Veg Oil saves the Planet (and Cheap)

[malcolm@mill.me.uk]

Just been talking to customs & excise.

It is now LEGAL to use veg oil in a diesel with NO TAX to pay.....

Provided you use less than 2500 litres a year.

I am using 10% Sunflower oil mixed with the diesel and Millers additive .... on a Daily basis.

It is both quieter than normal and better MPG.

I have used upto 90% sunflower with diesel and Millers in hot weather........ with even better MPG .......

However if the engine goes Cold (parked over a couple of hours) it can be a bugger to start ........ but its great for long journeys (Lancashire to London or Scotland) or if I'm not really stopping anywhere.

On 5% to 45% I find no starting differences to straight diesel ---- even in winter!


ALL you need to be Duty Free, is use under 2500ltrs veg oil per year ....... AND keep a log of amount used ( a simple notebook will do) .. there is NO registration or Licence required.


Bloody amazing really and it only took me 6 years of continually writing to Gordon and every MP I could find (I really can be a pain at times)

Malcolm

[4xpaws]

Doesn't your van end up smelling like a chippie though?

[gixxerpat]

So you got your van "chipped' then........................sorry !!!

[VitoSurfer]

Do you buy used Veg oil or is it new?

I presume you pour it straight in the tank with the Millers additive?

I don't mind the smell if it keeps a few quid out of Gordons pocket as he gets toooooo much of mine already!!!

Any more info would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers

[darkside]

I'm really interested in this too!

Which engines does it work on and are any mods required? I've got a 110CDi.

Are additives required or just a nice to have?

I love the smell of chips or donuts!

[malcolm@mill.me.uk]

First point :-
you smell like a chippie if you recycle oil from a chippie --- its long and complicated (plenty of sites tell you how) and if only a very, very small error in filtering --- it will clog the injectors fast.

As a bynote :- if you use oil from the local chinese, you smell like a chinese chippy --- I tried it.

Police in some areas stop anyone with a "smell" as it must be illegal ---- in fact most recyclers use a recognised "recipe" and pay (used to pay) the fuel duty at 28 or 43p per litre.

IF YOU USE NEW OIL - THERE IS NO SMELL it is "cleaner" smelling than pure diesel.

Second Point:-
I use Oil from the supermarket shelf ---- no processing --- no filtering --- as it comes.

higher priced oil is no improvement ..............

Sunflower oil is the highest cetane and therefore best.

Rapeseed (marked "veg oil" or "canola") is great, better lubricant but slightly lower cetane.

Olive Oil, Palm oil, grapeseed oil etc tend to wax too easily (waxing blocks the filters, pipes and injectors) --- if in doubt, set you fridge to its coldest (not the freezer) and put a bottle of oil in it --- if it goes cloudy, it is useless in colder weather.


Point three:-
Blended with diesel at 5 to 20% oil added to diesel --- no mods are normally needed in most conditions (except Transits etc with lucas/cav pumps)

at 20 to 50% oil added to diesel -- no mods on longer journeys or where stopping does not allow the engine to fully cool (1/2 hr in winter upto 2hrs stopped in summer)

at 50 to 90% oil added to diesel --- no mods but make sure you put in fresh diesel hen parking up or it can be a sod to start in cooler weather.

Generally there are few problems with merc vans and mpvs if the thermostat is good (cold engines do not run oil very well -- 90c is much better than 70c)

----------------
I run blended in all weathers, adjusting the ratio according to the weather (very, very roughly)

I always use Millers Diesel additive slightly stronger than the bottle says (4 to 6 measures in a tank) as it gets rid of the crap (see previous threads on millers from me and others) and stops "caramalising" when the engine is cold.

Low Sulphur diesel is better for the environment than older diesels but the sulphur acted as a lubricant --- you add the veg oil to replace the lubricant effect.

currently I am getting 47mpg from a 1997 108d that managed 32mpg when I bought it ---- No Mods ---- "blown through" with Millers diesel additive and straight diesel (one bottle in 2 tanks diesel) -- it ain't pleasant but it works ------- then the mix as outlined.
-------

If you follow the rules (1st in this thread) and use under 2500 ltrs in a year --- its fully legal NOW.


If you want to run on pure veg oil ONLY or to make your own bio diesel from used oil --------- I fully recommend Smartveg UK - advanced diesel to veg oil car conversion system for recipes and/or full veg oil conversions.

[malcolm@mill.me.uk]

First point :-
you smell like a chippie if you recycle oil from a chippie --- its long and complicated (plenty of sites tell you how) and if only a very, very small error in filtering --- it will clog the injectors fast.

As a bynote :- if you use oil from the local chinese, you smell like a chinese chippy --- I tried it.

Police in some areas stop anyone with a "smell" as it must be illegal ---- in fact most recyclers use a recognised "recipe" and pay (used to pay) the fuel duty at 28 or 43p per litre.

IF YOU USE NEW OIL - THERE IS NO SMELL it is "cleaner" smelling than pure diesel.

Second Point:-
I use Oil from the supermarket shelf ---- no processing --- no filtering --- as it comes.

higher priced oil is no improvement ..............

Sunflower oil is the highest cetane and therefore best.

Rapeseed (marked "veg oil" or "canola") is great, better lubricant but slightly lower cetane.

Olive Oil, Palm oil, grapeseed oil etc tend to wax too easily (waxing blocks the filters, pipes and injectors) --- if in doubt, set you fridge to its coldest (not the freezer) and put a bottle of oil in it --- if it goes cloudy, it is useless in colder weather.


Point three:-
Blended with diesel at 5 to 20% oil added to diesel --- no mods are normally needed in most conditions (except Transits etc with lucas/cav pumps)

at 20 to 50% oil added to diesel -- no mods on longer journeys or where stopping does not allow the engine to fully cool (1/2 hr in winter upto 2hrs stopped in summer)

at 50 to 90% oil added to diesel --- no mods but make sure you put in fresh diesel hen parking up or it can be a sod to start in cooler weather.

Generally there are few problems with merc vans and mpvs if the thermostat is good (cold engines do not run oil very well -- 90c is much better than 70c)

----------------
I run blended in all weathers, adjusting the ratio according to the weather (very, very roughly)

I always use Millers Diesel additive slightly stronger than the bottle says (4 to 6 measures in a tank) as it gets rid of the crap (see previous threads on millers from me and others) and stops "caramalising" when the engine is cold.

Low Sulphur diesel is better for the environment than older diesels but the sulphur acted as a lubricant --- you add the veg oil to replace the lubricant effect.

currently I am getting 47mpg from a 1997 108d that managed 32mpg when I bought it ---- No Mods ---- "blown through" with Millers diesel additive and straight diesel (one bottle in 2 tanks diesel) -- it ain't pleasant but it works ------- then the mix as outlined.
-------

If you follow the rules (1st in this thread) and use under 2500 ltrs in a year --- its fully legal NOW.


If you want to run on pure veg oil ONLY or to make your own bio diesel from used oil --------- I fully recommend Smartveg UK - advanced diesel to veg oil car conversion system for recipes and/or full veg oil conversions.

[VitoSurfer]

Thanks Malcolm for the info.

I'm currently getting about 30 - 32mpg from my 112CDI, which is chipped to approx 150bhp.
I drive it hard most of them time which obviously reduces my potential mpg. But it upsets GTi man to be out done by a van which is good fun!!!!

I'm doing a surf trip to South West France next week, about 800miles each way, I'll post some fuel figures when I get back to share my findings.

So its off to Halfords this morning for a bottle of Millers and Tescos to stock up on Sunflower then!

Cheers

[darkside]

Cheers, great info. Thanks a lot for the good info.

Mmmmm - Chinese chippy smell, no we are talking. There's one up the road and I have space for filtering. My garage has a kind of upstairs and I always fancied a little biodiesel plant up there, gravity-fed into a filler for the van.

Sounding very tempting. I have a relatively long commute so my engine gets fully warm every day. At weekends I often do long road-trips so a highish %age sounds good - a 20% mix through the (normal!) summer ought to be no problem.

If my maths is right:

20,000 miles per year at 30mpg (or 7mpl) is about 2850 litres of fuel.

If you run a 20% mix and get mid 30's, a 100,000 mile a year range is do-able.

So in theory even running 90% mix you've got quite a high legal threshold. Nice. Any increase in fuel economy also increases your 'range'.

I looked into it before and started this thread:
http://www.benzworld.org/forums/v-cl...ight=biodiesel

but the talk about filters and pumps clogging put me off. My van is quite new, low mileage and FSH - lots to loose if it goes wrong! Need a guinea pig!

Do you have a link for the new laws? The only metion I could find is on Wikipedia with no source cited:
Vegetable oil used as fuel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The HM Customs website does not seem to be up to date and is still unclear.

[malcolm@mill.me.uk]

check with millers for supplier < Untitled Document > the product is < Diesel Power Plus >

I get it from a local car shop (recommended by Millers - but phone shop to check before going .... 3 out of 4 had none) --------- Halfords don't sell it.

If going a long way without stopping --------- warm engine first -- then add sunflower oil and Millers ----- If you expect to go a tankful without stopping, you can run it almost neat veg oil and Millers --- then put in diesel (a couple of gallons) when taking a long break e.g. services or at journeys end , before turning off engine.-------- you can then repeat the process for another long run --- or go to 50/50 sunflower and diesel.

I know its legal here (under 2500ltrs/annum) but do not know about france --- however it has always been legal to run abroad on fuel purchased here (in the past at least)