My trip to Cherryville (to install my WVO system)

[SpyderCS]

Front view of van

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So here is my van! Just after a fun night of veg oil offroading in the logging roads of Cherryville!!

Switches

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Here are the two switches. The top one is the main controller and the bottom one is just a kill switch for the svo heater.

The engine complartment

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This is the main part of the installation. The wiring had me confused for a while, but now everything works great. But there is no buzzer and the heater will run with the van turned off. The buzzer will be easy enough, I just have to find the accessory wire for the one side.
I was really suprised at this install. I was expecting lots of problems with airlocks or other fuel line things. However when we did the test run, the van started immediately on diesel and kept running once switched to SVO even though the heater was switched off because I had the kill switch backwards.
There was one small problem at first, we revved the engine on SVO and it stalled a few times, but we thought it was partly an airlock that we worked through and a hose started pinching off (which may have happened from some vacuum pressure on the inside of the line).

SVO tank box

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To keep everything simple I just built a plywood box to house the plastic tank and vormax filter which is too big to tuck anywhere in the vans engine compartment. Then I drilled holes in the floor to run lines to the front. And then promptly spilled oil all over while hooking up lines to the filled filter and then again while filling the tank.

SVO tank box top view

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Top view.

SVO tank hose connection

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Here is the connection to the tank. Just some items I found in the local hardware store. My friend who helped me had a great idea as well, there was a screen that came with the transfer pump/filter wand combo that wasn't being used because the filter wand took its place, so with a small bit of hose and another 40 cent adapter from the hardware store we added the screen to the inside of the tank connection, which is threaded on both sides. Just another thing to help stop crud build up in the filter, and it may prevent the "glob of grease" scenario depicted in the instructions from plantdrive.

Vormax Filter

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Here is the Vormax filter, I have not yet hooked up the heat to it as the installation took longer than I expected. I did drill the holes so I will just have to cut some lines and add it before labor day (as suggested by plantdrive when I emailed and asked if I would be okay for summer with no heat to the filter). I think that I will use the coolant lines running to the rear heater. Has anybody done this at all?

Anyways, the installation was very exciting right at the end when we were finally running on the blood of innocent plants and tearing through logging roads. I have to bolt my plywood box down. I forgot to do that!

[BCDelica]

the installation took longer than I expected.

If you run fine to Labour day without a heated filter, and no aux WVO pushing pump, your system is perfectly tight.

Congrats on a cherry of an install! Hey, the plywood box could be a great protector; line with a membrane or glass the inside (even just tape the seams and paint the rest with resin) - boom you have a back up, safety reservoir! Would keep the inside of your van clean.

Cheers,
Kevin

[AndrewH]

the installation took longer than I expected.

If you run fine to Labour day without a heated filter, and no aux WVO pushing pump, your system is perfectly tight.

Congrats on a cherry of an install! Hey, the plywood box could be a great protector; line with a membrane or glass the inside (even just tape the seams and paint the rest with resin) - boom you have a back up, safety reservoir! Would keep the inside of your van clean.

Cheers,
Kevin

nice install,
with only one master switch how do you purge the system without sending the WVO in the lines into the diesel tank?

[SpyderCS]

nice install,
with only one master switch how do you purge the system without sending the WVO in the lines into the diesel tank?

I just let WVO go to the diesel tank. I ran 20% WVO in my diesel on the way up to Cherryville so I am not really too worried about the small amount in the lines going into the diesel tank.

In tank screen

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Here is a picture of the screen in the tank. I did take it close to the limit running this low, but if I get an airlock it's no big deal.

[AndrewH]

I ran 20% WVO in my diesel on the way up to Cherryville so I am not really too worried about the small amount in the lines going into the diesel tank.

might be a different story come winter time...

see if you can figure out a way to purge in a looped system to keep the diesel, which cleans out the injectors and pump, very clean

[SpyderCS]

Well perhaps I won't be running 20% in my diesel in the winter, but I honestly can't see the small amount in the fuel lines at purge time being an issue.

[AndrewH]

Well perhaps I won't be running 20% in my diesel in the winter, but I honestly can't see the small amount in the fuel lines at purge time being an issue.

the concentration of WVO in your diesel tank will increase every time you purge until it is darn near 100%. On top of that in the winter the WVO and diesel will separate in your tank and the oil will be at the bottom so on start-up you will be drawing from the oil layer...

[Adam]

the concentration of WVO in your diesel tank will increase every time you purge until it is darn near 100%. On top of that in the winter the WVO and diesel will separate in your tank and the oil will be at the bottom so on start-up you will be drawing from the oil layer...

Hmm, not sure how that works. The concentration of WVO in your diesel tank will continue to increase as you use diesel, but I never have a problem cold starting on diesel until I'm 50-60 litres low on diesel. At this point I could see the mix being 50/50 as the van will still cold start, but the solution (all be it a painful one) is to fill up with 100% diesel. Then that 7.5 litres of WVO in your system is has gone from 50% to 10%.

[after oil]

great install! congrats

I think that I will use the coolant lines running to the rear heater. Has anybody done this at all?

this begs the question: does coolant run to the rear heaters when they are not turned on?

[delicat]

Check out PlantDrive blogs on their Delica install. I'm pretty sure they connected their lines to the rear heater. You can always crawl under and touch the lines for the rear heater when your van is at operating temperature, that would confirm my guess that coolant is always routed there.

David

[SpyderCS]

the concentration of WVO in your diesel tank will increase every time you purge until it is darn near 100%. On top of that in the winter the WVO and diesel will separate in your tank and the oil will be at the bottom so on start-up you will be drawing from the oil layer...

Okay. I checked this out. I have a foot of hose, less actually, at the fuel line from the pollak valve and returning to the valve. Even if all of this hose full of fuel went back to the tank on every purge (which it doesn't, much of it is burned up) then that would be roughly 22 cubic centimeters of fuel every time. So I would have to purge the WVO from my lines 45 times to make a liter. If I start my car twice a day to go to work and back home then at 22 work days I would have a liter, which is still not a problem and is actually less than a liter. So say I go a whole month without adding any diesel I will be diluting a well mixed liter, and on top of that you say that the oil will be at the bottom? So most of the oil will be sucked up sooner than later?

I have to say that I flat out disagree that there will be any problems and Adam has first hand experience with this and his system is running okay. I'll just keep my diesel topped up above half a tank and I'll be okay.

You can always crawl under and touch the lines for the rear heater when your van is at operating temperature, that would confirm my guess that coolant is always routed there.

Done, Heater was off and the lines are hot.