Waste Vegetable Oil

I have a friend that runs his diesel Transit off corn oil. Corn oil is, of course, far cheaper than diesel in Europe. That set me thinking a while ago about running my bus off vegetable oil. Diesel however has become a lot cheaper since then.

Interestingly, today I was reading about somebody's experience of using waste vegetable oil. They had filtered it and run their vehicle for about 20,000 miles on it. They had apparently been told that their savings in fuel would be offset by costs in repairs. Now I don't know how well they filtered their waste oil but I would be very cautious with waste oil. Waste oil has many uses but running a vehicle on it seems pretty hit or miss.

The upshot was that their valves were thoroughly caked in carbon. Interestingly, the inside of their cylinders were heavily scored and their turbo charger was burned out. Their advice was just not to use waste vegetable oil. That rather echoes what a diesel mechanic told me. He said that diesel is readily available at good prices so why fiddle about. I have to say that I agree.

The final coat of paint has now been applied. It looks pretty darned good in my opinion. All that's needed is for the space to be used. The bedroom floor needs a good sweeping but it's almost ready for use, whenever it might get used.

Today I had a bit of a tidying session inside the bus. I didn't do vast amounts. To be honest I'm a little depressed by the large excess of stuff that I just haven't used. I spent quite a bit on electronic junk that just isn't going to get used as well as a lot on fasteners. I really need to put it all tidily into a shed because I'm sure I'm going to find I need some.

Looking at the back of the bus, where I'd thought of putting a waste barrel, there's a problem. The exhaust system is close enough to melt the plastic. That would be a disaster! I do, however, have an idea for putting batteries at the back, between chassis members. My basic thought is to add weight, improving braking.

Finally, I put black paint on both sides of my security bars. Those will be installed some time. I'm not sure quite when though but probably this month. That was pretty easy.

Things remaining to be done on the bus are getting fewer and fewer. This can be split into things I need to do, things I want to do and things I might do.

Needing to be done.
Fixing the passenger side windscreen wiper
Fixing the reversing horn
Fixing the underbody wiring
Fixing the short in the ABS system

Things I want to do
Sealing more roof seams with silicone, just in case of leaks.
Putting in my main breaker box.

Things I might do
Tidy the paintwork in the bedroom
Replace some storage containers

Once the inside is cleaned and tidy, it'll be easier to see what needs work and what doesn't. I know my solar fan setup might need some work. Having said that, it has been working. Really, all it needs is fir the battery to be installed somewhere other than on top of a paint tin at the back of the bus.