, and it pulling the oil from such a distance, that when it is going uphill, it is to much of a draw on those little pumps. I think if greasecar made a little bit bigger pump, it would stop the problem. It doesn't bother me, really. I just put it back on diesel to do major hills.

I cannot process oil in the winter at the moment. I am in the process of enclosing a room that I can heat to do it in.

When I get the oil, I pour it through a regular bed sheet into a 55 gallon trash can, to get the big "chunkies" out. At this point, the oil is very thick, so it takes a while to filter through the sheet. DO NOT pour the scum that settles at the bottom of the container. That's the bad stuff!

Once I have filtered 20-25 gallons or so, I then take that oil and put it through 2 paint strainers that fit on the top of a 5 gallon bucket.

Next, I heat up the oil. Most people have a 55 gallon medal drum with a tank heater on it.

We are cheap, lol, and I went with what we had here on the ranch.

I use two "fry-daddy's" to heat my oil, and a candy thermometer.

They are deep fryers that you would use in your home. I think I got them for $5 each at Goodwill some time ago. But any type of deep fryer will work, or just heat oil in a pan on a stove to 200 degrees or more.

After they are at temp., I pour them through a 6 micron sock filter into a CLEAN 5 gallon bucket.

From there, I either pour it into the tank in the truck, or I have 4, 5-gallon gas cans that I use to store "ready-to-go" oil in.

We average around 20mpg with this rolling warehouse on oil, so the 15 gallon tank gets us about 300 miles. (You have to understand though, we live in the mountains. Everywhere we go in Eastern WA is uphill or down hill.) When we are on the flat open road, it gets about 25mpg.

When we travel, I usually go on craigslist for that area and put an ad in for someone who has oil. I have found a couple people that way that have sold me clean oil, ready to use, for $1 gallon. There are also websites and co-ops out there that are trying to "map" where people are who have it.

It is in a grey area for the government to tax it. It is not really considered a "fuel" (as of yet), so I assume it is up to your area one what the laws are.

Be aware.....that if you process your own oil.......whatever you are wearing have no become your new "oil" clothes. DO NOT wash them with your regular laundry, unless you want to smell like you've been working at McDonalds (who BTW recycle their oil and turn it into bi-diesel to use in their own fleet). I just have a "set" of clothes that I put on when I do oil, and actually, I just throw them away (burn them) when I am done and use some new ratty clothes I have, lol.

Also, be aware that animals LOVE oil. We had a bear steal 2, 5 gallon buckets and half a trash can of oil. It couldn't get the trash can out the door, so it left it wedged half-way in and out. I thought it was a raccoon, but one day while we were down there, the bear came back! About 30 feet from us, but it didn't seem to interested.....it moseyed on up the hillside and showed me where he stashed my 5 gallon buckets, lol. After he was gone, I went up and retrieved them.

I have also read of people down South from us (CA, AZ...) that use grease (oil) straight in their tank. I think they are using a 60/40 split, but don't quote me. I can imagine it would work OK in places that it is continuously warm. I don't know.....I like the option of being able to run on either/or.

Hope this gave you a little more insight to what is done to use oil in your diesel.

Blurple

tm4hammer

Wash. state man that brings back some memories Used to live outside of bremerton in gig harbor rented a house in the rain forest with its own lake hadnt been develobed yet so i had i all used to head up to walla walla for there onions and aspericus ??? i know i didnt get that right ha and a friend rode bareback on the local circut left in 80 when it started getting more people but man a person can eat good deer fish crab and if your like i was quick go spear some salmon when they start to run and smoke em up to bad you dont have the forest i used to heat my place with just wood and people were more than happy to let me cut the dead and clear the windfalls off there land made some good money doing the cord wood sales on the side anyway ya i think they came with that lower valance i took mine off because its lifted and there wasnt much left of it or the front end i might add or alot of things for that matter nice burb and your artical was informative i might just have to build myself something like that for my truck someday

EvansBlue

Don't know if you got in a hurry, but your post is extremely hard to read without punctuation...just thought I'd let you know.

It definitely shed some light on the process. I have learn a lot from you!

Blurple Suburban

It's OK, we have 3 websites, so I am always online. I read Typonese very well.

Here are our sites:
http://www.uniquebeadedjewelry.com/
http://www.beadedpatterns.com/
http://www.ubjsilverandgold.com/


Blurple

Blurple Suburban

We live in Eastern WA. about 2 hrs. North of Spokane.

We live on 40 acres in the mountains, and about an hour to a real store or gas station. Here is a pic of our place:


We all use wood for heat here as well. The main house takes about 14 cords a winter. My place takes 4-5, and my brother in law takes about 5-6. So yes, we go through a lot of wood just here on our own property.

We live 6 miles from The Columbia, and Hunters has a very nice campground and boat launch, so we spend a lot of time down on the river and out on the boat in the summer.

Glad that the information I have provided was interesting to someone, lol.

Blurple

tm4hammer

Imwithyoubuddyif hedidntlikethathesureash...ain'tagonnalikethisolds ayingdon'tsweatthepettypetthesweatyandthatsjustlik eirememberwash.damnimissit!

EvansBlue

wow. lol