Heated Filter Housing Warms Up Veggie Oil

Heated Filter Housing Warms Up Veggie Oil ENERGY Alternative Fuels 32-4-38 There's a lot of interest in using waste vegetable oil in vehicles equipped with diesel engines. The used vegetable oil is collected from local restaurants as a way to reduce fuel expense. Conversion kits are available. You start the engine on diesel fuel and switch over to veggie oil. The problem is that you have to wait up to an hour for the veggie oil to heat up before you can switch over from diesel fuel to veggie oil, in order to prevent problems with fuel waxing or gelling in cold weather. This new heated filter housing is designed to solve the problem by heating the veggie oil before it enters the engine. Fuel is heated by plumbing in a line from the engine coolant. "It quickly gets the veggie oil up to the temperature where it has about the same viscosity as diesel fuel, which it should be for proper combustion," says inventor Noah Yoder. The filter housing measures 6 in. in dia. and 12 in. high and bolts to the veggie oil tank. It consists of a Baldwin semi truck fuel filter inside a 5-in. dia. metal container that's inside a 6-in. dia. metal container, forming a water jacket. There are four ports, for fuel in and fuel out and water in and water out. You splice into the vehicle's fuel tank line and also into the heater hoses. A T-handle with bolt is used to open the lid for changing the filter. "It works fast because the entire container gets heated. As soon as the temperature gauge reads normal operating temperature you're ready to switch over to veggie oil, without having to wait for the oil to warm up in order for it to flow. After driving five miles or so you're ready to change from diesel fuel over to veggie oil. And it'll handle up to 10 gallons per hour so it has a lot of capacity." Yoder says he's been building the units for more than 1 1/2 years, mostly for friends. A word of caution - the container does get very hot so you have to be careful around it. "I highly recommend adding insulation around the housing," says Yoder. He ships the units anywhere in the U.S. for $150 postpaid. The best way to reach Yoder is by mail. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Noah Yoder, 3589 S. 16th Road, Humansville, Mo. 65674.

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