MAKING BIODIESEL

READ THIS FIRST IF YOU WANT TO RUN BIODIESEL also IF YOU WANT TO RUN BIODIESEL IN YOUR MERCEDES DIESEL


Lately there has been much talk about which grade of vegetable oil to run your diesel car or truck on. First of all, let's clarify.............................. You can say you want to run your diesel engine on biodiesel. That would be vegetable oil with the proper conversion of chemicals added (lye + etc.). Used veg oil would be filtered properly first. Fresh veg oil can just be converted without filtering.

People also like to run another version that some call biodiesel.....actually SVO (straight veg oil) or WVO (waste veg oil).......this requires a fuel tank warmer and a special fuel filter that catches the solids in the fuel .
This method works well in warmer climates with the proper filter kit and warmer installed, but you are not running actual biodiesel.

That stated, the last so called biodiesel is from the pump. Mostly always it is regular diesel cut with 20% pure biodiesel. B20.........A great idea but around $4.00US a gallon, it's great if you want to run your diesel a little cleaner if you have the extra cash but defeats the purpose of cheap fuel.

Contradicting what you may have heard, with proper safety precaution and preparation + a good recipe (find one with lye + etc.) you can easily make your own proper biodiesel. Don't do it in the house! A garage or shed will work great. Don't make a lot at once. This fuel goes far + you'll make a smaller test batch first........get that perfect and you're "gold" after that!

Mercedes 5 cyl turbodiesels such as the older 300D or 300SD models are one of the absolute easiest cars to run on proper biodiesel. From personal experience I can tell you they run GREAT on biodiesel with no actual conversion.

These few steps will be all you need:
1: MAKE SURE ALL YOUR GLOW PLUGS WORK !!!!! This is the most important step!
if you don't know how to test your glow plugs have a diesel mechanic do it.....don't skip this one because you WILL regret it later.

2: During winter, run at least 70% regular diesel fuel in a full tank + any regular anti-gel additive you'd normally use, fill the other 25-30% with your biodiesel. In warmer months you can run straight biodiesel in your tank.

3: Follow these few VERY important tips below and you're GOOD 2 GO!!!

These are preventative maintainence tips.......

Biodiesel may degrade hoses on older cars and any original rubber that it comes
in contact with.
So..
a) when you change your fuel filter (which you will have to do after switching to biodiesel and running down 1-2 full tanks as biodiesel clears all
the gunk out of your engine)
-CHANGE the fuel line hoses with rubber hoses that will not degrade.
This a cheap and easy one time fix you need to make and you'll be all set for years.

b) If any biodiesel were to spill out when you change the filter, which it
will, you must clean it off of any rubber hoses it comes in contact with.

c) On older non-turbo models such as 240D keep an eye on your HAND PRIMER PUMP. If you haven't changed it recently (which you probably haven't), the rubber seal on this may degrade and fuel may leak. It is a fairly cheap part to replace (around 20$). There are newer non rubber models available if you can find them.

These steps followed you'll be safely on your way......and making folks hungry all around with the delicious smell of biodiesel wherever you go!