Hi, I started collecting wvo for my truck. While I'm saving up the money for the conversion setup, I'd like to start filtering and using the wvo if possible.

I've been getting the oil from a chinese restaurant in the same 5 gallon carboys that it came in. They put it right in them straight from the fryer once it cools down enough. It seems to be pretty clean with no real chunks of food or water in it after sitting for about 9 days inside.

I started filtering it with just commercial coffee filters. I've been reading various sites and threads and it seems that a coffee filter gets down to about 20 microns or so. Is this so and if so, is this oil OK to mix in a five gallon container 50/50 with diesel and then dump it into my factory tank? Or do I need to get a pump/filter setup and filter it further down to 2 microns.

I have always changed my factory filter every 10K miles, and have never had any issues with my truck. Truck now has 45K on it. Thanks in advance for any input/advice.

If it were me, I'd definately filter it better than just through the coffee filters before putting it in the truck. You'll almost certainly end up plugging the factory filter if you don't. Remember the factory filter is somewhere around 2 microns (supposedly), and there are a lot of particles between 2 and 20 microns in the oil.

You mixing scheme, though, is spot-on. 2.5 gallons of oil in a tank full of diesel should be just fine-at least in the warm months. Premixing it like you plan to do is essential.

Did we not answer this in your other post????

Sorry Basshopper, I don't mean to irritate you. But I did not ask this question about mixing and just dumping in the tank.

I've been mulling this over for over 6 months now whether to go the biodiesel route or run wvo. And I really want to make sure I'm very well informed and know everything I can before I make potentially an $8,000 mistake with my truck.

A guess I'll be going to the parts store and come up with my filtration setup before I stick this stuff in my tank. Now just gotta find a couple of clean steel drums, a water pump, and filter setup.

Any suggestions on equipment to use? I think I can get the barrels for free through work. And I guess a water pump from Harbor Freight will do the job. Or will the wvo gravity feed through a 1 or 2 micron filter bag?

I use an old diesel truck saddle tank to put blended fuel in. It holds 55 gallons and I put a 10 micron Goldenrod filter on the output of it. I use air pressure (20 - 30 psi) to push the blended fuel out and into the tank of the sub. I also have a Nicktane equivalent on my truck. Works for me.

OK. Here's what I've come up with to filter my oil. Does this look like it'll work and give me clean enough oil? Any comments/criticism's gladly accepted as I want to get this right the first time.

Hey there, I have some comments. First you really should convert truck so oil can get to 160 degrees. If not you can develope injector issues, what's new right? Now on your set-up. Looks like you copied it from somewhere, not a big deal. This will work but, there are a few things to consider. First get open top barrels from a distiller, they don't have chemicals, just cornsyrup. Easy to clean out. Second, settle carboys then decant into 1st tank. In Ohio you may need to heat them in the winter, waterbed heaters work well. When dewatering/heating 1st tank keep in mind that the water heater element is only going to heat oil above it, so you will need to circulate it somehow, I have used a 12v boat bulge pump. DON'T get it too hot! Use clear hose that won't melt; been there. Depending on how clean your chinese oil is I would try 10micron then 5micron then another 5 or 2 before it goes into truck. Sock filter or whole house filter from big box store. Finally, I would use one pump for everything and get a good one! Like this one, http://redlinepumps.com/ You may want to find a 275 gallon tote or a bunch of 55's for storage, make ones that have wheels too, it's easier to get to the truck. Oh, and don't forget a good pressure washer, paper towels and degreaser, your gonna need it!

Good Luck!

If you get a good suction going, you'll draw sediment from the bottom of the tank. Have the draw pipe ends curl upwards in the two lower tanks to minimize risk of stirring sediment.

Sixto
97 C2500 burb

Hi, I drew up the filtration setup at work. Didn't copy it from anywhere. I do like the idea of turning up the pipe ends on the suction side.

The oil from the one restaurant actually seems pretty good. I ran it through coffee filters and used about 1 filter per gallon. There is a black "sludge" about 1/16" thick at the bottom of each carboy with some food chunks. But I did let them sit for about two weeks total now and in the sun whenever I could.

I got the barrels from a labratory. Everything was triple rinesed by them before I got them. Then I'll clean them out with Simple Green and thoroughly dry before I start doing this.

As for a water bed heater, do I just wrap that around the barrel and turn it on?

I hate that we can't edit after 30 minutes.

I meant to ask what everyone thought would be the best final filter (2 micron) to use and which pump. Those ones from Redline look great, but at $250 up to $600, I'd like to find something a little cheaper being as I'm just starting out. Would a Racor filter with water separator work for my final filter? I only saw ones with 3/8" or 1/4" fittings and I'd need 3/4" as that's what everything else is going to be.

I hate that we can't edit after 30 minutes.

I meant to ask what everyone thought would be the best final filter (2 micron) to use and which pump. Those ones from Redline look great, but at $250 up to $600, I'd like to find something a little cheaper being as I'm just starting out. Would a Racor filter with water separator work for my final filter? I only saw ones with 3/8" or 1/4" fittings and I'd need 3/4" as that's what everything else is going to be.

I used this pump: http://surpluscenter.com/item.asp?UID=2007062008055137&item=2-1185&catname=engines to final filter the WVO for my Mercedes. It has pumped well over a thousand gallons of oil and still works just fine. I did have to replace an impeller once, but the kits are available there at surplus center.

As for filter, yes a bigger Racor would work just fine-though the replacement filters are a little spendy.

Don't worry about 3/8" port size, the filter media itself is going to be the limiting factor, not the plumbing. Just adapt down as needed.

I used this pump: http://surpluscenter.com/item.asp?UID=2007062008055137&item=2-1185&catname=engines to final filter the WVO for my Mercedes. It has pumped well over a thousand gallons of oil and still works just fine. I did have to replace an impeller once, but the kits are available there at surplus center.

As for filter, yes a bigger Racor would work just fine-though the replacement filters are a little spendy.

Don't worry about 3/8" port size, the filter media itself is going to be the limiting factor, not the plumbing. Just adapt down as needed.

Hab, did you filter on the suction or output side? What did you use for a filter on the pump?

You can try the set-up this gal uses -

http://www.tonyakay.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=333

Depending on how much WVO you process and how much time you have to spend, a hand crank pump might be simpler than an electric pump. The cheap Harbor Freight hand pump will empty a 5 gallon jug in seconds and field strips easily in case it ingests a solid object such as its own filter screen. Ask how I know :/

Sixto
97 C2500 burb

Hab, did you filter on the suction or output side? What did you use for a filter on the pump?

I filtered on the suction side with a Vormax filter that takes the Fleetguard FS1000 filters (I actually used Donaldson clones I got for about 7 dollars a piece). I don't really endorse the Vormax, but I had gotten it pretty cheap several years ago and never put it on the car. I ended up putting it on Ebay last year and got more for it used than I had originally paid for it.

Thanks Sixto and Hab. I actually already have the harbor freight hand pump. I also use a 3.5 horse trash pump for collecting WVO and it will pull a gallon a second at half throttle. You guys are giving me a ton of ideas for making life easier. One thing I have found is that nothing beats long settling time for WVO.