Vege van....Toyota Hiace

5 Years review

2011-08-03T20:09:00.000+12:00

I thought I'd comment on the learning curve that's documented in this blog archives since its' inception 5 years ago. I had already been running veg for 3 years or so at that time and have since covered 160,000km or more to date. The articles show many changes in approach and much is now redundant however the experience has been invaluable. I aim to leave the blog intact.
The new filtration is working rather well so am pleased to finally get that sorted.
I had been trying petrol again as the blending additive but the same kinds of power loss problems occur. Van is quite good when cold and for maybe the first 30mins. Others have claimed no power loss problems but all vehicles aren't created equal plus there's other variables to consider.

New onboard filtration

2011-07-29T19:46:00.001+12:00

I installed a new filter and strainer set up. This is comprised of a 5 micron 4inch diameter sock and a strainer in the second, smaller module. The strainer is designed to catch any lint the dislodges itself from the sock. The sock is down-draught while the strainer is up-draught. Both units have BSP drain plugs.

Filter blockages are what so many vege vehicle owners complain about. The hope is that this system will raise the limits, given that the flow is many times the minimum required.

Full circle and homebrew injector/IP cleaner

2011-05-22T14:11:00.000+12:00

As the life itself would have it, I've gone almost full circle in a manner of speaking. The van had been suffering power loss and I got fed up. I went back to the stock set up with the addition of a strainer before the filter.
I put in 20 litres of diesel plus a cocktail of homebrew injector cleaner.
This consisted of 75% white spirits, 15% methanol, 5% toluene, 5% xylene.
Within 20km or so the van just came back to life! As good as the day I got it some 5 years ago.
Full power again, so I'm happy and it's fun to drive again!
I've gone back to a 30% diesel blend and it's going rather well on that too.
So the question I'm asking myself is: do I give the van a birthday once in a while with diesel plus homebrew cleaner or do I add a little bit of homebrew with each tankfull? I tend to think if the latter will work, then that would be the better bet. Also diesel itself has cleaners in it for this very task though they are secret formulas.

Readers will no doubt become aware that vege-oil as diesel is not an exact science and my posts herewith show how experimenting has changed the set up and how much we have learnt. I hope this is some help to those persuing similar aims. Good luck.

It's just my nature...

2010-12-14T16:19:00.002+13:00

Due to my constant tinkering, I'm now using a blend ratio of 5%ULP, 10%diesel, 85%Oil. I like the ULP at that percent because it thins well. The diesel addition aids in starting.
I've also adjusted the van's lift pump pressure which allows more fuel to the high pressure end of the pump and gives some timing advance.

New approach, has advantages, 70/30

2010-09-17T12:07:00.002+12:00

My new fuel mix of 70%veg/30%diesel has some decided advantages. The starting is better especially from cold though the motor does "hunt" briefly. With my earlier blends involving petrol, I feel that the mixture is prone to vapourizing and this causes power loss and more cranking at hot restarts. The power boost I'm experincing with my new blend is very welcome!
I still have the "loop with header vent" system as described in earlier posts. Glowplug life appears good so far. The 70/30 mix is noticeably heavier looking than straight diesel but haven't had any issue so far. This is all achieved without adding heat to the fuel. The injectors are the final heat exchanger in any case. The fuel tank is as always, with sealed filtration on tank entry and no subsequent filter downstream
I'm just trying to think of how long it's been since I started using veg in Hiaces. Possibly 7 -8 years now or thereabouts. There's been no engine or injector pump rebuilds and I would have done around 150,000km between the 2 vans. Please post a comment, thanks.

80-10-10

2009-10-28T15:24:00.002+13:00

The learning continues... such is life!
80% oil - 10% diesel - 10% petrol. This is my latest mix that gives good power & great economy. Starting is almost perfect and the glow plugs last well. Filtering to 5micron through onboard sock as fuel poured into tank. Loop option for return for starting, warming up or general cold ambient temps. The loop uses a circuit that allows bubbles to escape and works because of the height of fuel in the tank. It's abit hard to describe but kind of like a slim tall tank alongside the main tank that is itself vented. This allows bubbles to escape while still allowing warm/hot fuel to loop back. Please comment or ask questions.

Oil & petrol

2009-04-26T15:11:00.002+12:00

Well oil has become more plentiful so I'm using petrol in a ratio of about 10% - 20% depending on things like temps and just how thick the oil is. All this without any added heat. I loop the veg while in warmup mode but after that there is quite often too many bubbles for looping the fuel line.

2008-12-25T08:51:00.002+13:00

60/40dino is the ratio I've found to work reasonably satisfactorily, with only marginal reduced starting effectiveness from cold. All this with an unheated system. Ambient up to 20'C daytime. The internal IP pressure is giving its' best result yet with 11km per litre recorded at best. I've just bought a flat plate heat exchanger (fphe) so plan is to use that in the near future when more quantity of fuel becomes available.

2008-12-09T09:49:00.002+13:00

Vege has become increasingly hard to find for free so I've resorted to blending 50/50 from a single tank with the usual sock filter in the top. I notice that the engine performs significantly better if the viscocity is more than straight dino. With my IP lift pump pressure gauge, an accurate reading can be obtained. By varying the blend ratio, I aim to keep the pressure within a certain range to maximise power and economy. With this set up it's going better than it has in a long time, though I'm having to buy the dino.

Startup tank review

2008-08-05T11:56:00.002+12:00

I have made a separate plastic 20L startup tank with a 5micron filter socket in the top of it. This way I can do away with the troublesome paper filters. The return line runs into the filter sock. Problems of cross-contamination meant that the paper filter was occasionally becoming compromised so this modification addresses that issue completely. The whole system can now tolerate a small amount of fats now so filtering is not so stringent.

Cheap startup fuel

2008-07-23T18:20:00.003+12:00

I now use no diesel to start from cold! The fuel I make up for this purpose is 20% Petrol /80% vege, plus 2% acetone. The vege should be completely fat free because no heat is used in the startup filter. This fuel gives marginally less power than diesel but who cares? There's a lot of confusion even amongst experts about the use of petrol in diesel engines. While the flash point of fuel that has petrol as part of the blend is lowered below ideal, the fuel cannot fire before the point of injection in any case! About 4 years ago, I drove nearly a year on blends including petrol. This startup blend saves a significant amount, costing currently approx 1/4 ~ 1/3 that of dino diesel.

Warning:
Don't mix petrol with diesel for use in a diesel motor because it's believed that modern diesel only has marginal lubricity. Adding petrol could serious compromise lubricity for the injector pump. The reason we can do it with vege is because it has plentiful lubricity.

Glowplug life

2008-06-21T15:39:00.002+12:00

Another benefit of the additive/s mentioned earlier in this blog is the extended life of the glowplugs. I believe it was the buildup of carbon on the G.P. tips that hastened their short lifespan.

Vege...ongoing chronicles

2008-06-19T10:58:00.003+12:00

I discovered the use of "drive brand" washing powder for cleaning the fat from filters and from buckets. It doesn't need to be hot water either, though cleaning action does deteriorate in very cold conditions.

I recently run out of acetone and toluene as my additives, so I used some universal thinners. The motor coked up the injector nozzles shortly afterwards. So the question is would it have sooted up anyway? It had been a record run of 5 weeks without having to clean the injector nozzles/ports. Time will tell as I now have more acetone (only) and are using the measured amount of 350ml per 20litre (1.75%).

The cooler weather here in june is presenting a few problems. The oil is much thicker at the lower temps so filtering is significantly slower. I'm trialing gentle heating of the oil to the temp it would be in summer. I reason that any fats that get through will be dissolved with the acetone and not block the onboard filter in the vehicle's "swirl" tank. In addition hot return veg comes back from the injector pump during running so this would melt any residual fats there.

Just reading back through my blog, I notice there's quite a few things that have changed with evolution of veg-as-fuel process/learning curve. I don't use the settling tank with the window any more or the temp guage or the second "filter in filter" sock idea.

Now that diesel is some horrendous amount of money per litre, I expect some competition for the raw materials I use!

It's my wish that this info is of help to anyone that wants it. Obviously opinions and ideas vary from person to person and from vehicle to vehicle. Please email me if I can help you.

Latest break-through with additives to the vege!!

2007-12-26T18:16:00.000+13:00

Acetone and Toluene are currently being employed at the rate of half a percent. This has the effect of keeping the injectors free from sooting and coking. Previously I had to run as much as 30% petro-diesel to prevent powerloss, sooting and in extreme cases, diesel knock!(from coked injectors). It's quite likely that white spirits or even universal paint thinners could have a similar effect, though I have not tried them. The additive cost around 3.5c per litre so it's an absolute "bargain" for performance and economy!!

More on filtration, the easy, cheap way

2007-12-26T18:06:00.000+13:00

Keep it simple stupid (k.i.s.s.) is the philosophy employed. The twenty litre tin sits on top of a 200litre drum and has a tap valve which the flow can be adjusted. In the 200litre drum top is 2 sock filters, one inside the other....a 10 inside a 5 micron. This has the limitation of overflow if the filters become clogged during the process! In turn the holding tank can be emptied via a drum pump. It can get quite messy as the photo shows, but then dealing with vege is messy, especially if it has a fat content.

Monitoring the injected fuel temperature.

2007-12-10T19:30:00.000+13:00

Well, it's time I told you how I monitor the fuel temp. I have a thermocouple type probe attached to no.1 injector line and a digital readout multimeter permanently mounted on the dash. It's very reveiling as to what's really going on with your fuel!!

Heat Exchanger, Valving, Diesel Filter

2007-11-22T19:09:00.000+13:00

These photos feature the vege tank, Hose-in-hose heat exchanger, feed & return valves, diesel filter. The valving uses four independant ball-valves which have a few advantages. 1/ The return line can be switched slightly after the feed line, thus saving diesel & keeping the diesel tank more pure.. 2/ Both fuels can be used simultaneously 3/ Is cheap and can be made from used parts. The downside is forgetting to switch the return and having the vege return to the diesel tank!

Vege Tank

2007-11-09T14:48:00.001+13:00

This view of the onboard 25litre vege tank has a 5micron filter sock in the top. At the base of this tank, just out of sight, is a hose-in-hose heat exchanger, coiled around the tank. Once fuel goes into this tank, It's clean enough to go directly to the injector pump from here without any further filtration, which can very restrictive. The small hose going into the top is the 5mm return vege line.

Evolution....

2007-09-25T20:51:00.000+12:00

Well a lot has changed with the constant experimentation that goes with the territory of vege-oil as diesel. I now thin the mix with 15% petrol. The filtration is a filter sock and is positioned at the point of entry of the tank (filler). The tank is 25 litre clear plastic and can't corrode or rust. This set up has the big advantage of having no restriction of fuel to the injector pump. I no longer loop the fuel line or have a 12v glowplug heater. I don't advocate the use of paper filters with hot fuel as they are bound to disintergrate at some point. My pre-filtration has taken a major leap by utilizing a 1 metre long nylon filter sock of around 200mm diameter (pictured). Its around 50 micron. I suspend the sock from the ceiling with string and it fits 20 litres of raw vege which can filter through over night. The fat stays behind which is the major bonus with this system. It can be washed with cold water and washing powder over and over.
Post a comment....ask a question.

Onboard details

2006-11-30T09:57:00.000+13:00

The onboard system has undergone a number of changes. The only onboard filtration is now at the filler point, being a 5 micron sock. This does away with an "on demand" filter and all the problems that come with that especially when the filter's element becomes compromised with any fats or whatever. I figure that whatever can make it through the 5 micron sock is safe to proceed to the injector pump.
My fuel switching uses independant ball valves to change from one fuel to the other. Also for the return line, one branch goes back to each tank.
The injector line heaters are nichrome wire lenghts, drawings 2 amps per pipe. These are insulated with ceramic beads and are fused circuits. It's only on when the key is on and are fed via 12v relay to prevent wiring overload.
Insulation of heated fuel lines is with plumber's foam wrap.
Temperture of fuel is monitored with a temp probe on number 1 injector line, using a multimeter readout.

Oil filtering

2006-11-10T19:05:00.000+13:00

THIS METHOD IS NOT USED ANYMORE THOUGH I LEAVE IT HERE FOR HISTORICAL PURPOSES.
I like canola oil because of its' relatively high gel point, meaning it stays liquid for longer as the temperature drops. Firstly I filter through a coarse strainer to get the bigger particles out, at the same time pouring into an old hot water cylinder with the top cut off.
In the strained vege, I put salt and sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) and hold at 50c for 8 - 12 hours, then reducing slowly. Once cooled, I carefully lift off any crust and leave to settle for a week. There's a polycarbonate window in the drum's side near the bottom so I can see the settling process.
Once I've determined it's as settled as it can be, I draw off at point above the solid mass at the bottom. I use a drum pump, lowering the pump's suction pipe to the point I want (somewhere around 125mm - 150mm (5 -6inchs)off the bottom).
I pump the vege through a 5 micron filter sock in which I have a piece of nylon cloth inserted to catch any bigger particles and prolong the life of the filter. Generally, the heating and settling process takes care of most any foreign matter.
It's now ready for blending with petro-diesel.

set up

2006-11-10T12:58:00.000+13:00

The van has a 2 tank system. The oil is thinned with diesel (10 - 15%). I found I had to thin the fuel otherwise coking injectors and the fuel filter can't handle the viscocity. The vege oil is heated in multistages. Firstly a 5 metre hose in hose, nichrome wire wrap(12v) on fuel filter, (12v)glowplug (at the point of loop) and 12v nichrome injector line heaters. Target fuel temp is 80c and I use a thermocouple type sensor that I bought with a cheap multimeter. I tape the sensor to number 1 injector line immediately before the injector.