(To be fair to the company that makes the Bio in this post, I won't list their name, but they have been great for nearly a year now and I'll probally give them another try.)

I have two five gallon cans of commerically produced B100. The BIO in both containers looked pretty dark when I bought them, but didnt' think much of it since I know BIO can vary greatly in color. But when I went to put the BIO in my tank I found that settled in the bottom of the container is chunks of gel like stuff that is a dark amber color . When I got a bit of the gel on my finger and rubbed it between them, it just disolved and disappeared.

I didn't put anymore into my tank, and left the remaining 1/10 gallon in the can. What I was wondering is, what is wrong with the fuel and what is the gel in the container. The truck seems to run perfectly fine with what I did put in so i'm not too worried. Any of the more knowledgeable people have any input?

On a side note I think i'm going to dump the other 5 gallon container into my home heating oil tank rather than run it in my truck. There a companies that are starting to sell bio-blend home heating oils around here, so 5 gallons of questionable BIO in a 275 gallon tank won't hurt anything I would think.

Mike

 

it's possible[ though highly unlikely] that the gel clumps are non reacted glycerin. i would suspect that it may be crud from the holding tanks at the station. however, the fuel you did use should be OK. just keep checking before you pour

 

How long has it been sitting around?
After about 45 days of storage BD will start to oxidize and precipitate if you don't use an additive.

 

It had been sitting for about 30 days. I don't know how long it had been in the container prior to that. If it starts to precipitate, is it still good? What should/could be done with it.

Still not a master by anymeans with the Biodiesel.

Thanks for the replies,
Mike

 

It still should be good but not as good as it once was. Mix a little #2 with it and shake it up well.

If you plan on storing BD for longer than 30 days especially in the hot time of year you should use one of the many BD preservatives available. Baynox is probably the most common. Just like vegetable oil BD will oxidize (go rancid) over time. That's why almost 100% of the cooking oil in the store has preservatives added.

 

At what temp was it stored at? as IIRC Bio will start to gel at around 42 degrees.

 

It was stored in my basement which I would guess averaged around 65 degrees during its storage.

Anyone see anything bad with dumping it in my home heating oil tank in its current state??

Mike

 

Burn it with #2