Because of a lack of funds to finance this project it has taken off at a slow start, but with the help of the Government's Economic Stimulus Package, I will now be able to purchase some initial components for my Biofuel Test bed.

I plan on using part of my Economic Stimulus Payment to purchase:

"Auxiliary Fuel tank and Toolbox Combo — 91 Gallon, All Diamond, Model# 71785"

from Nothern Tool and a

POLLAK® ELECTRIC FUEL TANK SELECTOR VALVES

from JC Whitney.

I am also sourcing an in-bed or under-bed pump/filter combo that I can put between the tank and the selector switch and I would like to connect the pump/filter to the selector valve with heated fuel line, but my budget may not allow that yet, so I may have to settle for standard metal fuel line.

I have have never purchased anything from Northern Tool before and it has been many years since I have used JC Whitney, so I will document my buying experience.

I am more technical than mechanical, so I plan on having my neighborhood mechanic install the components.

Diesel prices are still raising around here and the cheapest I can find in town is $4.36/gal.

More to come soon!

The Plan

My plan is to initially convert my truck to run Straight or Waste Vegetable Oil (SVO/WVO) and chart performance and fuel Economy between the fuels. I will be using a seperate tank for the SVO/WVO fed through a dash controlled switch. Using this conversion method, I will first start my truck on diesel from the main tank, then turn turn on the electric inline heater to pre-heat the SVO/WVO then once the engine is warmed up, flip the switch to run SVO/WVO. Then before shutting the engine off I will switch back to diesel for about 5-minutes to load the fuel lines with diesel for easy starting.

Initial Design

My initial design comprises of the following components:

• Bed mounted external Fuel Tank
• Fuel Filter/Electric Heater
• Electric Fuel Pump
• Coolent Heated Fuel Line
• Electric Fuel Selector Switch

Component Details

Fuel Tank:

I have found Fuel Tanks listed from $400 to $1600 dollars. I have choosen to start with a 91 gal Aux Tank/Toolbox combo which is available for $699 .

Fuel Filter/Electric Heater:

After a lot of research, I have choosen to go with the Racor 1000FG Turbine series Fuel Filter/water extractor/Fuel Heater

Electric Fuel Pump

I really like the looks of the FASS HPFP Vegetable Oil Pump.

Coolent heated fuel line:

I really like the looks of the Golden Fuel System's exclusive Triple Bypass Hose. Two 1/2" coolant hoses and a 3/8" Parker Push lock fuel hose bundled together in a rubberized PVC sheath. This is fuel line with has coolent connections so the coolent in the truck will additionallt preheat the SVO.WVO even further

Electric Fuel Selector switch:

The best priced Fuel selector switch seems to be the POLLAK® ELECTRIC FUEL TANK SELECTOR VALVES which were in the $80 range for a 6-port with free shipping