Bio Diesel?

[marlinspiker]

I know some treebuzzers are using bio-diesel. The house of Limbwalker specifically. We have used b-5 to b 20 off and on over the course of the last year. Im currently setting up a tank system at our new facility to use at least B-20. So whose using what? Does anyone make their own? How do you get around warranty issues?

 

[KyLimbwalker]

Marlinspiker- We researched each of our engines and are limited by that engine with the weakest blend that is still warrantied; specifically the Ford diesel. We have 2008-2010 Ford engines which are warrantied only up to 5% biodiesel. Therefore, at this time, we can only run a 5% blend, even though our Perkins', Cummins, Detroits', and Internationals' are warrantied to 20%.

I believe the 2011 Ford Diesels are warrantied up to 20% biodiesel- we just have to wait until we phase out our newer trucks to up increase the blend.

 

[NewMainer]

I have a 2010 Mitsu Fuso, but I'm using bio-diesel anyway. The issue is that here the only place that sells it has only B-100, so I splash-mix it so it's not more than B-20 or so in the summer(although at the end of a tank it smells more and more veggyish). The research I did tells me that warranty issues should not be effected if there is bio diesel in there, and if they are, they should be limited to the fuel system. Also, many stations(Irving in particular) have a B2-5 bio-diesel anyway, so if you fill up with that before taking it in to the shop, well, I had no idea!

 

[H4stir]

With the b5 Bio-diesel you should be Ok but you may see a slight loss of power and an increase in fuel consumption. With the B20 there is a much greater loss and increase in consumption. Biodiesel acts as system cleaner also, older vehicles that have not run the mix will have some fuel filter issues, if you go this route with an older truck, have a couple of spare filters behind the seat until the system cleans itself out. I tried a couple of tanks a few years back in my Dodge turbo diesel and found out the hard way to bring extra filters.
Here's a link for more information regarding alternate fuels in your diesel vehicles. http://www.dieseltruckresource.com/dev/fuels-biodiesel-diesel-prices-f110.html
The forum deals with the CTD but should be applicable for all or most diesel engines.

 

[Babberney]

If your vehicle warranty says "only up to x% BD" they still can't void your warranty just because they find a higher percentage of BD in your tank. They must demonstrate that the fuel caused the problem. That's not to say they won't fight tooth and nail to avoid it, but it is true. If you are denied warranty coverage because of BD, demand to see the results of the fuel test that demonstrated BD caused the problem and call a lawyer if they resist. Once when I had my chipper in (because it had a clogged fuel filter, it turns out, but the machine was pretty new and I figured I may as well use the warranty) they blamed the fuel. I knew better and told them so. They persisted. Eventually I said, OK, test the fuel. Suddenly they were ready to try a new FF first (which I told them was the likely problem when I dropped it off). Then they charged me about 3-4 hours labor for the job. I pointed out to mgr that the FF is on the outside of the machine and can be changed in about 5 minutes. He talked to mechanic and reduced the labor by 2 hours because it turns out they were charging me for his time on the internet researching BD. I still paid too much for the FF, but it seemed a reasonable compromise.

Worth noting that the same is true of #2 petrol--if you have bad fuel and it causes a problem, the dealer will not cover the repair.

I use commercially produced fuel (when I can get it--local supplier is going through problems now). I may homebrew eventually, but now I need a better place to work on it before setting up all the equipment.