Stop Global Warming Run Your Car on Waste Vegetable Oil

1. Stop Global Warming: Run your car on waste vegetable oil
A recipe for low-emission motoring?
Some diesel engines will run on waste cooking oil if it's brewed into biodiesel or blended with old fashioned
'fossil' diesel. If you convert your engine you can even use it neat. However you cut it, recycled oil will slash
emissions from driving and can make a tasty saving against soaring pump prices.
Running your car on the same oil that fries your fish is a major CO2 saver and could be 'cheap as chips' too
(especially if its free from the local greasy spoon). Cars running on cooking oil - used or otherwise - get similar
fuel economy to diesels and 20-30% better than ordinary petrol.
In practice there isn't nearly enough of the stuff to fuel Britain's six million diesel cars, but if you have a pre-
2000 low-pressure diesel engine, waste oil could be a golden opportunity for you and the climate - unlike the
majority of 'primary' biofuels. In fact, the government's Better Regulation Commission is satisfied that waste
cooking oil "makes economic and environmental sense."
And fiddling around with your engine isn't a must. An expanding network of filling stations sell biodiesel
brewed from recycled oil which can be added to some unconverted engines. So can our waste veggie oil help us
to stop cooking the climate?
How will it make a difference?
The average diesel car produces nearly three tonnes of CO2 a year. Switch to waste biodiesel (processed waste
veggie oil) and you can expect to cut your driving emissions by about 85% , according to the Department for
Transport. Convert your engine to run on pure waste cooking oil alone and your emissions will be dangerously
close to zero. Of course, waste veggie oil produces CO2 but no more than the CO2 that the plant originally took
out of the air through photosynthesis. Read the full report (Carbon and Sustainability Reporting Within the
Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation, 2008).
A knock-on effect is that the oil you use would otherwise have gone down the drain or into landfill - where it
leaks methane, a greenhouse gas. Over half of the 100,000 sewer blockages cleared each year by Thames Water
result from fat - much of it poured down sinks. (For other ways to dispose of cooking oil, see 'How do I do it?')
In order to make the biggest carbon savings you need to convert your engine to run on pure, unprocessed veggie
oil, which costs money up front (typically £500-£1,000). Nevertheless, the savings can offset the conversion
costs in a few months. After that, you're in profit on the deal.
What's the debate?
"Is waste veggie oil 'carbon neutral'?"
Waste vegetable oil has already been used once, so boffins give it a size-zero carbon footprint. In fact, Swiss
research published in 2007 found that the only transport biofuel that consistently performs better than petrol in
environmental terms is waste cooking oil. That said, waste veggie oil still emits CO2 when it is combusted in
your engine - but only as much as it absorbed while it was growing in a field. In addition, a burgeoning demand
for waste vegetable oil could potentially spur further growth in the biofuel industry down the line. It's already
fueling 'cooking oil wars' amongst biodiesel makers in London, according to the Telegraph. Read our article on
the perils of 'primary' biofuels.

2. "If it's such a good idea why aren't we all doing it?"
There's simply not enough cooking oil in the UK to take over from diesel entirely according to the government's
Better Regulation Commission. Current waste oil supplies could only feasibly power around one-350th of the
UK's cars. In fact, the Energy Systems Research Unit estimates that the UK can only produce enough biodiesel
from waste veggie oil to displace less than 0.6% of conventional diesel.
"Is running a car on pure vegetable oil legal? Doesn't the government levy tax on fuel?"
It's all perfectly above board, and there's no tax to pay unless you use more than 2,500 litres a year (enough to
take you about 20,000 miles). Hang on to your receipts in case you're ever asked to prove you haven't exceeded
the limit.
Beyond that point you'll need to establish the amount of duty payable per litre, a complex business dependent
on whether its chemical consistency qualifies it for a biofuel reduction (call the HM Revenue and Customs'
National Advice Service on 0845 010 9000 for details). You may be able to source your oil from a collective
that will do these calculations for you.
What's stopping me?
"I have a petrol car, not a diesel one."
Fair enough - only diesel cars can use vegetable oil. The alternative biofuel is ethanol based E85, but it's not
nearly as eco-friendly. Yet.
"My local dealership says I can kiss my warranty goodbye."
It's very unlikely a manufacturer's warranty will be valid once you've converted a new car to veggie oil. And
there are some other things to bear in mind too:
y It's not advisable to put pure vegetable oil in modern high-pressure diesels as it may wreck the engine
and land you with a repair bill running into several thousand pounds
y You need to replace the fuel filter more often, but the new filter only costs around £10
"I don't want to convert my car to run on pure veggie oil. Is there an alternative?"
Yes. If the waste vegetable oil has been processed into biodiesel, then you can probably run your diesel car on it
without conversion. (Generally speaking, cars built from 1994 onwards are probably ok - but it's worth
checking with your car manufacturer). You can get waste vegetable biodiesel at some small biodiesel filling
stations - or make it yourself from waste cooking oil.
How do I do it?
If you have a diesel car, you may be able to run your car on pure waste vegetable oil:
y Check with your car manufacturer whether your car can run on pure veggie oil - or is suitable for
conversion to vegetable power
y Inform your insurance company and car manufacturer of impending conversions
y Check with your local greasy spoon whether you can collect their waste cooking oil - but make sure to
buy a filter before you use the oil

3. y For financial simplicity, search online for duty-paid, filtered veg oil suppliers
y If you're the adventurous type, buy a DIY kit to convert your car to run on 100% veggie power
y Vegetable oil freezes in the cold unlike agricultural biofuel - so consider mixing with traditional
biodiesel or diesel in winter
If you can't run your car on pure waste veggie oil, don't despair:
y An alternative is waste vegetable oil that has been processed into biodiesel. Look for your nearest
biodiesel filling station and remember to check that their fuel is made from waste veggie oil
y All station diesel now contains from 2.5-5% biodiesel - so adding another 5% of home-brew biodiesel
risks breaking an unmodified engine and losing the warranty
y Check that the processed waste biodiesel conforms to the EN 14214 standard
y If you don't mind a spot of DIY, you can take a course in how to make waste biodiesel without blowing
your house up: the Low Impact Living Initiative and the Centre for Alternative Technology
y You can even teach yourself how to make waste biodiesel: there are plenty of online guides, including
Gas 2.0, Journey To Forever and Schnews. And you can read a BBC article on how to make the stuff
If it all sounds a bit daunting, there are still more productive ways to dispose of your old vegetable oil
than in the bin or down the sink:
y Donate it to a recycling scheme so others can run their cars on it: see Reuze
y Put small amounts in your compost bin, mixing it with cardboard or paper
y If you're fond of our feathered friends, mix up any vegetable oil leftovers with seeds, nuts and raisins to
make bird patties: Breathing Places
y Find out what other opportunities you're wasting. Read our articles on recycling and low-carbon
shopping
y See Plant Drive
http://plantdrive.com
y VEGETABLE OIL Cars and Converting Your Car to VEGETABLE OIL
http://plantdrive.com
http://www.greasecar.com
http://www.vegpoweredsystems.com
http://www.goldenfuelsystems.com
http://www.goodgrease.com
http://www.vegpower.com
http://www.elsbett.com
http://biocar.de
http://www.enviofuel.com
http://www.frybrid.com
http://www.vegiecars.com
http://www.theorganicmechanic.org
y http://www.fattywagons.com
y http://greasebenz.com
y http://www.vtvegcar.com
y http://www.vegengine.blogspot.com
y http://www.greenconversion.net
y http://www.alaskavegoil.org
y http://www.ehow.com/how_2004136_vegetable-oil-fuel.html
y http://www.vegdvw.com

4. y http://www.greendiesel1.com
y http://vegwerks.wordpress.com
y http://www.vegiecars.com
y http://vegetablepowersystems.com
y http://danalinscott.netfirms.com
y http://www.bebioenergy.com
y http://www.instructables.com/id/Biotour.org-Waste-Vegetable-Oil-Conversion-Diesel-/
y
y DVD LIQUID GOLD 2
Learn the Do͛s and Don͛t's of Gathering and using Waste Vegetable oil as a fuel. Perfect for anyone who is
currently using, or planning on using SVO (Straight Vegetable Oil) or Bio Diesel as a fuel!
These questions and more are answered on this DVD:
ͻ The legality of collecting waste vegetable oil and burning it as a fuel.
ͻ Overview of how diesel engines burn waste vegetable oil as fuel.
ͻ How to identify good waste vegetable oil.
ͻ How to identify bad waste vegetable oil.
ͻ How to ask a restaurant for their waste vegetable oil.
ͻ How to fuel up on the fly with the automated One Shot Filtration Unit.
ͻ How to setup your own waste vegetable oil accounts.
ͻ How to collect large quantities of oil for later filtration at home.
ͻ How to filter waste vegetable oil using filter bags.
ͻ How does salt, sugar and animal fats affect waste vegetable oil for fuel?
ͻ How to tell if there͛s water in the oil?
ͻ How to filter the oil once it͛s been gathered.
ͻ Cold Weather gathering techniques and tips.
y http://www.goldenfuelsystems.com
y
y DVD S.V.O. Seminar 2006
Lately there's been a lot of talk about the effects of Global warming due to our love of gas guzzling vehicles and
our dependency on foreign oil. Scientists and entrepreneurs around the world are busy developing what they
hope will be our answer to cleaner burning vehicles. What many people don't realize is that this technology
already exists and it's been around for quite some time now.
This DVD was Shot during a seminar on Straight Vegetable Oil at Ecoversity in Santa Fe, New Mexico and is
packed with 2.5 hours of valuable information. Listen along while many of the most frequently asked questions
about this technology are discussed and answered.
These questions and more are answered on this DVD:
ͻ The History of Straight Vegetable Oil

5. ͻ Different Alternative Fuels
ͻ Straight Vegetable vs. Biodiesel
ͻ Straight Vegetable Oil Facts and Fiction
ͻ Diesel Engines vs. Gasoline Engines
ͻ How a Straight Vegetable Oil System Works
ͻ The Importance of a Vehicles Air Filter
ͻ Increase Power and Economy/Computer Mods
ͻ Oil Gathering 101
ͻ Filtering on the Fly with the One Shot
ͻ Using Filter Bags
ͻ What to do with leftover Nasty Oil
ͻ Diesels Available in the USA
y http://www.goldenfuelsystems.com
y DVD GREASY RIDER
y Picture a cross-country road trip powered by vegetable oil in a 1981 Mercedes-Benz. Greasy Rider follows the
two filmmakers, Joey Carey and JJ Beck, as they meet with fellow Greasecar drivers, friends, and critics.
Traveling as far south as New Orleans and as far north as Seattle, the car is fueled by used cooking grease
collected at restaurants along the way.
Interviews include Morgan Freeman who is opening up a Biodiesel plant in Mississippi. Political analyst Noam
Chomsky, ͞You're supposed to believe we would have liberated Iraq even if its main product was pickles,͟
appears along side Yoko Ono, ͞This whole world is now ruled by corporations and their greed,͟ and Tommy
Chong, ͞You guys figured it out. You got your little bio-car, and there you go.͟ Additional interviews include the
founders of the four major vegetable oil conversion kit companies, Greasecar, Greasel, Neoteric, and Frybrid, as
they discuss the reality of vegetable oil as a fuel.
The heat is felt in this political documentary as America's energy consumption continues to grow. With gas
prices on the rise and the reality of global warming setting in, Greasy Rider points to vegetable oil as one part of
the solution to our energy problems.
y http://www.goldenfuelsystems.com
y
y
y JOURNEY to FOREVER
http://www.journeytoforever.org
y The Film: FUEL
http://thefuelfilm.com
FUEL is an insightful portrait of America͛s addiction to oil and an uplifting testament to the immediacy of new
energy solutions. Director, Josh Tickell, a young activist, shuttles us on a whirlwind journey to track the rising
domination of the petrochemical industry Ͷ from Rockefeller͛s strategy to halt Ford͛s first ethanol cars to Vice
President Cheney's petrochemical company sponsored energy legislation Ͷ and reveals a gamut of available
solutions to "repower America" Ͷ from vertical farms that occupy skyscrapers to algae facilities that turn

6. wastewater into fuel.
Tickell and a surprising array of environmentalists, policy makers, and entertainment notables take us through
America͛s complicated, often ignominious energy past and illuminate a hopeful, achievable future, where
decentralized, sustainable living is not only possible, it͛s imperative.
y
y DVD : Biodiesel #2
Filmed at the National Biodiesel Board Conference and Expo in Palm Springs, CA, this 45 minute video helps
qualify the emissions benefits of biodiesel and illustrates how biodiesel can reduce cancerous diesel
emissions.
y http://fryertofuel.com
y
y DVD: Biodiesel 101
In this 45-minute presentation, biodiesel author Josh Tickell provides an economic, social and practical context
for biodiesel. "Biodiesel 101" goes deep into the technical world of the biodiesel production, showing how the
fuel is chemically formed. This video also examines current data and trends within the biodiesel industry to
illustrate growth patterns and future potential.
http://fryertofuel.com
y
y Convert GAS Cars to Plug-In ELECTRIC Autos
http://www.electroauto.com http://www.kta-ev.com http://www.nedra.com http://www.evparts.com
http://www.sourceguides.com/energy
y book: Convert It; by Michael Brown and Shari Prange
DVD: Convert It http://www.electroauto.com
`
Convert HYBRID Cars to Plug-In ELECTRIC Autos
http://www.calcars.org http://www.hybrids-plus.com http://www.rqriley.com/xr3.htm http://www.eaa-
phev.org/wiki/PriusPlus http://www.hybridplugs.com http://www.hybridconceptcars.com
http://www.afstrinity.com http://www.a123systems.com/hymotion http://www.hybridconsortium.org
http://www.energycs.com
y
LOCAL Groups Supporting ELECTRIC AUTOmobiles
http://www.nicecarcompany.co.uk http://www.greenvehicles.com
http://www.zapworld.com
http://www.sourceguides.com/energy
http://www.green-car-guide.com
y
Electric MOTORCYCLES
http://www.solarmobil.net
http://www.e-max-ltd.com
http://www.topmotorx.com
http://www.patente-erfindungen.de/erfindungen_fahrraeder.htm

7. http://www.zeromotorcycles.com
http://www.sourceguides.com/energy
Electric BICYCLES
http://nycewheels.com
http://www.myebike.com
http://www.cyclone-tw.com
http://www.powacycle.co.uk
http://www.electricbikesales.co.uk
http://egovehicles.com
http://www.electricbicycle.com.au
http://www.evehicle.com.au
http://www.electric-bicycle.cn
http://www.greenspeed.us
http://www.sourceguides.com/energy
y
TAX CREDITS
http://www.dsireusa.org
HOME POWER
http://www.homepower.com
SOLAR TODAY
http://solartoday.org
y Solar Industry NEWS
http://www.seia.org
http://www.solarbuzz.com
Solar Industry MAGAZINE
http://www.solarindustrymag.com
y
y Recharge your Electric Auto with RENEWABLE ENERGY
http://www.bergey.com http://www.bwea.com http://www.vestas.com http://www.awea.com
http://solarenergy.org http://greendragonenergy.co.uk http://www.lowimpact.org
http://www.scoraigwind.com http://www.greenempowerment.org http://www.grupofenix.org
http://www.solarliving.org http://www.arthaonline.com http://www.the-mrea.org http://www.txses.org
http://www.irenew.org http://www.nmsea.org http://www.azsolarcenter.com
http://www.microhydropower.com http://www.newenergycorp.ca http://www.canyonhydro.com
http://wattsun.com http://www.lorentz.de http://www.etsolar.de
http://www.solargenix.com http://solar.sharpusa.com http://solren.com http://www.spirecorp.com
http://www.windpower.org
http://www.sourceguides.com/energy
y http://www.i2p.org
http://www.ises.org http://www.firstsolar.com
http://www.rmi.org
http://www.sourceguides.com/energy

8. y Do not bend over and allow Big Oil to molest your Family, Friends and Community
VOTE SOLAR
VOTE SOLAR
http://votesolar.org
http://www.seia.org
http://www.blackboxvoting.org
http://valparaiso.indymedia.org/news/2006/09/8723.php
DVD: Uncounted; Director: David Earnhardt
DVD: Hacking Democracy; Director: Simon Ardizzone
book: What Went Wrong In Ohio; by Congressman John Conyers
book: What Happened in Ohio; by Bob Fitrakis
y
y IS YOUR CONGRESSMAN IN BED with BIG OIL?
How much bribes (campaign contributions) did your congressman take from the sleazy OIL Companies?
CAMPAIGN FINANCE INFORMATION CENTER
Where does the money come from?
http://www.campaignfinance.org/states
CENTER FOR PUBLIC INTEGRITY
stop the Fat Cats from BRIBING your politicians
http://www.publicintegrity.org
y
y POLLUTION and RACISM, INJUSTICE
book: Confronting Environmental Racism; by Robert Bullard
book: Environmental Injustices; by David Camacho
book: Environmentalism and Economic Justice; by Laura Pulido
book: Pollution and the Death of Man; by Francis Schaeffer
book: From the Ground Up, Environmental Racism; by Luke Cole
book: Struggle for Ecological Democracy; by Daniel Faber
book: No Safe Place, Toxic Waste and Community Action; by Phil Brown
y FREE eBook on Oil Spills: Not One Drop
y http://www.scribd.com/doc/31483843/Not-One-Drop
y
y Big Oil¶s Dirty Secrets
y http://bigoil101.insanejournal.com
y
y
y