fairfarmhand Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 Dh is considering this, due to high fuel costs. Is it time consuming? Is it financially cost effective? Any tips? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impish Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 Check out the model and year of your vehicle. Apparently there have been deliberate changes made to newer engines to make biodisel not possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fairfarmhand Posted April 15, 2011 Author Share Posted April 15, 2011 Check out the model and year of your vehicle. Apparently there have been deliberate changes made to newer engines to make biodisel not possible. ' hahaha! We only have older vehicles. Sounds like somebody's trying to get the consumers over the barrel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impish Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 Exactly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithManor Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 (edited) We have, but only for educational purposes. Homemade biodiesel is illegal to run in cars on road in the state of Michigan unless you have your "refinery" inspected and each and every gallon is okayed by a state inspector. That's the law for private citizens. I'm sure that the commercial refiners get nothing more than a once per year inspection and anything goes after that. Now, that said, a 4-h club in Birch Run, Michigan went through a huge hassle and a lot of begging with state regulators to get the approvals to make biodiesel at their high school and run one of the school buses on it. Somebody at the state level decided that it was too big of an educational opportunity to allow to go by, and decided to help them push through the bureaucratic red tape. Additionally, MSU threw it's support behind the club and offered oversight from their bio-fuel researchers at no cost. So, they did get permission to do this and currently run one school bus all year long on biodiesel made from discarded oil from area restaurants. But, here is a huge caveat. Even if you get permission to do it or if you are in a low regulated state, you'll need to find out about the rules for transporting the oil. In some states, there is a maximum amount of oil of any kind that can be transported by private vehicle! The kids in Birch Run had to beg a trucking company that normally handles different kinds of liquids, to truck the oil from the restaurants to their school for free. The fine is $20,000.00 if caught and they've caught three people in the last five years. Willie Nelson was nailed in Texas for running his RV on biodiesel (made from discarded french fry oil) that was unapproved. Politicians, Big Oil, and car manufacturers have been in bed on this for a long time to make sure that the average car owner doesn't have a way to become independent. Definitely check out the laws in your state. Faith Edited April 16, 2011 by FaithManor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TechWife Posted April 16, 2011 Share Posted April 16, 2011 Don't overlook the obvious - your car must have a diesel engine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fairfarmhand Posted April 16, 2011 Author Share Posted April 16, 2011 Don't overlook the obvious - your car must have a diesel engine. yup...would be tractors and big farm truck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KellyKelley Posted April 16, 2011 Share Posted April 16, 2011 I've made a little bit with my dh when he was interested but it was not feasable for us. It is a lot like making soap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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