Noob....

Hi everyone,

I just recently got my 04' 4-door Golf TDI and would like to get in on this home-made bio-diesel stuff.....

So whats the deal with outfitting my bone-stock Golf to run on BD? do i need filters or something?

And what is a good place to find out how to make good Biodiesel?

-I saw a episode of 4x4 TV on Speed channel a couple of months back and they used old resturaunt cooking oil and ethonol/lye to make their own BD and then they put it straight into their Truck......could i do this with my TDi?


Thanks alot, Don

PS. sorry if this is the 10 millionth repost...im new

Do a search, or check out the words "biodiesel" in google... you'd be amazed at what you'll learn.

http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_processor5.html

a start

You can make it yourself, OR you can just go and buy some if you live near a biodiesel retailer. All BD (biodiesel) is not homemade!

For an excellent resource, go to www.biodieselnow.com and start reading the forums. For homebrewing, see the Biodiesel Production forum, and especially the stickies at the top of the page. To find out where you might be able to buy BD at the pump, go to the specific state or province forums.

Welcome to the pioneering world of biodiesel!

No upgrades necessary. The only fuel lines that are not bio compatable are the injector return lines (the cloth-covered lines between the injectors). These hoses naturally dry out and need to be replace every few years, anyway. If you really want to do something, replace them with Viton hose and they'll last forever... no matter which fuel you use.

Yes, you can make biodiesel at home... I do! Generally, you'll collect used veggie oil from restaurants and use methanol and either sodium- or potassium hydroxide (lye) to convert the oil to biodiesel.

Of course, there is some equipment involved. Some people do it on the cheap, and some people go all out. I am somewhere in the middle. I'm about $1,500 into equipment. My last batch (saturday) cost me 88¢ per gallon to make. Here's part of my setup:



BTW, there's lots of good info at biodieselnow.com, but I have heard bad things about journey to forever. Trust the "biodiesel queen," Girl Mark. To quote one of my favorite movies, "she has the knowin' and the doin' of a great many things."

McBrew, he's got an '04. VW has been building their cars with Viton since something like '97.

Homebrewing is great, but just driving up to a reputable commercial pump is EASY.

Welcome, and congratulations on your new toy.

~BG

unless you *really* know what you're doing, i wouldn't risk home brew, especially from waste vegetable oil, in an 04 PD engine TDI. look for a local, reputable and ASTM certified biodiesel. biodiesel.org has a national map of biod resailers. you can also search on google, which might get you more current hits. personally i would start off running b20 up to b50 and then work your way up to b100, just to establish that you aren't running into any problems and the fuel source is good. i ran b20 and a few tanks of b100 over this past summer. i noticed a fair hit on my mpgs with the b100, but since i only ran a few tanks, i can't say for sure it was the b100 that did it. with b20 - b30 i noticed no mpg or power hit. however, this is from my fairly limited experience (and one fuel source), just offering my 2cents.

Iv'e made my own for a year now.
Aside from one plugged filter(normal until the tank sludge cleans out)
I have had no issues.
Winter has it's challenges so proper blends and antigels
are good to know about. biodieselnow is a good website
as is
http://biodiesel.infopop.cc/6/ubb.x?a=cfrm&s=447609751

good luck
These websites are much more biodiesel production (homebrew) oriented
than this great tdiclub forum is.