We've got over 1000 WVO users now!!!

Well, the WVO Network is growing strong and fast. We're now ovr 1,000 strong! If you aren't already a member of the network, then get yourself over to http://www.fillup4free.com right away.

More and more members are emailing me to say that they've had great success getting free WVO / SVo / vegetable oil for their greasecar while on the road. It's so great to hear how well the members of our community support each other.

The Map is Ready!

The Map of American Greasers and oil sources is Now Online at http://www.fillup4free.com

After a year of work, the WVO Network map has been released to the public. It is an interactive map based on Google Maps' API that allows users to see who is using waste vegetable oil as fuel and where they are located.

The map is especially useful for

• road-tripping greasers who want to connect with free or cheap sources of WVO on their trip
• people who want to connect with other greasers in their local area to form a coop
• people with lots of oil that need to get rid of some

The WVO network is growing quickly and new map markers are added daily. It is shaping up to be a major tool for strengthening and building our community. Registration is free, instant, and the service is spam-free.

Greasecar WVO waste vegetable oil kit headaches cont'd

So I took a look into the greasecar waste vegetable oil tank the other day. The tank is the 15 gallon rectangular small vehicle (not the large truck) style. It has a top access panel that attaches with 10 bolts/screws to the main body of the tank. The part that you lift off holds the WVO level float, and the removable panel came with a CORK seal.

Now when I removed this access panel on the top of the tank to look in and inspect the heat exchanger and such, THE SEAL WAS GONE! That's right. GONE! I knew that cork was not a good material to use with vegetable oil, but the entire thing had desintegrated into thin air in only 6 months! The access panel has never had a really oil-tight seal--it has always leaked a little bit, but now I understand why...the access panel (aluminum) is resting against the aluminum of the tank body with no seal in between! What a crappy design! I mean really! you'd think that Greasecar, who boasts on their website that they are the leading wvo kit manufacturer, doesn't even include a seal that will withstand the chemical properties of WVO and the heat produced by their own heat exchanger!

So anyway, while in the tank, I tightened the compression fitting around the pex fuel line, which was VERY LOOSE. I very well may have been contaminating my coolant system with vegetable oil and vice-versa!

Greasecar sure has a nice reputation, but the more I learn about the details of their kit design, the more I realize that there are numerous things that (to say the least) should be improved.

Waste Vegetable Oil (WVO): Headache or "The Answer"

I've been running two waste vegetable oil greasecars for a while now, and even though the WVO cleans the injectors and produces less toxic pollutants and greenhouse gases, THE SYSTEM TAKES MAINTENANCE.

Anyone who tries to sell you a WVO or SVO conversion kit that says that all you have to do is install it and then drive for free for the rest of your life is a liar.

Right now I have a dead vegetable oil level guage, two coolant lines that have worn because they've been rubbing against the frame, and they need to be pulled and re-routed, and i just lost my source of waste vegetable oil (the restaurant owner wants to use it for himself).

Now, I have found new source of oil that is really great stuff, but I still need to set up some way to get the water out of it since the cooks clean the fryer with water. (Water + WVO = dead Injection Pump = $1,000-$2,000 repair).

So sure, WVO is a great way to help move the world to a less-fossil fuel dependent state, and sure it helps reduce our contributions to global warming, but don't be blind: it takes maintenance and work. At times I can completely understand people who just want to roll up to a gas station and say "fill 'er up."

WVO / SVO electric inline heater comparison

Now I've got the Neoteric Biofuels Veg-Therm Standard and Mega, and I am waiting for the Fattywagons Electrotherm 300w & injector pipe heaters, and also the little angel glow plug heater.

Next week I plan to start the controlled testing of each of them to see how fast they heat oil, how much current they draw, and how hot they get, using lab-grade testing equipment.

Then stage 2: on-road testing of these waste vegetable oil electric heaters to see how they compare in real-life greasecar situations.

Send your ideas to me about how you'd like to see them tested, and I'll consider them.

Review of Fattywagons 100w Electrotherm inline WVO Heater

So, I have received and installed the FattyWagons 100watt "Electrotherm" inline electric straight / waste vegetable oil fuel heater in the Vanagon. You see, I wanted to save a little money by buying the $50 electrotherm rather than buying the more widely known $100 "Vegtherm" by neoteric biofuels/plantdrive.

Well, let me put it plainly. I just went and ordered the Vegtherm.

To start with, the Electrotherm came with no instructions, no accessory hardware, and no receipt: just a tube with the unit inside. No recommended mounting ideas or wiring diagrams. No relay. No toggle switch. Just the electrotherm with two wires sticking out of it. Simple, right?

After installing the Electrotherm and troubleshooting why it wouldn't heat up, I finally got it working. But, even though it gets warm, it doesn't add even one degree of heat to the fuel passing through it.

It's frustrating to go through all the work of ordering a product, waiting for it to be delivered, installing it, and troubleshooting it--only to find out that it doesn't really work well. Not to mention the fact that I didn't receive a confirmation email after ordering the item on the Fattywagons website, and I had to request confirmation three times before they even told me they'd received my order. It took over two weeks before I received the item! To their credit, after hearing about my problems with the unit, Fattywagons has been very good at trying to help me.

Ok, so the unit heats up. You can touch it an feel that it is warm...or even hot, but my temperature gauge probe (which is installed immediately after the electrotherm) doesn't register even one degree of temperature increase for the fuel passing through the electrotherm when it is on. Not even one degree.

I expected at least five degrees of additional heat, and hoped for 15, but it doesn't even put out one.

I double-insulated the electrotherm with foam pipe insulation, and I connected it directly to the battery to make sure it was getting enough juice...but still...not even one degree of additional heat.

Like I wrote earlier. Let me summarize by saying: I just went and bought the Vegtherm. When am I going to learn that sometimes you really do get what you pay for?

So, stay tuned for my review and installation of the soon-to-arrive Vegtherm by Neoteric/Plantdrive on Fillup4free.com

The First Fillup4free WVO Network Roadtrip!

Next week, April 1-9, we'll be kicking off the first FillUp4Free WVO road trip in the Vanagon greasecar! We'll be stopping by to visit waste vegetable oil users along the east coast on our way to Asheville, NC from Rutland, VT. It's our first experiment to see how well this network will work.

Will we actually be able to get enough waste vegetable oil to go the distance?

Are there enough people out there willing to share oil with a travelling greasecar driver?

We're going to find out soon, and this is only the beginning. This fall we will be kicking off the main cross country WVO network - building trip.

Our goal: 48 states in 5 months, with at least a few WVO sources in each state. Then, we'll publish the network and make it available for all.

Stay tuned to fillup4free.com for more!