Frequently Asked Questions

Q. How much will it cost me to make biodiesel - including oil and chemicals?
A. Costs are dictated generally by one thing - where you get your  cooking oil from. You have 3 options.

Option 1 - You buy NEW cooking oil from the supermarket - this is currently about 80p per litre. Finished cost of biodiesel £1.01 a litre for 'ready to use' biodiesel.

Option 2 - You collect used cooking oil yourself. By this method you can obtain your used cooking oil for free and you can de-water, filter and titrate the oil in the processor. We supply the methanol and potassium hydroxide (KOH). This will cost 21p a litre for finished 'ready to use' biodiesel.

Option 3 - We supply you used cooking oil, (de-watered, and filtered ) methanol and potassium hydroxide (KOH). This is all you need to make quality biodiesel. This will cost you 76p per litre for the finished 'ready to use' biodiesel.We will even take away your glycerine if you dont compost it or turn it into soap.

Q. Is It Legal To Make?
A. Absolutely. In fact under government legislation, the use of biodiesel as an ’alternative fuel’ is actively encouraged and in 2007 the rules were relaxed to allow personal users to make up to 2500 litres per year without declaring it to HM Revenue & Customs. The government target for the use of bio diesel in all vehicles is 5% by 2010.

Q. Will My Car Need Modifying & How Will It Affect My Warranty?
A. No modifications are required for most diesel engines. In fact if you've ever filled up at a supermarket fuel station the chances are you've probably already had bio diesel in your car as many of the UK's leading supermarket chains add at least 5% bio diesel.

Q. Can Bio Diesel Be Mixed With Regular Diesel?
A. Yes. You can mix bio diesel with conventional diesel in any blend. Because bio diesel has a higher gel point than conventional diesel, in really cold winter months a mix with conventional diesel is advisable.

Q. Can I use semi-solid fats and oils that I get from my local takeaway?
A. Yes, if you are using semi-solid or solid used cooking oil (WVO) we can supply a special large gauge filter (cost £40.00) that sits within the processor. This enables you to put all semi-solid and solid fats into the processor without  clogging the machine. The fats heat within the filter melting into the processor when liquid, leaving all large particle matter in the filter. All of the smaller particles will be removed down to 5 microns during the processing.

Q. What about dry washing, why don't you use that?
A. Dry washing is expensive when compared to water washing. Water washing is cheap and highly effective all you have to do is connect a garden hose to a fitting on the machine. Final drying and polishing the biodiesel is through a spray drying head and a 5 micron filter (replacement cost for a filter cartridge is £15.00. lasts for over a 1000 litres). We can supply dry washing if water is not available.

Q. Do I need anything else to get started?
A. All you will need to supply is water, electricity and initially used cooking oil, methanol and potassium hydroxide (KOH). These processors will get you making biodiesel in no time - We can supply methanol, potassium hydroxide (KOH) and titration chemicals (we supply a FULL FREE titration kit with every processor) We can supply used cooking oil filtered and  dewatered. (Subject to supply and demand).

Q. I've never made biodiesel before, is it dangerous?
A. Boiling an egg is dangerous if you are not careful. We provide all of our customers FREE training in house or by phone on safely making biodiesel in our processors . We will take you through all the stages of making biodiesel. We will also provide you with FREE Personal Protection Equipment, a FULL colour step-by-step easy read instruction manual and 24/7 email and telephone support.

Q. How much biodiesel does the GR50 Processors make each time?
A. The GR50 Express uses 50 litres of oil and 10 litres of methoxide. This usually results in a yield of approx 50 litres of biodiesel per batch. (depending on the quality of the used cooking oil). The GR125 processors make 125 litres per batch.

Q. I have seen a number of other processors that say they are 'complete machines' what makes yours different.
A. Quite simply the other 'complete' processors are NOT. Ask them how do they clean and de-water the used cooking oil. How do they wash and polish the processed biodiesel. What type of filtering do they use, ours passes the biodiesel through a 5 micron filter for up to 2 hours at over 40 litres a minute. How do they test their process at each stage to make sure its going as planned. (ours does). How do they test the finished biodiesel. Can they see the process taking place through an observation window. Our processors will do all of this and give you biodiesel fit for your vehicle-Guaranteed.

Useful Sites to visit:

Biofuels for Sustainable Transport
documents the UK Government's changing attitude towards Biofuels, and contrasts it with other countries.

Dieselveg Ltd
car conversions and kits to run on vegetable oil.

Low-Impact Living Initiative
(LILI) is a non-profit making organisation dedicated to helping protect the global environment. They also run courses on how to make Biodiesel.

The British Association for Bio Fuels & Oils
an organisation dedicated to the promotion of transport fuels and oils from renewable sources.

The Renewable Energy Association
represents British renewable energy producers and promotes the use of sustainable energy in the UK. It is a major lobbying force.