Biodiesel drives ‘tinkerer’ ahead

LACLEDE — Del Brandon figures it costs him less than a penny a mile to drive his 1984 Volkswagen pickup.

About a year ago, the self-described 74-year-old tinkerer, retired heating contractor, bladder cancer survivor and Korean War veteran paid $1,500 for the vehicle with 212,000 miles on it.

He bought the pickup for one reason: He wanted to try making biodiesel to power the rig.

“If you have an inquisitive mind, you have to try it,” Brandon said.
After researching the process on the Internet, the frugal Brandon found dieselsecret.com – a Website that explains using biodiesel is a simpler process than people think. It does not require purchasing an expensive conversion kit for the fuel.

Brandon did not want to spend $1,000 on a conversion kit like his Spokane Veterans Administration doctor did, he said.

Instead, for $12 he bought a bottle of Dieselsecret, spent another $12 for shipping and $200 for filters and pumps to build his own garage mixing station.

The biodiesel takes five ingredients – 1 ounce Dieselsecret, 4 ounces diesel fuel supplement, 5 gallons vegetable oil, 1 quart gasoline, and a half-gallon kerosene. Brandon mixes them together, then runs them through a pump, a plain kitchen filter, a second pump, a charcoal filter and then a water block filter that removes any water from the mixture. After that, he simply fills the fuel tank.

Bonner County Daily Bee