Biodiesel kits

The Appleseed processor:
The Appleseed Processor costs between $399 and $539. For $539 you get all the parts to assemble the processor (pump, pipe, valves, etc.) a titration kit, a scale for weighting our your lye or potash, a wash tank kit, and a set of Processor System Manuals. All the extra materials that are required for this biodiesel kit are a hot water heater and a steel drum (which you can easily pick up for less than $200).

I HIGHLY recommend that you do not cut corners here by using a used water heater or drum. You never know what the inside of the heater is like (i.e. it could be seriously rusted) and you don't know what was stored inside a used drum. The extra money you'll spend on new materials for your biodiesel kit is well worth the piece of mind of you'll get from knowing you didn't mess up your fuel by being cheap.

The Appleseed Processor is a type of biodiesel kit popular among homebrewers because of how simple the design is. The tanks are a steel drum and a water heater, so you take advantage of the safety of steel materials and an internal heating element that was designed for the purpose you'll be using it for (heating liquids). You don't have to worry about whether or not you welded or wired anything incorrectly, because it's all done for you.

The only complaint I have with the Appleseed processor is that it uses flat-bottom tanks. However, this is the most common type of biodiesel kit for homebrewers, who have been using it for years to make high quality biodiesel. Using anything else for small-scale production is like recreating the wheel. The cost of the processor is about 1/4 the price of plastic cone-bottom tank processors and more than 1/5 the price of steel cone-bottom processors. This will allow you to recoup the cost of your biodiesel kit very quickly and you can spend the extra money on methanol and potash. If the difference in cost is as much as $4,500, imagine how much methanol and potash you could buy with that much money. You could drive for years on that savings alone.

--->Click here to check out the Appleseed Processor biodiesel kit<---

The Dynadroit Processor:
This is a professionally made biodiesel kit with steel cone-bottom tanks, an internal heating element, and a methanol recovery system. It also includes glass site tubes so you can monitor the colors and levels of your liquids. It's a beauty. If you're looking to start a co-op or sell biodiesel, you'll definitely want a system like this. It has 95% of all the bells and whistles for a biodiesel kit. This is really a beautiful machine.

There are other biodiesel kits available that are made of steel cone-bottom tanks. However, most of them are very poorly-made. Make no mistake, the Dynadroit Processor is not a shoddy homemade cone welded to a steel drum. It is custom built by a sheet metal company with 35 years in the business, and is then coated with a rust-proof epoxy.

No expense was spared on the Dynadroit Processor, and the price tag shows it. Expect to spend $4,950 for the 40 gallon processor, and an additional $1,800 to upgrade to the 100 gallon processor. If you're going to be producing lots of biodiesel and want to make the highest fuel possible, this is the biodiesel kit you need.

--->Click here to check out The Dynadroit Processor biodiesel kit<---

The Ester Machine:
The Ester Machine was built by a group of brewers just outside of Iowa City, IA. What they have made is pretty exceptional. The idea is similar to an Appleseed Processor in that it utilizes a water heater and steel drums instead of cone-bottom tanks, but the comparison pretty much stops there. The craftsmanship is superior to what most people would be able to assemble. One of the really cool things about this biodiesel kit is that it comes on a spill basin and only takes up 51 square inches.

The heated intake barrel allows a second batch of oil to heat while the first batch is being processed, which allows you to easily produce 80 gallons in 8 hours. All of the minor supplies you need for production are included (safety wear, a titration kit, catalyst, gloves, and instruction manual), which means you aren't going to rack up another $500+ bill putting together those parts. By far the best thing about the Ester Machine is that it is delivered by the makers and they spend a day showing you how to produce your own biodiesel! With any other biodiesel kit you'll have to rely on the kindness of others (mostly on the Internet) if you run into problems, but with experienced brewers at your side showing you how to make your first batch, you can't fail.

The total cost for the Ester Machine is a steep $5,900, with a $3000 upgrade that will take you from 80 gallons/day to 240. This is one of the more expensive biodiesel kits on the market, but for a serious brewer/co-op looking for large outputs, it is definitely worth that price tag.

--->Click here to check out The Ester Machine biodiesel kit<---

The many biodiesel kits that homebrewers and co-ops use vary greatly. Here is a list (though admittedly not a complete one) of some of the different options you might find.

1. Cone-bottom or flat-bottom tanks: Cone-bottom tanks are generally considered as superior to flat-bottom tanks for biodiesel kits (such as steel drums) because the biodiesel, glycerol, and wash water drain out better with a cone (obviously). Howerver, many people have had wonderful success with the Appleseed Processor, which uses a flat bottom tanks. My opinion is that if you're running a co-op or selling your biodiesel, use cone-bottom tanks, but if you're just producing it for your own use you're probably ok with flat-bottom ones like many of the other homebrewers use in their biodiesel kits.

2. Plastic or steel tanks: Plastic tank biodiesel kits are all over the internet, but this does not mean they are a good idea for homebrewers. Though many tanks are made from HDPE plastic (which is also referred to as "food-grade" plastic), they still are not really safe to use in a biodiesel kit. The biodiesel conversion process requires heat to speed up the reaction, and even HDPE tanks do not safe for hot liquids. All it takes is one faulty wire or thermostat that doesn't shut off and your precious plastic tank will be toast, leaving you with a major mess. Steel tanks are much safer. They allow you to use an internal heating source (more on that later) and to weld your your fittings to the tank rather than use some type of gasket. Furthermore, the HDPE cone-bottom tanks companies use in their biodiesel kits are not smooth like steel tanks, so you don't reap the full advantage of the cone. If you're not getting any benefit out of the cone, why not just use a flat-bottom tank?

HDPE tanks should only be used for storing cool oil or finished biodiesel. They are not recommended for hot liquids, no matter what some distributors will tell you. I will stand by that statement until somebody shows me an HDPE tank that won't melt under a cutting torch quicker than a steel tank will.

3. Internal or external heating source: The plastic tank biodiesel kits such as the Fuelmeister use a separate tank for preheating the oil. This tank is, you guessed it, a flat-bottom steel drum. For simplicity sake, they use a barrel-strap heater, which heats the oil from the outside in. This means that the steel drum and the air outside get heated before the bulk of your oil, which is ridiculously inefficient. A better solution is to use an internal heater, like a water heater heating element, which was designed for the sole purpose of heating liquids inside a steel cylinder and is therefore perfect for our biodiesel kits. Barrel strap heaters are a waste of time. You might as well put the oil on your stove and heat it that way.

4. Sodium or potassium hydroxide: Both sodium and potassium hydroxide can be dissolved in methanol to create the catalyst for your biodiesel reaction. Sodium hydroxide is probably more common for beginners, but that is mostly because it is easier to find (you can buy it as "Red Devil Lye" or drain cleaner at your local hardware store, or you can find it cheap on eBay if you're willing to deal with hazmat shipping issues or can find somebody local who is listing it).

Potassium hydroxide is more difficult to find locally, but you can buy it online from stores like Camden-Grey. Because of hazmat shipping restrictions you can only buy it to be shipped in 2 pound containers, but they can include 30 of those containers in each shipment. This will be more than enough for your first few batches of biodiesel production.

What you'll likely find is that potash is more expensive per pound than lye, but that less of it is required per batch. In the end it's pretty much a wash. Potassium hydroxide is generally considered by homebrewers to be superior than sodium hydroxide because the glycerol byproduct created when using potassium is a liquid but with sodium it is a solid. Liquid glycerol is much easier to work with in all of the ways homebrewers use it (such as in making soap or as a fertilizer).

Let me reiterate my opinion on the lye/potash debate: Using potash will make your life a whole lot easier. Order it from Camden-Grey or elsewhere, if you prefer, but use it as opposed to lye.

If you decide to collect your own parts for a biodiesel kit rather than buy an Appleseed Processor kit, you'll likely want to use eBay.com to find many of these parts. However, I discovered a little secret to saving money on these parts that I'm going to let you in on.

Ready? Are you sure? Ok, here it is: don't include the word biodiesel in your search. Many people don't think about this, but there is a higher demand for "biodiesel processor pumps" or "biodiesel pump" than there is for "1 inch water pump." People also think a biodiesel pump is an extravagant item and expect it to cost more than it really does, which allows eBay sellers to charge $70 to $100 for a "biodiesel pump" that would only sell for $19 as a "1 inch water pump."

You'll find the same thing with digital scales, thermometers, valves, lye, potash, etc. Including the word "biodiesel" is like telling the seller you're willing to spend more money. So, think about what the part really is (such as a water pump) and do a search for that instead.