BioDiesel Processor from hot water heater

[cdpyatt]

Has anyone here made a biodiesel processor from a water heater?
It seems like a pretty good idea and there are some good pictures of setups on the net.

[teester]

I made mine from a 50 gallon water heater. It will make about 38 gallons max time you add 20% methanol and leave a little space for splashing around a bit.

I used all stainless valves though, which made the cost around $400 or so I think. Brass valves will turn a nice shade of green inside when exposed to wvo. I changed the valves on my tanks to stainless also. Don't want anything in my fuel but fuel!

[350 long rod]

Is the green from the wvo or from your bio I was told that bio is very nasty to hoses and you have to use viton because it will eat regular rubber hose.This was from a locale hose supplier who is trying to get hose for bio installs.

[teester]

Mine was from oil. The valve was on my wvo tank. The little bit of oil remaining in the valve end jelled and turned green.

RE Hoses, use vinyl. Home Depot has some clear vinyl which I use for the methoxide. The braided hose they have has softened some with the biodiesel.

[Carolina_FX4]

Hey Guzzler, check your PM

[teester]

Hey guys, mine is for sale! I am building a 250 gal processor as I plan to replace my work vans with diesels. Making a huge batch will dramatically lower my "hands-on" time. Last 30 gallon batch, including oil pickup, cooking, and washing was probably about 2-2.5 hours.

I built my 50gal unit to see how practical it was. Now that I know how little effort it takes, how much I am helping the environment, not contributing to terrorism and how QUIET my truck is with the stuff, I am going full speed ahead! [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/biggrin.gif[/img]

FYI, it has all stainless valves and methanol still on top. Will make about 38 gallons. If interested, pm me.

[walkerm]

I would like to talk more about possibly purchasing your processor. Please e-mail walkerm@estridge.net.

[teester]

Here is a link to mine. I finally got some Pix... Carolina Home Brew!

[copano]

Guzzler, What was that 250 gal tank in its previous life?

[cjheap]

[ QUOTE ]
Guzzler, What was that 250 gal tank in its previous life?

[/ QUOTE ]

It looks like a pressurized water tank.

[teester]

Not exactly sure but the walls are about 3/8" thick. Rated 125 PSI @ 450*

[cdpyatt]

Is it true that with a Hot water heater setup the process can be done in 1-2hrs because the heat speeds up the reaction?
Sure would be nice to take a 80gal heater and make some large batches [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[teester]

Yea, you can make it in less time. Supposedly a 10 degree increase in temp will cut process time in half. I make it at 125-130F and mix for about 40-50 minutes. If I increased the temp to about 145, I could halve the time. However, you shouldn't try to do it above about 140F because methanol boils at 65C or 149F. That is unless you have a pressurized reactor.

That can be done in the water heater but I'm not familiar with what pressure you would need for what temps etc. However, if made with the see-through hoses I wouldn't try to pressurize it over 10psi or so. Wouldn't want a hose to blow out!

[cdpyatt]

That's awesome!
I like the idea of requiring less time and using the pump to do all the mixing w/o any fumes. Is the pump most are using a circulator from a boiler system?

[teester]

Check out the link here and click the "photo-equipment" button and look for the Biodiesel Appleseed Reactor. It has several pages. Also many photos of peoples reactors and equipment are posted there.

The pump most people use is from "Northern Tool & Hydraulics". YOu will find much info and photos of the pump there also.