Do you de-water your WVO?

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Do you de-water your WVO?
Topic Started: Fri Apr 10, 2009 7:38 pm (160 Views)
190D 2.5	Fri Apr 10, 2009 7:38 pm Post #1
Member Posts: 1,942 Group: Members Member #231 Joined: March 30, 2006	I've had chronic running problems with my car since Christmas. The received wisdom on a veg oil forum I use is that the Bosch fuel pump has been contaminated by water because I don't de-water my veg. The running problems are equally bad running on veg and derv (I've a twin-tank set-up). I filter property (3 times) down to 5 microns and the WVO i get is good quality clear stuff. I've never had any water/oil separation after filtering. If the guys on the veg oil forum are right, then I've got a difficult decision to make (source a recon pump, if I can find one which, will be expensive to source and fit). Or get rid of the car. I've got a good German mechanic, who has been running on veg for several years and doesn't de-water himself, trying to get to the bottom of the problem. Kentronix has also been incredibly helpful. So, to the question: if you run on WVO, DO YOU DE-WATER? If not, why not? If you do, why?



nezamr	Fri Apr 10, 2009 7:51 pm Post #2
Member Posts: 798 Group: Members Member #2,484 Joined: April 4, 2008	i have never de watered personally. I have been using wvo for a year now with no real problems. What exactly is wrong with your car? Whats it doing wrong?



190D 2.5	Fri Apr 10, 2009 8:09 pm Post #3
Member Posts: 1,942 Group: Members Member #231 Joined: March 30, 2006	Briefly, bad starting (chronic); needs a jump-start down a hill to get going; very uneven running when engine is hot (83-85 celsius plus); feels like it's running on 3 cylinders instead of five (when running on diesel and veg). All the usual suspects checked (glow plugs, seals, air leaks, filters). The next step is to look at the timing and fuel spray with injectors removed. Oh, the fuel tank has also been cleaned out. The veg-set up is: Smartveg Twin Tank Plus additional Biotuning Heated Filter Plus additional Biotuning Flat Plate Heat Exchanger



nezamr	Fri Apr 10, 2009 8:26 pm Post #4
Member Posts: 798 Group: Members Member #2,484 Joined: April 4, 2008	Have you tried bypassing everything and putting a 2 litre bottle of diesel before the fuel filter and seeing if the car starts and idles smoothly?



190D 2.5	Fri Apr 10, 2009 10:58 pm Post #5
Member Posts: 1,942 Group: Members Member #231 Joined: March 30, 2006	Shortly to try...



shrekky	Fri Apr 10, 2009 11:30 pm Post #6
Member Posts: 3,912 Group: Members Member #223 Joined: March 23, 2006	adrian..................have you had a compression test ?.................if not i would advise one,you could have a burnt valve or have a sticky piston ring. using raw veggy oil does create hotspots within the cylinder ,alot more unlikely in a mercedes,but even so a possiblity,my dad found this out the hard way in his transit.............he melted a piston head :-o veggy oil does run at a higher pressure,that could cause long term problems with the pump,failed seals and gaskets,also because of its consistancy and its nature,the residue left behind could be causing your piston rings to stick (i've seen this ,although not with veggy oil but a carboned up engine)



kentronix	Sat Apr 11, 2009 1:02 am Post #7
Admin Posts: 16,342 Group: Admin Member #147 Joined: January 20, 2006	I will keep this simple as to be honest I think this is a case of 'too many cooks' Eliminate all of the obvious before you start even considering the expensive options. bypass the 'smart'veg and see what happens. Then rig up a basic 3ltr bottle as a tank and see what happens. Then you are back in normal diesel issues and the veg is taken out of the equation. Then you are back to normal fuel temps so you can use clear pvc line to diagnose if its air in the fuel line. If it isnt air then fair enough, its beyond me, but its not beyond a normal diesel mechanic. You shouldnt need to hunt down veg experts.



FredTransit	Thu Aug 20, 2009 5:07 pm Post #8
Member Posts: 298 Group: Members Member #4,354 Joined: July 3, 2009	shrekky Fri Apr 10, 2009 11:30 pm using raw veggy oil does create hotspots within the cylinder ,alot more unlikely in a mercedes,but even so a possiblity,my dad found this out the hard way in his transit.............he melted a piston head :-o Holy moly which Mk of transit was this? Does the merc not have a water trap in the fuel filter then?



kentronix	Thu Aug 20, 2009 5:14 pm Post #9
Admin Posts: 16,342 Group: Admin Member #147 Joined: January 20, 2006	It doesnt have a water trap, from what I have been reading the membrane type water traps dont actually work properly with veg anyway. Despite what ebay sellers will say. I could be proved wrong on this, its hard to find accurate info but they are designed for diesel.



EddieJT	Tue Sep 29, 2009 9:17 pm Post #10
Member Posts: 89 Group: Members Member #3,103 Joined: August 16, 2008	In answer to the topic question, I do heat my WVO in order to settle out any oil, but I never actually get any water seperating anyway, even when heated for 3 hours and kept warm for 2 days in insulated barrel. So I personally do not think heating is necessarily necessary (ooh er). But I do it anyway just to be safe though I never get water falling out. The only time I do get water falling out is water that has got in from rain, when collected oil was left outside. This however easily drops out in my initial settling drums which have not heat anyway.



kentronix	Tue Sep 29, 2009 9:20 pm Post #11
Admin Posts: 16,342 Group: Admin Member #147 Joined: January 20, 2006	ignore my question in the other thread Glad you found this one. Its a very important point and a lot of people dont seem to want to discuss the facts. Its true its better to be safe than sorry but its also nice to know exactly when you need to and when you dont



EddieJT	Tue Sep 29, 2009 9:42 pm Post #12
Member Posts: 89 Group: Members Member #3,103 Joined: August 16, 2008	kentronix Tue Sep 29, 2009 9:20 pm ignore my question in the other thread Glad you found this one. Its a very important point and a lot of people dont seem to want to discuss the facts. Its true its better to be safe than sorry but its also nice to know exactly when you need to and when you dont Too late I don't think there is a definitive answer really. It's particular oil collection dependent. My particular oil is very dry because it is nearly all kept indoors by my suppliers, so I get no water drop out even when heating. If I collected oil that had been left to the elements then maybe my heating would draw this water out. I guess to be sure, you should do a hot pan test of a sample of your finished oil and see if you have any water present.



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