I'm curious of the amount of personal time it requires to be producing my own bio-diesel. I looked at the Appleseed setup and looks like a manageable system - maybe 15-20 gals per load? But I am concerned in the amount of time it will require to do it.

How much time do some of you spend brewing your own fuel (per load/batch/week or ??)

 

It does not really matter if it is 20 gallons or 40. Same amount of time. From start to finish, about 36-48 hours for a batch. But your time involved would be about 1 to 2 hours total over that 48 hour time frame.

Thats 15 mins here, let things run for an hour or two, 20 minutes there, let things run all night, that sort of thing.

Other than the actual processing of the oil into bio (about a 1 hour step), you can let stuff sit as long as you want till your ready.

I try to coordinate stuff so all the work is being done while I am asleep or at work. All I need to do is transfer some oil, drain some water, that sort of thing. KD

 

I don't brew but the people I know who do spend about ten times more time driving around collecting and scamming up waste veggie oil than they do processing it.

 

I don't "Brew" as such but to filter, cut, filter, and pump it in the truck takes me about 35 minutes for a tank full.

 

Yes, collecting the oil can be a challenge. The trick is to find places that are local, or on your way from like home to work, etc. That way your not going out of your way.

If you can get the restaraunt to put the oil back in the original continers (cubies) then you golden. It's just a matter of picking it up and tossing it into the back of the truck.

If your dumpter diving, then a gas powered trash pump will get you full in a hurry, another trick is to use a metal tank, draw a vacume on it. Drop the hose into the dupster, turn a valve, and your full in about 5 minutes. But, in cold weather, when the oil is sludge, that is a totally different problem. KD