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Comment by Mikey Sklar on October 5, 2009 at 7:45pm -
James - Yes on veggie oil.
biodiesel most diesel car companies will honor as long as it is B20 (20% biodiesel / 80% petro diesel).
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Comment by james leonard on October 5, 2009 at 7:36pm - will this void my waranty?
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Comment by ToddB on December 1, 2008 at 9:44am - As little as I use it in winter it would be easiest to just make sure I run it down to E and just go with a bit of diesel. Thanks.
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Comment by Mikey Sklar on November 29, 2008 at 11:30am
- One other option that comes to mind. I've heard that adding a small percentage of kerosene to B99 biodiesel blends can let it run smoothly through the winter. You will have to look around the net for tips on just how much.
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Comment by Mikey Sklar on November 29, 2008 at 11:21am
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As your summer comes to a close you can do two things:
1. Add a external heater to your fuel tank (I don't recommend this).
2. Start using diesel fuel again
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Comment by ToddB on November 29, 2008 at 11:16am
- Making the Bio diesel by hand would be perfect for me since I only use about 5-10 gal per year for my tractor. I know you say that the bio diesel does not work well in colder climates. I really only need my tractor in the warmer months any way, but would I have to drain it or cut it to store the tractor in the winter? I would only need the tractor in the winter if I had to plow my way out in a big snow.
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Comment by Mikey Sklar on November 26, 2008 at 10:50am
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You can run Waste Veggie Oil or Biodiesel in any diesel engine. There are two different approaches.
Waste Veggie Oil Approach
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- Add a second fuel tank to your tractor
- Warm that tank with a heat exchange that taps into the tractors coolant system for heat
- As you drive the tractor on normal diesel the waste veggie oil tank warms up
- When the oil in the Waste Veggie Oil tank gets near 85 deg. C you can switch to the second tank for fuel
- You will need to prefilter the veg oil and add a spin on filter for the veg system in your tractor
- A pair of solenoids works well for switching between fuel tanks both input and return lines
Biodiesel Approach
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- Biodiesel can go directly into your tractors tank
- You can easily make small batches of biodiesel by just adding methanol and lye to your waste veg oil
- biodiesel ends up costing about $1 per gallon primarily due to methanol expense
- the drawback to biodiesel is that in colder months it needs to be cut with kerosene or mixed with diesel so it does not gel up on you.
I make small 2.5 gallon batches of biodiesel by hand. I don't need much since I primarily drive on Waste Veggie Oil. Those small batches are for my stock diesel tank and the unmodified waste veggie oil is primarily what I burn. You can see more on both on my blog.
http://blog.holyscraphotsprings.com/search?q=biodiesel
http://blog.holyscraphotsprings.com/search?q=wvo
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Comment by ToddB on November 26, 2008 at 10:41am
- I would love to be able to run my tractor off my own bio diesel. Right now I'm down to about $50 a year for diesel but would love to make it myself.
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Comment by Kurt on November 25, 2008 at 11:09pm - Do you think it will work for the tractors too without doing a lot of work to the engine?
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Comment by Mikey Sklar on November 25, 2008 at 11:05pm
- This is waste veggie oil. I pick it up from restaurants and filter it through denim before running it in my converted diesel mercedes. I also make tiny batches of biodiesel. Not that it matters much since diesel is down to $2.
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Staff Recipes: Roasted Heritage Breed Turkey
Even though my Thanksgiving will be a party of two, I like to prepare for the possibility of ten! When I heard Wendy was getting a Lilac turkey from Wells Tavern Farm in Shelburne, Massachusetts I jumped on board for a bird.Wells Tavern has raised about 30 of their turkeys for fresh Thanksgiving birds. They are selling heritage breed birds that have had access to pasture throughout the spring and summer, eating natural Vermont grain and scratch feeds – with no antibiotics or added hormones. The turkeys are kept in large fenced pastures, which allows them to naturally scratch and forage, and provides them with protection from predators.
Wendy has been talking about her delicious turkey for a while now, and I am excited to see if I can find success with my first attempt at making Thanksgiving dinner.
Here is her recipe from last year:
Whether fresh or frozen, bring the bird to room temperature before cooking.
Cover the breast with a piece of brown paper cut from a shopping bag, rub it with cooking oil, and tie it in place with cotton string. Alternatively, soak a piece of cotton cloth in unsalted oil, such as corn oil. Remove the covering about 30 minutes before the turkey is done so the breast will brown.Roast heritage turkeys in a hot oven pre-heated to 425F-450F and cook until an internal thigh temperature of 140F-150F is reached. Don't let the tip of the thermometer touch the bone. (Note: The USDA recommends turkeys be cooked to 160F-180F, but these temperature will dry out a heritage turkey. Heritage birds are much more free of disease and bacteria, unlike commercially-raised birds, and do not need extreme temperatures to make them safe for consumption).
Truly the thought of cooking at such a high heat terrified me but it worked out great. We had a 17lb turkey that cooked in 1 1/2 hours.
Cook any stuffing first and put inside the heritage turkey before roasting. Due to the reduced cooking time, stuffing won't become fully cooked. Alternatively, try adding a quartered orange, apple and/or pear inside the cavity instead of stuffing.
Let the roasted bird rest 10-15 minutes before carving.
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