Bio Diesel in sheffield

[S188]

Right, had an email back and thought this probubly deserves its own thread rather than being hidden in another.

This is the place...
http://www.bioukfuels.co.uk/
It's located here...
Newhall Rd

Open Times

8:30-5:30 mon-fri
9:30-1pm saturday (from the second week in may)

The price woun't be anything as specal they get down in Brummyland, but it will be 5p cheeper than the cheepest sheffield supermarket (they tend to be towards the lower end of the national average so it's probubly worth/economic pulling off the M1 for if your passing; its not far from the Tinsley Viaduct.)

Its 100% biodiesel made from Waste rape seed oil aparently.  They check the viscocity of it and its always been with 5% of diesel. - Sounds like it'll be happy in a standard engine.

He already has a few old Landys useing the stuff.  Would be nice if they got some surport from Mud Club vehicles I think! A nice idea if a days laneing is more carbon neutral than a rambler driving their BMW to Castleton.

[ChrisW]

Great news but I doubt I would be inclined to go out of my way (if I was in that neck of the woods), "5p below supermarket price" sounds more like it's 'let's undercut the competition and make loads of money' rather than sell it for a reasonable markup on what it costs to produce, particularly considering it is being produced from waste oil not fresh.

I can buy fresh SVO for 49p per litre + 27p duty = 76p per litre, even mixing SVO 50/50 with regular diesel I can save more per tank than filling with 100% bio at '5p less than supermarket' prices.

I daresay as (hopefully) more places crop up selling 100% Biodiesel the competition will increase and prices will be more reasonable.

[S188]

I think thats the sad truth about the price really.  Absolutely no compotision means they can charge what they like so long as its less than real diesel.

Would be cheeper to make/mix your own fuel but that is alot of hassel, perticularly if you'd need to modify it to stop it breaking your dizzy pump if running any real % of oil.

I'll ask afew questions when I get round to visiting.

[bezzabsa]

Glad I live in an area where the price ranges from 68ppl to 74ppl :D:D:D
especially as dino diesel is now 95ppl  :shock:  :shock:

[Range Rover Blues]

Would be cheeper to make/mix your own fuel but that is alot of hassel, perticularly if you'd need to modify it to stop it breaking your dizzy pump if running any real % of oil.

Really, tell me more :shock:

[mike142sl]

So what do you have to do to a Disco TD5 to be able to use Biodiesel then?

[S188]

Well I'm no expert, but aparently my 2.25d is one of the weeker pumps around so although sticking 100% cooking oil in will probubly work fine it'd  probubly fail in the long term (could do 100's, 1000's, 10000's of miles before then).  As its my only vehicle and I do about 8000 miles a year in it I'd rather not break it, that'd spoil my day! (The last few weeks as its been off the road awaiting chassis repair.  I'm getting bord of walking or taking the train everywhere so I'm realiseing this point more than ever.)

The reliable way to run cooking oil (thicker than diesel) is to eather modify the vehicle with heated fuel lines and twin tanks (which I don't want to do) or to run a small % mixed with normal diesel so it doesn't stress the pump too much differently.  Obveously if your useing 75% diesel your not going to be saveing much money.  The other option is to modfiy the fuel so it acts like diesel.  I think RME is something thats recived this process.  

You can make RME type stuff at home but personly I have no interest myself as it'd require space to do it which I simply don't have.  Therefore the exact methods of how to do it isn't something I fully understand.

*Legal rubish* If your adding veg oil that you bough in tesco of found round the back of the chippy (and have filtered useing the space I don't have) to your car you should tell customs and pay them some tax.  I think this is about 27p/l.  Obvesouly that means if you were using free waist oil and have a suitably modifyed vehicle you can drive around totally legally for about 30p/l!  Stuff that costs about 50p from tescos however will cost nearly 80p/l with tax.  Adding 25% of that to 75% diesel at 94p/l you'd not be makeing massive saveings as it'd be 90p/l for the mix.

Theres alot of info on the net about useing all biodiesel variants in most kinds of diesel engine so your best looking yourself for your perticular engine and what it does and doesn't like without mods.  I think a Td5 should be simular to a VW TDI PD engine (the PD bit is important!) as they both run unit injectors.  My dad has a such an engine in a Caravelle and it seems to run fine on what his local farm sells in warks.  Not sure exactly what that is though.  
I've only looked into what the rover 2.25d and VW 1.6TD tolorate, as thats what I do or want to own; they both use rotary pumps with indirect injection but the VW has the stronger Bosch pump so could do stronger mixes.

[Range Rover Blues]

You're obvioulsy further into this than me.  I've looked at making biodeiesel as I have the space (lockup wiht free electric) and the costs of running a home made 'still' can get expensive.  You use a type of alcohol to react the Veg oil, if you don't recover this alcohol when you seperate (evaporate) then it's very uneconomic.

Of course using waste veg oil is better for you pocket but apparently needs more work to make it fit for use, so not as free as you'd think.

I hadn't realised there were so many technicals problems with using unmodyfied Veg oil though :(  so i won't be taking the risk.