Free fuel.

dodge man · Jul 2, 2012

I picked up a load of wood lath (used for surveying) from our supplier today. We started talking about diesel pickups and I noticed he had a real nice 2001 Ford with a 7.3 in it. He actually had a couple of them, one of which was an F450. Then he started talking about how he makes his own fuel. He he getting his fuel as waste from resteraunts. All he does is pick it up, filter it, and use it. He makes all his own fuel, for his son, and a friend and they burn it straight up, no blending with diesel. One of his trucks has 60,000 miles on it using this stuff. It sounds like he has a seperate tank for the fryer oil, has a coolant hose running through the tank to keep it warm, and he uses it all winter long. He has a shed to keep the fuel warm. I assume he has a sepertate tank with diesel in it and that is how he starts the truck to warm up the fryer fuel.

Diamondpilot · Jul 2, 2012

I looked into this 5 years ago and even took a class on it. Long story short at $4 per gallon for diesel driving my F-350 12,000 miles a year, I have two trucks, I could not make it pay. The start up fee was too much to do it right. For modern diesels, 05 and newer, there are mods to the truck you must do, storage tanks for home, tank for the truck, time involved, ect. For me and my neighbor with a 07 Dmax to do it together it still was not worth it to us. We both work in our off time and make $60 per hour doing so. Just not enough gain for it to work and around here the used fry oil has a value just like used motor oil and is sold for about $.75 per gallon on the secondary market so finding it free is tough.

We looked at buying 300 gallon totes of new clean fry oil but it runs about $6 per gallon and the nearest restaurant supply was 130 miles round trip for us. Granted we could get 3 totes on a trailer and bring home 900 gallons but again at $6 per gallon, the running around to get it and make it plus the lower BTU's compared to pure diesel it was going to take $8 per gallon fuel prices before we considered it.

Chris

creekbend · Jul 2, 2012

Sincerely hope that this provides you with some insight. Make your own biodiesel: Journey to Forever

jeffsw6 · Jul 2, 2012

What kind of places will buy used motor oil from regular people like me? I always save mine until I remember to take it to the county's recycling place on the day they accept it (which is not very often.) I don't really know another way to get rid of it.

Diamondpilot · Jul 3, 2012

jeffsw6 said:
What kind of places will buy used motor oil from regular people like me? I always save mine until I remember to take it to the county's recycling place on the day they accept it (which is not very often.) I don't really know another way to get rid of it.

I maintain about 100 engines and its cheaper and easier to give it to Auto Zone. Even at 125 or more oil changes a year it would take 4 years to get the 500 gallon min for pickup. I don't want that much used oil sitting around. So to answer your question, none for home owners, but there is some value in used oils.

My ex girl friends father is in the oil business. He sells to service stations, farmers, but his bread and butter is utility companies and the mines of western Indiana. He will not even take the stuff off me. Just not enough volume for him.

Chris

dodge man · Jul 3, 2012

He is getting all his stuff from the restaraunts for free. He has a bunch of totes, that he also got for free. Not counting the mods to his pickups to burn the stuff, I'd would guess he is making the stuff for less than $0.10 per gallon. He said he tried the used motor oil route, but didn't like it as well.

They make kits to make your own bio-diesel, the kind where you wash it, add some methanol etc. He is not doing any of that, he just filters it.

Diamondpilot · Jul 3, 2012

I just dont see how you can get enough used fry oil to get 20 gallons of fuel per week? That is what most of us use and you would need to have about 1000 gallons of oil to make the fuel needed. The people I asked about the fry oil back in 06 or so said they maybe use 100 gallons per year in there restaurants.

Not to sound negative but there is just no free lunch.

Chris

clemsonfor · Jul 3, 2012

The old deisels will run straight oil which it sounds like this guy lets it settle out the double filters it and then fills his tanks. He still is using deisel to start and stop the truck if there is nothing added to it or else it would gell and sludge up, esp in winter. The stuff is hard starting and turns thick once its like 40F outside.

A member here "California" who frequents the yanmar forum, ran his early 80s model tractor on pure veggie oil from restaurants for years (maybe he cut it with a bit of deisel, just dont remember). He said it ran rougher and was hard to start even in summer, and he attributes it to his injectors fouling out and hvaeing to rebuild them. He has been off the stuff totally for a year and a half or so and says the tractor runs remarkedly better.

Cpjlube · Jul 3, 2012

Anyone who produces any decent amount of waste oil, be that engine oil or fryer oil is usually in contract to have it picked up. Years ago there was a possibility that you might have to pay to have the stuff hauled away. Now there is money in selling used oils. In fact I can remember in Columbus, Ohio where the competitors were pumping waste oil out of tanks they didn't have contracts to take. Just pull up and look like you know what your doing. Competition coupled with extended drain intervals and less driving has reduced waste motor oil dramatically. I just saw a tv show on filtering fryer oils, with more efficient filtering you can double the life if that oil also. I don't use enough diesel to make it pay but you better do your homework before jumping in.

Chuck

dodge man · Jul 3, 2012

This guy is getting his oil 100% free, and I think he has multipule sources. The area he is getting from is fairly rural in nature, and I think he travels some as part of his job, so I think is probably getting from several dozen different places. I'm not sure how much of this stuff he had laying around, I didn't really pay that much attention, but I'm guessing several hundered gallons.

I'm in no way advocating what this guy is doing, and I don't want to go through the trouble to do what he is doing, but it is interesting.