The Rabid Biodiesel Nut

Customer Pictures & Stories...

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 02:40:00 +0000

We here at Utah Biodiesel Supply think we have some of the greatest customers around.

Over the last year, we've heard several great success stories from several of our customers & figured we'd share a few with you.

Thornridge High School Dolton, Illinois

This group of students worked with an instructor, Brian Sievers, after school to create a really cool Biodiesel project. They decided they wanted to do something that would allow them to learn about science, be able to serve the community, and make a difference.

So, it was decided they'd build a Biodiesel processor, make fuel out of the schools cooking oil (and from oil gathered elsewhere as well) and go from there.

Once the processor was up & operational, they decided to experiment with different washing techniques, water vs. dry washing, and went on to test some great dry washing methodologies using Thermax, Purolite, and a few others.

Once they got the Biodiesel mastered, they turned their attention to serving the community by visiting local schools and teaching them about Biodiesel as well.

Then they decided to play a little with Solar to see if they could power part of their reactor with solar panels.

They started doing so well that the local media started picking up on their success..

From there, they decided to try and compete in a really prestigious contest called the Lexus Eco-Challenge; sponsored by Lexus. Top winners could win up to $50,000 plus scholarship money for each of the students involved.

Well, soon they had put together an incredible project, expanded their educational outreach efforts, started powering the schools mowers & tractors with Biodiesel, and even did some cool emissions research on Biodiesel in an old Mercedes. What's that saying about "if you set your mind to it...."? It applied in full force in this situation.

No sooner had the students put their minds to it and gone full force on the project that they then found themselves competing against a few other great schools. They stepped it up a notch and lo and behold....they won! These guy's won the Lexus Eco Prize! $50,000!!!

Check it out!
Winners of the Eco Prize

We've always been a big supporter of education and Biodiesel and were thrilled to see how well Thornridge did!

Want to check out all the great pictures and details about how this great project? During the project, they sent us several pictures that we posted up on our Biodiesel Pictures site.

Click here to see all the great pictures!

We've Caught The Soap Bug!

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 06:45:00 +0000

For those of you that have been in Biodiesel for a while, you know that you can use the glycerin by product to product soap with that can be used for all sorts of different things.

When we first got into Biodiesel, we toyed with the idea and even made some pretty cool soap bars with the Glycerin. But didn't do much else.

A few years later we were contacted by a Biodiesel glycerin soap maker associated with Piedmont Biofuels out of Pittsboro, North Carolina and started carrying a line of soap produced by them.

Over the next couple years we increased our selection of soap offerings

And at Christmas time we even carried a special line of Frankincense & Myrrh bars for the last couple years.

And even carried a guide on how to make the stuff, but not until fairly recently did we really catch the soap making bug. We were paid a visit by someone out of Nevada who introduced us to the idea of selling the soap in boutiques and farmers markets. Combined with the fact that we had been working with a new vendor out of Michigan (the Knice-N-Clean Soap Company) to develop a soap making kit to introduce people to making soap.

Well, we got a hold of one of the kits and made some soap for ourselves and were absolutely thrilled with the result! For the longest time I've never really been a fan of Biodiesel glycerin soap because the bars have always been sort of soft & spongy and the color hasn't been all that great either.

But with the introduction of this new kit and some new methods shared with us, it was now possible to make soap from Biodiesel glycerin that was harder than ever before, could be colored pretty much any color we could think of, and performed extremely well!

Well, we were hooked! We instantly jumped on the band-wagon full bore and have been crazy about the stuff ever since. We've been showering with all sorts of different soap bars people have been sending in and enjoying every minute of it.

To that extent, we've featured it in our newsletters and started doing YouTube video's on some of the exciting soaps we've been sent.

Here's the first review we threw together:

And the second one came shortly after that...

We've also featured several peoples soaps in our Biodiesel Pictures soap section website:
Click Here To See All The Great Pictures!

If you'd like to get in on the fun, we offer a really cool soap making book that comes to us from the Knice N Clean Soap Company.

You can also get started making your own soap with our ultra cool soap making kit.

Watch for more soap related products, services, and updates on all the fun we're having in the near future!

Happy Soaping!
-Graydon

Visit From Drive To Sustain

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 09:23:00 +0000

Quite often we have some incredible visitors stop by on their way through Utah doing amazing things with Biodiesel and Biofuels in general.

On the 3rd of December we had one such visit from a group called Drive To Sustain.

This group is amazing! Traveling all across the United States and into Canada, this groups goal is to hit every state in the US and every province in Canada.

As they travel, they're hooking up with educators to teach students all about the benefits of using Biofuels. They track all the cool places they've been via GPS on their website and have been keeping an updated log all along the way.

Their rig is a Mistubishi van with a diesel engine in it. They imported it into Canada, built it up to run on either Biodiesel or straight vegetable oil, picked up a bunch of sponsors along the way, and headed off on the trip!

Check out the internals of this rig!

In the rear is a large fuel tank that stores filtered veggie oil. The van pulls it's fuel right from this tank as it flies on down the highway.

Tagging along behind is a trailer that has an on-board filtering setup. They can pull up to an oil stop, filter the oil right on site, and be back up & running in no time flat!

Inside the van they've got all the creature comforts you might need for traveling long distances.

Traveling down the highway they're a site to behold! Proclaiming the mission of Biofuels every mile along the way!

Under the left seat (which happens to be the passenger side) sits the small but efficient diesel engine.

They said that it's been a great engine overall but they have had to do some repairs here & there (including a full top end rebuild when the timing belt went out last year).

The challenges of driving cross country with the potential of engine problems though haven't phased them a bit! When they stopped at our place they were headed into Salt Lake to teach a group of students the next day all about Biofuels.

Want to learn more? Stop by their website and check out all the fun they're having!
Click here to check it out!

Freeway To Fuel -- One Cool Project!

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 07:34:00 +0000

In Sept. 2009, we had the chance to visit a really cool project called Freeway To Fuel. Dallas Hanks, whose been working on a project with Utah State University, the Utah Department of Transportation, and a few other groups let out come out & watch as they harvested a crop of Canola plants.

Canola Plants Ready To Be Harvested

The project he's been working on involves doing something no one has really ever thought of before; planting oil seed crops along the freeway on state owned land to be used in the production of Biodiesel to power the states tractors that mow all that land in the first place.

You see, the land (and there's a LOT of it) usually just has wild grass growing on it to keep it from eroding. The State of Utah shells out a lot of cash to pay for the fuel to mow down all that grass every year. Wouldn't it be great if the land could be put to a better use?

So with that theory in mind, Dallas has been working over the past few years to see if he can get Canola to grow along a test strip of freeway in Kaysville, Utah.

As part of the project, they also decided to create a test plot to mimic the freeway soil on a plot of land that Utah State University owns.

They prepared the plot just like they would if they were laying a freeway down. Same compaction, same road bed, same soil...everything!

Then, on top of the land they planted a crop of Canola.

They created several planting areas using several different techniques. One they simply scratched the ground a bit & threw down the seed. On another they plowed the ground and stuck the seeds in the furrows. On other plots they fertilized and on another they fertilized and stuck a bit of water on it. All in the name of seeing what might work.

On the day we visited, they were harvesting a few of their test plots to see just how well they turned out.

They had this really cool, small harvesting machine that was basically a miniature version of what you might see on a large farm.

With the tractor all fired up, they went about harvesting the Canola crop...

As the machine gets near the Canola plant, it shears off the plant and a conveyor belt sucks the top up into a big shaker.

Once in the shaker the seeds are literally vibrated out of the pods and end up in a container on the side.

It was all pretty cool to watch!

The seeds are then analyzed to see how well they turned out, then pressed for the oil content and then made into Biodiesel. They even had a tractor similar to what the state uses to mow the freeways with to test out their fuel in!

It's still early in the project to know how the research will turn out, but the possibility of something like this is definitely exciting to learn about!

The project would require fairly little in terms of funding to get it going and the plan is that it would be self-sufficient based on the money saved on Biodiesel that they burn in the tractors versus buying diesel for them.

We think it's a great idea and will post more as we hear the results. For now, it's just exciting to see projects like this even being considered. Whats even cooler is that this ground breaking research is being done in Utah, which is primarily a desert. Think of how well something like this might work in states that receive more annual rainfall!

Great stuff! We wish them well and hope that the research is able to show the project to be a viable use for all that land we've got out here....

New Products - Dec. 2009

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 23:43:00 +0000

Here's a few of our new products we've added since our last update.

Biodiesel Oxidative Stabilizer

This stabilizer helps Biodiesel against oxidation and can help extend it's shelf-life. It's also been shown to help improve the oxidative stability of Biodiesel made from waste vegetable oil which can be helpful when trying to pass the ASTM spec for oxidative stability.

More on that here:
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/oxidativestabilizer.php

Waste Oil Fired Boiler

We've teamed up with Murphys Machines to bring you an incredible set of plans to make an outdoor oil fired boiler. The boiler can be run continuously and has the ability to be designed to automatically start and stop on it's own.

As with all Murphy's Machines products & plans, the amount of detail shown is incredible! Learn more about this great new boiler here:
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/wasteoilboilerplans.php

Raw Power Monster Pump

This monstrosity can suck up oil like crazy! Designed with a massive gear driven
pump head and a heavy duty 1 hp electric motor, it hauls!

Check out the video of this thing in action!

It also will transfer cold oil without any problems as well.

You can learn more about this great monstrosity here:
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/monsterpump.php

Extreme Raw Power Centrifuge

We've teamed up with WVO Designs to bring you a very unique centrifuge. It's powered by a heavy duty motor capable of spinning up to 6,000 RPM to clean oil like no other!

Made from cast aluminum and with a machined aluminum bowl, it'll clean oil up extremely fast! Clear down to 1 micron without breaking a sweat!

Check out all the great details on this new product here:
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/centrifugewvo.php

New Soap Making Book

Got Glycerin? Make Soap!

If you've got gobs & gobs of glycerin laying around and you're up for some fun, you really ought to check into turning all of that goo into soap!

It's a fairly simple process that can yield some great results!

We have a great book by Rick Knicely, from the Knice N Clean Soap Company, that can help you learn how to make extremely high quality soap that rivals commercial soaps in nearly every way!

From making bar soap that's just as hard as the store bought stuff to coloring liquid soap to practically any color under the sun; it's all discussed.

Learn more about this exciting new book here:
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/soapmakingbook.php

Be sure to check out all the great soap people are making and sharing with us!
http://biodieselpictures.com/viewforum.php?f=59

New Soap Making Kit

Want to make soap but not quite ready to do it from your own glycerin? Or, just want to try your hand at soap making but not ready to dive all the way in?

Then be sure to check out our exciting soap making kit! Produced by the Knice N Clean Soap Company, it comes with everything you'll need to get started making some great soap bars!

With simple to use instructions and even online video's, you're sure to end up with some nice, high quality soap bars that you'll be able to share with those around you!

To learn more, follow the link below:
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/soapmakingkits.php

Learn To Make Biodiesel From A Pro!

Lyle Rudensey of BioLyle's Biodiesel Workshop, has recently released an incredible new DVD set that walks you through the basics of making Biodiesel!

In this 2 DVD set, Lyle covers everything from collecting the oil to details on how to set up a coop and keep it organized and running like a well oiled machine! You'll have a chance to learn how to do titrations, make mini batches, see methanol recovery in action and much, much more!

It's been incredibly popular among those that have seen it and it's making it's way across the world!

Learn more today!
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/biodieseldvd.php

Spring Pro T76 Dry Wash Towers

Earlier this year, Springboard Biodiesel released an incredibly robust dry washing system that was designed with ease of use in mind. With easy to use swiveling columns, stainless steel fittings throughout, and the ability to connect the towers to practically any Biodiesel processor, you can be up & dry washing your fuel in no time!

Got a BioPro? It's sized perfectly for it!

The SpringPro T76 was designed to perfectly fit the BioPro line of processors. With the optional premium package installed you can easily be up & running within a matter of minutes. Just connect the fittings, open the valves, and flip the switch and you're on your way!

Learn more about the SpringPro T76 here:
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/springprot76.php

Introducing The SpringFlow 250

Tired of gelled fuel? Want to drive in the winter? Then a SpringFlow 250 might be right up your alley!

Made from 304 Stainless Steel, this Tube & Shell Heat Exchanger from Springboard Biodiesel is awesome! With it's small, compact size, it can be installed under the hood, hooked up to the coolant and the fuel lines, and your set!

Learn more here:
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/springflow250.php

Drum Funnel / Bucket Strainer

This is a really cool bucket strainer. It comes with a 5 gallon bucket with a 400 mesh metal screen installed at the bottom and a heavy duty drum funnel with a fitting on the bottom that can screw right into a barrel.

Made from recycled materials, these are great to have around the shop!

Click below to learn more:
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/drumfunnel.php

Bag Filters

We've been kicking around the idea of offering bag filters for quite some time and finally bit the bullet & went for it.

They've been incredibly popular as they're very inexpensive, easy to use, and come in a wide assortment of sizes. Everything from 1 micron on up to 400 micron. They come in two sizes, 7"x16" or 7"x32" and come with a handy carrying handle attached to the top.

Click the link below for more information:
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/bagfilters.php

BioPro Incosep Separator

Got a BioPro? Want it to go faster? Then check out the INCOSEP Separators!

Available in two varieties, this powerful new technology allows a BioPro to cut the time it takes to make Biodiesel nearly in half! It works by separating the glycerin and wash water with extreme speed allowing you to process batches of Biodiesel in record time.

The INCOSEP is available for both the BioPro 190 and the BioPro 380 and can easily be installed. Be sure to check out the great video of it in action.

Learn more here...
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/bioproincosep.php

Ultimate & Deluxe Methanol Test Kits

We've had requests for a higher quality methanol test kit so we're pleased to announce the introduction of two new Methanol Test Kits.

The Deluxe Kit

In our deluxe kit, we offer a glass methanol testing cylinder made from lab grade glass that's easy to see through. We added a more accurate thermometer to it to allow for even finer measurements. Combined together, it makes one heck of a great kit.

The Ultimate Kit

In our Ultimate Kit, we added to our deluxe kit by adding a heavy duty marble base with a solid rod and clamp, kept the same great methanol testing cylinder and blue armored thermometer and combined it all together to create a great testing kit!

The base & stand can even be used for other experiments as well such as titrating, soap testing. or other chemical testing.

Learn more here:
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/methanoltestkit.php

Whirlybird Centrifuge

If you've ever wanted to have a lab-grade centrifuge for testing small samples but haven't wanted to shell out all of your hard earned cash, take a look at our Whirlybird Centrifuge!

For under $70 bucks, the Whirlybird Centrifuge can separate small samples in quick fashion using only the hand crank! It can spin up to 3,000 RPM's and works extremely well. We were extremely impressed with how well it operated and how easy it was to set up.

Check it out today!
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/centrifuge.php

Glass & Poly Pipettes

Need an accurate measuring tool for titrating or soap testing? Then be sure to check out these great glass & poly pipettes!

With sizes from 25 mL clear down to 1 mL pipettes, they can give you the accuracy you crave! We find them to be extremely easy to use, easy to clean, and very affordable! You'll be amazed with how accurately you can measure out liquids.

Learn more here:
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/pipettes.php

Scale Calibrator

Got a small scale? Been a while since you calibrated it? Then check out our 100 gram calibration weight! With it's exact 100 grams, it's perfect for use in calibrating small scales. It works perfectly with our Jennings Scales and any other small scale that requires an exact 100 gram weight.

See it here:
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/biodieselscales.php#scalecalibrator

Dry Wash Pump

Got a dry wash column but need a more accurate pump? Then have we got a pump for you!

Arbor Biofuels, one of our great dry washing vendors, has sourced this awesome little gem! It allows you to pump up to 10 gallons per hour with extreme precision through dry wash columns and has a built in pressure regulator that won't let pressure exceed 30 PSI.

With it's compact size, great pumping characteristics, and the fact that it's a diaphragm pump, you'll be able to pump through standard 6" dry wash columns with extreme precision!

Learn more here:
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/drywashpumps.php

Stainless Steel 80 Mesh / 177 Micron Screen

Building your own Dry Wash towers? Need chemical resistant filtering screen? Just want something that's durable? Then check out our stainless steel mesh!

These great screens are perfect for building dry wash columns with and come in 12" x 12" squares or can be custom ordered as well. They're made from high quality 304 Stainless Steel and are completely chemically resistant.

Read more about this great new product here:
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/stainlessmesh.php

Books, Books, and More Books!

We've recently updated our Biodiesel related books page with several more informative titles to allow you to learn even more about Biodiesel, soap making, and even some great info on "going green!"

Titles were hand picked by Graydon Blair for their content and information. Stop by and pick one up today! We especially like the Biodiesel Economy title by Greg Pahl as it covers the history of Rudolph Diesel, the diesel engine, and the whole Biodiesel movement.

See all the great titles here:
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/books.php

Glass Beakers & Erlenmeyer Flasks

We've teamed up with Nebraska BioPro to start rounding out our lab equipment offerings. One request we often received was to carry glass labware. Well, we listened and now have beakers and Erlenmeyer flasks available in lab grade glass!

Stop by and check out our great selection!
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/beakersglass.php#glassflasks

Multi-Pack Syringes

If you're looking for the ultimate in syringe packs, look no further than our great selection of different sized syringes!

We now stock sets of 12 mL, 30 mL, 5 mL, 1 mL, and disposable pipettes in various quantities and varieties.

Learn more here!
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/syringes.php

And, that about wraps it up for our new products. Yep! We've been busy and we have even more coming soon! Stop by our site on a regular basis to see all the cool & exciting new things we have available!

Thanks for visiting!
Graydon Blair
Utah Biodiesel Supply
http://www.utahbio.com

Biodiesel Science Fair using kerosene lamps

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 05:14:00 +0000

A couple years ago we had a student from back east do a science fair on the burning properties of Biodiesel that won first place.

A student in California recently did something similar with great results.

Matt Leis tested which fuel would burn the longest in an oil lamp.
Lamp Oil, Biodiesel, or Olive Oil.

The Biodiesel & Lamp Oil were really close.

Here's some pictures from the project he did.

Pictures of the completed project

Materials Used:

Measuring out the methanol

Bag of Potassium Hydroxide that we sell

Measuring out the catalyst

Dissolving it in methanol

Heating up the oil

Mixing in the methoxide

Settling out the Bio

Biodiesel next to the oil

Settled Biodiesel with oil

One question we get all the time on projects like these is where they get the lamps. Matt found his at Walmart. He purchased normal Kerosene lamps and purchased extra wicks which were also available from Walmart.

Congrats Matt! Looks like a great project!

Biodiesel Science Fair Project Gets Blue Ribbon

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 04:07:00 +0000

We'd like to congratulate Zerina Ocanovic from Utah for winning her school science fair project that was based on Biodiesel.

We spent some time with Zerina as she was preparing for the project and were excited to see how well she understood Biodiesel and the excitement she put forth in her project.

It not only won 1st place at the school level, but then went on to win first place at the district level too. It's now headed on to the regional level and we wish her luck!

Great job Zerina!

New Products...Quik N Dri, Mag Stirrers, Dry Wash Towers, Soap Test Kits & More (Plus Videos!)

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 19:42:00 +0000

We've been really busy over the winter looking for new & exciting products to add to our line up.

Here's some of the cool new things we have listed. Watch for even more coming soon!

Biodiesel Starter Kits
We've received several requests for a kit that people can use to introduce themselves to Biodiesel with. Whether it be for personal learning, a science fair project, a demonstration, educational kits, or some other reason, the requests come in all the time.

We've now put together 3 really cool kits that address this need and will be adding to them as we get feedback on them.

The Basic Starter Kit

Link To Kit

This kit is our basic starter kit. It's extremely easy to use.
Just heat the oil in the microwave, mix the catalyst into the methanol, shake until dissolved, then add to the heated oil & shake the crap out of it.

Then just let it settle. Within about an hour you'll see the separation occurring and within 24 hours it's ready to remove the glycerin.

The Deluxe Starter Kit

Link To Kit

This kit adds to the Basic Kit. We've added Phenolphthalein, more catalyst, a filter, and some other goodies to not only let you make the sample batch, but it can also make Biodiesel from waste vegetable oils. In fact, we've thrown in enough catalyst to make up to (10) 8 oz batches of Biodiesel.

The Ultimate Starter Kit

Link To Kit

This kit adds even more goodies! For the ultimate kit, we've upped the catalyst to 2 lbs, added a full liter of methanol, thrown in 2 glass Erlenmeyer flasks and a really cool porta stirrer.

With it, not only will you be set up to make mini batches, but you can use it to make full scale Biodiesel batches. There's even enough methanol supplied to make up to 5 liters of Biodiesel.

We've also included links to videos that show you how to use the kits, how to titrate oil, and how to do conversion testing. We're really excited to offer them & think they'll be a great hit!

Magnetic Stirrers
Ever since I got into this business I've wanted to be able to offer some really nice magnetic stirrers. Well, we're proud to announce that we finally have some!

We've had our handy Porta Stirrer mini magnetic stirrer for a while, but to that, we are now proud to announce the introduction of 2 full size magnetic stirrers and a heated magnetic stirrer!

Black Magnetic Stirrer:

Link To Stirrer

Stainless Steel Magnetic Stirrer

Link To Stirrer

Heated Magnetic Stirrer

Link To Stirrer

All three of these stirrers give you the ability to regulate how fast the stirring action is and all three come with stir bars. The heated stirrer can apply over 700 deg. F of heat to your sample, which is great!

Be sure to check them out today!

Dry Wash Towers

Link To Towers
We now offer a 6", 10", and 12" Ion Exchange Resin Towers. These towers can be used with any of the popular dry wash resins on the market including Amberlite, Purolite, and the new Thermax product!

Produced by Arbor Biofuels Company, these towers are a great addition to your Biodiesel production setup and will allow you to dry wash your fuel with ease!

We spent a lot of time looking for quality towers that we could offer and are proud to be affiliated with Arbor. They really know their stuff too!

If you'd prefer to build your own tower, we also offer a really nice kit also produced by Arbor Biofuels Company...

Link To Kit

When washing with dry wash towers, it's extremely important to know what your soap levels are. To help with this, we're now offering a soap testing kit that allows you to test soap levels to very small parts per million increments!

Link To Kit

This kit is extremely handy to have around when you want to check soap levels; whether you're dry washing, water washing, or just curious to know what levels of soap you have in your fuel. It comes with everything you'll need to get up & running fast too!

Quik N Dri

Link To Quik N Dri

If you've been following the forums lately, you may have seen some buzz about a new product called Quik N Dri. This product is a water absorption product. It LOVES to suck up water! Just add it to your oil and within minutes it'll gobble up nearly 10x it's weight in free water.

We've been really impressed with how effective this is as removing lots of water from oil really fast! You can read up more on it at our site....

New YouTube Channel.
We also are proud to announce the creation of our new YouTube channel.
Link To Channel

We picked up an HD Video Camera, a set of lights, and started knocking out really cool videos of Biodiesel related stuff. We've done several videos and as time allows have plans to add several more.

If you get a chance, stop on by. You may just learn some things you've never knew about before, plus, you get to see my ugly mug on the big (small) screen!

Biodiesel has slowed down a little bit with falling fuel prices and winter in full swing, but we're starting to see it pick back up again and are excited for another great season! We hope you have great success with all your Biodiesel adventures and are looking forward to an exciting coming year!

Thanks for stopping by & Happy Brewing!
-Graydon
The Rabid Biodiesel Nut

We've teamed up with Arbor Biofuels Company to bring these three Ion Exchange Resin Towers to our line up.

Cool School Biodiesel Project (and Fuel Cell Project Too!)

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 20:05:00 +0000

As a retailer of Biodiesel supplies, I often get to hear some really cool stories about what people are doing to promote Biodiesel use.

Today was one of those days.

In North Scituate, Rhode Island, Ponagoset High School has been embracing Biodiesel and using it to teach students about renewable fuels.

Ross McCurdy, Director of the Alternative Energy Program, called today to get some more information about Biodiesel and as we chatted he told me about some of the neat things being done to promote Biofuels.

One really cool project they did last year involved purchasing a diesel pickup truck, loading it up with as much Biodiesel as possible, and driving it to the West Coast & back....without refueling!

And they did it!

With the help of several sponsors in their area, they loaded the back of the pickup up with high capacity fuel tanks, filled them with Biodiesel and away they went!

Click the link below to learn more about why they did the trip.
Purpose Of The Trip

To read about the trip itself, check out their blog that detailed the travels.
http://biodieselpickup.blogspot.com/

But Wait! There's More!
Besides the trip, Ponaganset also created a Hydrogen fuel cell powered roadster and took it on the road as well!

Check out the roadster!

But Wait, There's Even More!
These guy's didn't just stop there...they went on to create a band where the electricity for their gig was completely powered by their fuel cell. How's that for sustainability!
Protium Fuel Cell Powered Band
They're pretty good too! Stop by the site & listen in!

And now they're continuing the saga!
Not content to just let all the great things they did stand in memorium, Ross is continuing the alternative fuel program by starting the process to begin exploring what it would take to make Biodiesel at the High School as well from local grease.

We think what they're doing is really exciting and wish them the best of luck!

We're continuing to see more and more educational groups embrace Biodiesel lately and hope the trend continues!

We also wish Ponaganset the best of luck going forward!
Keep it up guys!

-Graydon
The Rabid Biodiesel Nut
http://www.utahbio.com

Black Friday is coming!!!! (Starts Midnight on Thanksgiving)

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 08:48:00 +0000

The biggest sale of the year is coming!

It's our 3rd Annual Black Friday Sale!

It starts on Nov. 27th at midnight (Thanksgiving day) and ends at midnight on Sunday.

This is the sale where we put everything we possibly can on sale.
...and I mean practically everything!

We've worked with all of our drop shippers for this special sale to participate where they can and most of them have come forward.

So, if you've been thinking about getting supplies but want to get stuff at a bargain, this is the sale to attend! (plus, hey, it beats being drug around by your significant other to all those "other" Black Friday sales! Now you have an excuse to stay home & enjoy the day!)

More details here:
http://www.utahbio.com

New Products Time!

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 02:02:00 +0000

It's been a while since I did a post on all the new stuff we've added.

We continually are evaluating new products to add to the site and add about 2-3 new products every month.

Here's this last couple months crop of new toys.....

Purolite!

Purolite is an Ion Exchange Resin that is used in Dry Washing Biodiesel in a big Ion Exchange tower.

We've been wanting to carry this for quite some time (we've had Amberlite for quite a while now) and are excited to be able to offer it.

Thermax!

Thermax is an exciting new dry wash resin that is called Macro Pourous (say THAT 5 times!) It basically means that it's got a bunch of pores in it that allow it to work better when dry washing vs Purolite or Amberlite.

We've been working with Arbor Biofuels Company who are quickly becoming the de facto experts when it comes to home brewing and dry washing, to offer this great new resin.

We also have a couple other surprises up our sleeve on the Dry Wash stuff but we'll save that for later.

Here's a really cool video that I did the editing on & Arbor Biofuels did the video shots.

It shows how to properly flush an Ion Exchange Resin Tower.

I've been experimenting with YouTube quite a bit lately in an effort to get more content up there to help Biodieselers learn more cool stuff about Biodiesel.

You can check out our Biodiesel YouTube channel here:

Heavy Duty Barrel Pump

This is a really heavy duty barrel pump that I specially sourced to handle methanol. It'll also handle caustics, oil, methoxide, Biodiesel, or any other liquid you might need. It's made from Ryton with Teflon seals and really can hold up well. I also packaged a sweet tube with it too that is perfect for loading Biodiesel processors with.

For ages I'd been sending folks to US Plastic for this thing & I finally was able to source them. They're really nice!

Methanol Test Kit

This cool kit allows you to quickly test the purity of Methanol. This comes in handy if you're doing Methanol Recovery or if you just want to see how pure your methanol is.....you know, that barrel you have out back that you've had for a couple of years that you decided to finally use...yep, just for those cases...

Samping Cups

Need to sample oil? Biodiesel? Glycerin? Methanol? Pretty much anything you might need to sample, these cups are perfect for! Made from HDPE, they'll hold up to pretty much anything you can throw at them & come with a cool snap lid.

I use them all the time for titrations and a whole host of other uses.

Mini Titration Kit

This cool little kit is the perfect portable kit for doing titrations. It comes with just the bare basics (scale, syringes, cups, and vials). You supply the chemicals, the alcohol, titration solution, and indicator and you're set! We've been really impressed with them!

Porta Stirrer

This tiny little sucker is amazing! It's a mini mag stirrer that fits in the palm of your hand. Since we introduced these they've been a huge hit! They sell like wildfire and work extremely well!

You can see what they look like in action in this cool video.

Neat little device!

Deluxe Titration Kit

Since getting the Porta Stirrer we decided to create a new kit called the Deluxe Titration Kit. It's like the Basic Kit only we add two glass flasks and a Porta Stirrer.

It's become incredibly popular and flies off the shelves! It's a really nice kit too complete with everything you might need for titrations.

New Labeled Syringes

These aren't really new for us, but it's a new design. Instead of the rubber plunger in the bottom, they now are one complete plastic piece that slides really well in the syringe. Much easier to control and use when doing titrations too. I really like them! (As anyone can attest to if they come to our place & watch me do Titrations. It's the only syringes I do them with these days).

And, finally, we bought ourselves a new product to use at Utah Biodiesel Supply.
It's a new HD Video Camera. This isn't a new product for the store per se, but we plan on using it to make lots of new & exciting videos to add to our YouTube space as well as to the Video Tutorials page.

We also picked up an Apple MacBook a couple months back as well for that purpose.

We're still learning & practicing with them, but watch for some sweet new videos sometime soon!

Even more products coming!

We still have a bunch of new products that we'll be releasing soon too. We're still working out the pages & pricing and other things associated with adding them to the site, but trust us, we still have a ton more in the hopper.

For the mean time, enjoy the new goodies!

-Graydon
Utah Biodiesel Supply

Advertisers Smadvertisers....go jump in a lake!

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 20:33:00 +0000

Running a business has some interesting draw-backs.

If you think you get lots of spam and credit card offers now, just start up a business!

Holy crap I get a bunch of stuff pandering for my money!

For example:
Today I was called by a TV show called "Worlds Greatest". They highlight your business on Cable on the ION channel (ever heard of that one? Nope. Me neither). Anyway, they butter ya up, get you thinking "Hey, I'm gonna be on TV!" and making it sound really great.

He wanted to know all about my company, how I got started, why I stand out from others, blah, bu, blah, blah, blah......you know, get me all excited about being on Tee Vee!!! Whoop-T-Doo!!!

And then, of course, here's the kicker (there always is one, isn't there?
"If you'd like us to send a film crew out to your place to start the process, we just need to get...oh....not much, just $9,000 down, is that going to be a problem?" COUGH, CHOKE, Ahem! WHAT? I thought you were featuring me not me paying for you to operate your lame TV show! No thanks! Go sucker someone else.

I mean, c'mon, which of my customers (mostly people that WORK for a living) are going to be sitting on their couches at 11 AM on TUESDAYS!!!! HELLO!!!!

Nope. Don't think so.

The next one today was a renewable directly called The Redirect Guide.
It's a pretty cool guide & all and is put in lots of convenient stores & stuff for people to take ...well, ok, mainly it just sits there unless you're up in the green land of Park City where everyone thinks it's "Sheik to be Green". Down in the valley of Utah where I live where people have to work for a living (instead of drinking their Latte's while smoking cigars & making movies up in the Mountains, all of which who drove their in big SUV's but who complain about the fact that "people that drive SUV's are evil, evil, evil!"), people don't even SEE this thing!

And, besides that, here's an interesting fact....we really don't sell much stuff to people in Utah. Really! I'm dead serious! We used to, but Utah's Biodiesel homebrewing interest is about as dead cold as the snow is up on "Utah's Finest Ski Resorts"...

The oil rendering company's (well, ok, one particular rendering company) drove them all away & now not many people make Bio in Utah anymore. There was a time in the not-too-distant past when Utah was one of the hotter spots in the nation where Homebrewing Biodiesel was occuring...now it's just a shadow of that....

....and so most of the stuff we sell leaves our state (boy, would our Utah governor be proud or what? Contributing to Utah's Exports!--he's big into that kind of thing).

Anyway, the point is I get slammed with tons and tons of folks that want me to advertise in their po-dunk publication that no one will ever read, or pay people lots of money to produce a TV segment on a cable TV network that no one watches....interesting, eh?

So, where do I advertise you might ask? Well, word of mouth is the best advertising per se, but there are three places that I will spend money on advertising.

1) Diesel Power Magazine
I like what they do, what they stand for, and their subscription rates are justified to send them my hard-earned money

2) Biodiesel Smarter
I just really believe in what these guys are doing and, their readers fit the profile of people that would buy from us. Frankie has done such a great job of creating a publication that isn't full of fluff but has real content that I'm continually impressed.

3) The Infopop Biodiesel Forum
http://biodiesel.infopop.cc
I can claim the fame of being their first real advertiser too! (well, ok, if you don't count all the Google Ad Words they had before they picked up "real" advertisers.

When Shaun started thinking about doing it, I was one of the first one's he contacted & was honored.

I've been a fan of this website for years. It's given me a great amount of knowledge and I've tried to also return the favor to people that visit there as well.

I also believe in what Shaun is doing with it (keeping it as a really nice, open speech area where people can pretty much say what they want w/o the fear of being censored--well, ok, yeah, so there's some things they won't allow, but you get the idea).

And, well, that's it!

I do have some partnership links on the web to other places (I signed up for some ecofriendly advertising site years ago and I think my link is still there) but other than that, we try to keep the budget slim (means we can get more cool products & keep the prices low; which means a better deal for our customers.)

...now, what to do with my gazillion credit card offers.....hmmm....I bet they'd start a really nice fire in a fireplace somewhere. I wonder if I added some glycerin to them if they'd burn any hotter! Of course the interest rates they're offering in half of them are so screaming high that I bet that'll act as a fire starter anyway.

[stepping down from my "I hate advertisers" stump]

-Graydon

Peoples Shopping Habits online

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 05:29:00 +0000

You know, it's always amazed me how the orders tend to trickle in from my business.

Just a couple of interesting "tidbits" from the site...

The busiest "shopping day" on the site is and always has been Sundays.
I'll go to bed at night Sat night after checking for new orders & have it flushed out & by Monday morning there's more than I'll see any other day of the week.

The busiest "time of day" on the site is at 8PM at night.
The busiest "day of the week" for traffic is Monday followed by Sunday.
(I guess they look on Monday, keep looking throughout the week & then come back & buy on Sunday afternoon).

I've also noticed that things get ordered in "spurts".

For example, I'll see 2 or 3 Soap Guides sold right in a row (or very close together) and then the next day it'll be titration kits.

It's like there's a lot of forums out there where people talk about things or friends talk among themselves about things and they all go & order at once.

It's also a very seasonal business.
It's also highly correlated to the price of diesel fuel.

Not so much what the actual price of diesel is but how fast it's gone up or down.
If it shoots up 10 to 20 cents in a couple days, yep, I'm hopin' busy the next few days.

If it stay's stagnant or goes down, yep, we slow on down.

Winters are really slow and summers are really busy (people don't like to collect oil in the cold months).

But I still get a kick of how the orders come through. I can go to dinner, come back to check the orders out afterwards (yes, I know, I'm a sick, sick man...I'm married to this thing) and sure enough, after about 8PM they start trickling in.

If I were a bettin' man (which I'm not), I'd bet that a lot of other businesses online out there see the same thing.

So, there you have it, my short little blurb on the buying habits of some folks out there.

-Graydon

Apple Computers Rock!

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 04:54:00 +0000

Because of the work I do (operate an ON LINE business), I use computers all the time. In fact, I'm probably more glued to computers than I ever have been in my life.

Over the past couple years I've used several computers and have a few things to say about them.

1) If you're running an online business, keep a back up computer around. Nothing bites the big one worse when you're trying to take an order over the phone and the hard drive on your PC bites the bit one.
- When I first started out, I had a single PC. It was big and kind of old. About 5 years old to be exact. I built it myself when I was in college (I have a business degree in information systems) and maxed the thing out.
- It went through a couple hard-drives, a power supply, and finally the motherboard bit the dust
- Before it "bit the big one" I'd purchased a Dell Dimension 9150 off of Ebay..complete with a really nice 24" flat panel monitor (I had a 22" flat CRT & fell in love with big monitors)
- Well, one day while working on the Dell...it ALSO bit the big one....
- That's when Laptop #1 came into existence (Also a Dell. An Insiron 1505 which got picked up today by Dell after they replaced it because it was a total piece of...well, you know....

2) If you MUST choose a back up PC, consider an Apple
- Why you might ask? Well, because THEY WORK!
- So, when the laptop started biting the dust (the Dell Dimension bit the dust completely last year & I replaced it with what can only be described as a big stainless steel cased mass that glows in the front at night that I call "The Main PC") I started looking into an Apple

Why you might ask?
- Well, because Mac's don't crash (well, ok, sometimes they crash, but not NEARLY as often as a PC. Mine doesn't crash but I HEAR they can crash..)
- Mac's start when you want them to and they shut down when you want them to
- If you add lots of programs, they don't start up & load down your computer's CPU like a Windows machine will
- Can you say "Kiss the Blue Screen of Death Goodbye!"
- It works. Need I say more?

So, some of you might say, "Well, you just needed to get a NEW laptop w/ windows on it...."

ok folks, I did that...yesterday.
When my Dell Laptop bit the dust, Dell sent me another one. My Old Dell (ok, old being relative, the thing is BARELY over a year old and has now been through 3 LCD's...count em folks, THREE!) So, because I had the extended warranty on it and because I probably whined loud enough, Dell sent me a replacement (which I'm not real happy with)
Damn thing has VISTA (I HATE VISTA!) on it and within 3 hours of having it the damn thing had frozen up. And I mean REALLY Frozen up! Seems when it was trying to "update" windows, it picked up an update patch for the Web Cam from Dell and when it tried to install the software it froze the system up. No matter how many times I rebooted the darn thing, it kept coming back.

A chat session with a Dell tech online got it KIND OF fixed (msconfig, uncheck all the programs that want to start up) and it started to hobble along again.

Then, it just plain froze.

The tech gave me instructions on how to restore it back to the factory image & I spent the better part of last night doing that.

So, now it KIND OF works (I won't let Vista install that webcam patch), some of the buttons that are supposed to work on it (like the battery meter button and the sleep mode button) don't work but it's KIND of working....

(Did I mention that I HATE, HATE, HATE VISTA?!) OK, so I HATE IT!

Anyway, after fighting with the "NEW" laptop last night I got it to work well enough that it's in a "just use it to ship with" mode & "don't add any software to it or it might blow up".

So, I now have a PC with XP (the main box....which lost a hard-drive exactly 2 months after I had it), a PC with Vista (the "new" laptop), and then my blessed Apple MacBook Pro!

After fighting w/ PC's for so long, this thing is a breath of fresh air (yes, I'm typing this blog post on the Mac).

It's been awesome to work with! I can throw a bunch of programs on it, and...get this! They'll ACTUALLY UNINSTALL when I want them to!!!

It also doesn't leave a bunch of fragments left over to clutter up a registry if you remove stuff and you can EASILY control the programs that can & can't start on a Mac.

Well, ok, so that digressed.

Anyway, after owning a bunch of PC's and fighting with them on a regular basis just to get them to do what I want, I'm thoroughly in love w/ my Mac!

And....install a copy of VMWare and you can have the best of both worlds! (Yes, I have OS X and XP Pro installed on my mac. In fact, while running OS X, I can have Windows running too....and if the dang thing freezes, YOU CAN SHUT IT DOWN!!!! It's so frieken sweet!!!)

I love this thing!

So, I've had this thing now since about July of this year and I'm loving it. After figuring out how to get around not having a right mouse button and the fact that the END and HOME keys are missing (and a few other quirks), I'm quite happy and thrilled with this thing.

If the big machine dies, I'm replacing it with a MacPro. End of story.

And, while I've always praised Dell for their quickness in fixing their PC's (they have been pretty good about that), I'm loving the Mac for what I DON'T have to do to it...you know, like unfreeze programs that went south or CNTL + ALT + DEL every now & then just to get the thing to shut down.

Anyway, I'm in 7th heaven.

Oh yeah, and one little other cool thing about it.
I love that EVERYTHING WORKS! The camera works, all the peripherals work, all the software works (well, ok, it doesn't like to upload vids to YouTube, but that has more to do with my stupid router), iMovie is super easy to use, I'm becoming a fan of iTunes, and all the other stuff it has on it.

So, if you're getting tired of your PC, and you swore up & down you'd never touch a Mac, give one a try. You won't be sorry. I swore I'd NEVER own one of those "stupid Apple thingy's" and now here I am praising it.

So, give one a try....you might just be ditching yer Dells like I'm going to be doing (that is as soon as the warranties run out and they die...cause you know, that's about all the life you can eek out of a Dell these days).

Signed,
Graydon Blair
Happy I Own A Mac
(From a guy who swore he'd never own one too!)

Biodiesel And Local News Media. Watch out!

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 06:23:00 +0000

Over the years that I've been involved with Biodiesel, the local news media has often interviewed me related to my involvement in Biodiesel. And for the most part, I've always been gracious with my time and information and shared what I've known.

This time someone got it wrong. Very, very wrong and it completely and utterly ticked me off.

About a month ago a writer from the Deseret News (one of Utah's largest papers) emailed me telling me that she was doing a story on Biodiesel and wanted to visit with me "about my involvement in Biodiesel". She didn't specifically share what it was the article would be about except that it would be about Biodiesel. It seems I was terribly misled.

Instead of being "interviewed for my involvement" about Biodiesel, I was used as a means of furthering a writers agenda to portray Biodiesel as an illegal activity to produce.

Her name is Laura Hancock. The title of the article was "Weary of gas prices, drivers turning to illegal veggie oil"
Really gives you warm fuzzies, eh?

Here's the link to the piece of trash...(Yes, I'm a bit upset about it).
http://deseretnews.com/article/1,5620,700251467,00.html%3FprintView%3Dtrue

In the article, she makes it sound like making Biodiesel is akin to making Meth. She goes on to state a source from the EPA that claimed to her that making Biodiesel in a garage by people is completely illegal.

Here's the part where I was quoted...
"Graydon Blair of Syracuse sells supplies for making biodiesel at UtahBiodieselSupply.com. He started the business in 2005, a side venture while working full time for Intermountain Healthcare. He likened his business to "selling supplies to make beer, but I sell the supplies to make biodiesel."

........

Blair knows that he could technically be in violation of EPA rules by making biodiesel. "I've heard that before," he said. "I've never seen a case where they've gone after someone. I'm not worried. I think the IRS would come after me long before the EPA."

This quote in particular infuriated me...
Blair knows that he could technically be in violation of EPA rules by making biodiesel. "I've heard that before," he said. "I've never seen a case where they've gone after someone. I'm not worried. I think the IRS would come after me long before the EPA.

Or, in otherwords, by handily misquoting me she's claiming that I believe the production of Biodiesel is illegal but yet I sell supplies to people to make it even though I supposedly believe it to be illegal to do so.

Nothing could be farther from the truth! And, the way she quoted me about "the IRS" issue just ticks me off even more.

Since some of you read the article, and since this is my blog and a place to blow off steam, I figured I'd share the REAL story behind this trashy article...

1) Biodiesel has been approved by the EPA as a fuel for use in vehicles in the United States. A group called the National Biodiesel Board paid millions of dollars to have the testing performed according to what the Clean Air Act dictates. The testing was approved and that's why you can even buy Biodiesel from local gas stations.

2) Ms. Hancock mistakenly relied on "a source" from the EPA and misunderstood the source that claimed that making Biodiesel in a garage violates the Clean Air Act. This is because the source was talking about using Vegetable Oil in a diesel in the US; which has not been approved by the EPA as a viable fuel in a diesel engine and which technically COULD be construed as to be illegal if used.

3) Ms. Hancock failed to identify what exactly was "illegal" about the act of making Biodiesel in a garage. Something she didn't share with me.

4) Ms. Hancock misquoted me in stating that I said, " I'm not worried. I think the IRS would come after me long before the EPA." That's complete and utter BS!!! I told her that the EPA isn't nearly concerned with those that burn Biodiesel in their vehicles that they make as the IRS would be because technically burning a fuel in a vehicle that you haven't paid road taxes on is a much grosser offense than this supposed "Clean Air Act" BS she insisted that I believed in.

Interestingly enough, she even called me back a couple times to ask me about my thoughts on the EPA & this issue. I explained the whole issue behind the National Biodiesel Board, but with her carefully worded questions and by misquoting me just right she made it sound like I blatantly am selling something to help people make something that "I believe is against the law to make" HOGWASH!!!

Of all the gall a reporter could have, this was the worst.

I've been interviewed by several of the local media. The largest news radio group in Utah (KSL News Radio), the largest newspaper in Utah (The Salt Lake Tribune), my local paper (The Standard Examiner), National Public Radio (both locally and nationally) and NONE of them have ever pulled this kind of a stunt.

I was so hopping mad when I read the thing.

I'd sent a letter to her claiming that she'd misquoted me to which I received a response back stating that "I had to go with my source from the EPA. They are a "more reputable" source than you and I had to tell it like it was". BS!!!

I couldn't believe it! Just left me dumbfounded and amazed.

I sent a note to the editor of the Oh So Precious Deseret News but never did get anything back from them.

Apparently the article started a firestorm with many local Biodiesel enthusiasts because I received several calls & emails asking me about it. Even the former president of the Utah Biodiesel Cooperative sent a note to the editor of the paper asking for a retraction of the article because of how poorly it was written.

Anyway, I've vowed to never give another interview to the Deseret News and for that matter, I think I'm done speaking to the media from here on out in regards to my involvement with Biodiesel. I've just plain had it with the lack of professionalism and lack of fact checking and misquoting that goes on in articles.

I've always been a firm believer that the media is "unbiased, and tries to get it right" but after today, I'm a firm believer that the news media (depending on which one you want to talk about) is just out there to push an agenda and they'll use anyone they want to pull it off too (ie. by misquoting individuals and making them look like fools on the front page of the paper if they have to).

So, word to the wise....if you ever are asked by your local news media about your involvement in Biodiesel, be careful & cautious. You may just be a pawn to push their agenda. One that might just bite you in the butt.

-Graydon
Utterly disgusted with the local news media!

Ye Annual Biodiesel Conference....

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 02:00:00 +0000

Hear ye, hear ye!

The Annual Biodiesel Homebrewers Conference has come & gone and it's time for another review of the conference by that nut out in Utah....so, fasten yer seatbelts & load up the tank with Bio cause here we go.

[warning...this was written while I had a cold, so it has a sort of loopy feel to it...the cold made me do it]

This years Biodiesel Conference theme (once again held at the really cool Colorado School of Mines in Golden, Colorado) could be summed up in a couple sentences.

1) Don't steal oil. It's bad, bad, bad (even if other people steal yours).
2) It's time for Homebrewing to grow up & get with it on the business end (in otherwords, "Folks, the time has come for us to all pay our taxes...or else get shut down")
3) If ya really wanna brew bio, ya better learn some advanced techniques cause if ya don't yer gonna make crap.
4) Making Biodiesel in a BioPro is really cool! (I swear the BioPro's were mentioned in just about every presentation I sat in on....kind of cool to see the things becoming so ubiquitous).

Well, ok, maybe there was a lot more than that going on but there was an awful lot of presentations surrounding those three things. Oh yeah, and lot's in really cool case studies. REALLY cool case studies.

So, here's what I learned this year that I thought I'd pass on...

First of all:
If you've started a coop, your not alone. If you're coop has failed. You're not alone. If your coop is trying to avoid the law by not paying taxes, not registering with the state, not really being legitimate but still kind of taking peoples money for fuel but not really registering with the NBB or the EPA, your not alone.

Lot's of great stories about coops. My favorite was the one Jerry Robock shared.
"So, uhm, we just kind of have this coop way up in the woods....." and it went from there. It has all the makings of a back-woods, underground, top-secret moonshiners story. Complete with a box for depositing your cash in when you've "taken home some brew". I LOVED IT!!!!

Then came Lyle Rudensey's coop story.
"Well, we're not really legitimate but we make really great fuel in a BioPro!" ....so good in fact that technically they COULD sell the stuff (he passed ASTM with flying colors in his "stainless steel garbage can" as many have endearingly called the BioPro's (you know--because it takes garbage & turns it into fuel...get it? Oh, never mind).

Lyles ASTM results really are cool though!
Check out how well they aced them!
Lyles ASTM Results

And then it was on to the Chemistry lessons.....
John Bush (one of the conference organizers) gave a great discourse on the upper echelons of the chemical reactions that go on during Biodiesel production

To which a bunch of puzzled looks looked back....

"Esteri-what?"

Yep. That chemistry can be kind of confusing sometimes.....

But, alas, then it came time for the clown act....
Some guy from Utah decided he was going to dress up in a smock, throw on some gloves, and then attempt (attempt mind you) to show a class of eager on-lookers how Biodiesel is made....

"OK, so ya got yer little oil molecules here and then these catalyst thugs come in & rip em apart...."
(It was better than the bus story from last year, right?)

Then on came the safety glasses ("Hey, where'd everybody go?") and my hair went nuts and, well...we'll let the picture tell the story...

But, somehow I managed to produce a little batch of bio on one of Nebraska BioPro's cool heat/mag stir plate and ended up even making a couple messes...in the end I think I was able to actually show how Biodiesel could be produced

(Big time thanks to Norm from Nebraska BioPro for bringing all the lab-ware needed for my presentations....it made it a lot easier....of course I still managed to spill some titration solution).

"So what ya got here is your basic trans-esterification going on....any questions?"

Once we got through the circus act, on to the real fun.

One of the presenters, Brad Crafton (who also makes Bio in a BioPro--sorry, had to throw that in there) from the Mississippi Minerals Research Institute presented his cool story about how they make Biodiesel to run in their mowers on campus and how cool the project has been.

[Lame sidenote:] Brad Crafton just about became the prowd owner of my old Isuzu Diesel Pickup once upon a time...but his Diesel Mercedes that he was going to swap me for it had other plans...namely the fuel injection pump completely dying out in the middle of nowhere. [/sidenote done..see? told ya it was lame]

Anyway, some of the stuff Brad is doing in Mississippi is just plain cool!

One of the biggest lectures that was really well attended was on Algae Biodiesel (go figure!)....

That little room was PACKED!!!!

Unfortunately I was also giving my presentation at the time so I didn't have a chance to sit in but I heard it was really cool!!!

Speaking of BioPro's......

This year we had the pleasure of having the new CEO of Springboard Biodiesel (the guy's that now make the BioPro. It was AGR last year & SSI the year before that. Can you say "Musical BioPro Chairs"?) Anyway, his presentation was also really good and talked about where the industry might be headed...

And then there was some of the fun....
I guess some of us old die-hard Biodiesel nuts just never change.

Rules For Being A Die-Hard Biodiesel Nut:
Rule #1: You must wear a Biodiesel related shirt

Rule #2: You will most likely present at the conference
Rule #3: If you do well, you'll probably present again....if we can wrangle you into doing so....

The shirt thing has always been fun though...

Frankie Abralind w/ his "Spanking Esters" shirt, Jon Mueser (the Aglae Biodiesel God), and Lyle Rudensey sportin' a Spankin Esters shirt as well (Man I thought that shirt was cool!).

Sidenote: Did you know Lyle Rudensey taught none other than the Mayor of Seattle how to make Biodiesel once? How cool is that!!

Yep. All the regulars were there & on hand....

The Year Of The Dogs...
I'm not sure why, but there were an awful lot of dogs at the conference this year.

Mark Hayes w/ his dog (also BioPro owner..sorry, couldn't resist)

The Party Boxer. This guy just stood at the door patiently waiting. I got a kick out of it. You could open the door but he wouldn't break the threshhold. "Good dog!"

And a few others were hanging around there as well. Kind of gave it that relaxed feel that we always have...

There were also some really cool people that I got to meet this year that I'd spent a lot of time on the phone with but had never met face-to-face that I really enjoyed meeting.

Here's a few:
Dr. Bill Carney from Louisianan State University

This guy has built a whole program around Biodiesel and now offers free workshops to the public sharing information about this incredible fuel! You can check out some of the positive press they've received here...
LSU Positive Press

Al Johnson of GoScoot

Al is a BioPro dealer in Louisiana that I've also spent a lot of time with on the phone but never had met until the conference.

The Piedmont Crew

These guys are the true movers & shakers in Biodiesel. From the cavitational reactor to methanol recovery to dry washing, you're looking at some of the folks that make it happen!

Santa Claus!

Even Santa Claus a.k.a. Steve Patterson of Denver Biodiesel was there....

And Girl Mark...

I'm sure she'll shoot me for this picture...

And now for more interesting fun....
Did you know Girl Mark can sing? And play guitar?

And she's pretty dang good at it too! (I've got a video somewhere that proves this point too....now where did I put that thing?)

Jon was back with his fiddle, someone was there with a banjo, and the party at the Coolbaugh house was a happening place!

"So I was collecting oil one night when the pump just died on me." (Sorry it was just beggin' for a caption)

Steve Fugate was there....
(check out the shirt)

And many others....

Overall, the conference was a huge hit. I didn't get to see the final tally, but I think we hit 150 people again this year if not more. It was really well organized, all the computers cooperated, and the case studies were phenomenal!

To see a full list of all the great presentations that were presented, visit this link:
Conference Presentations

The conference felt like it had grown up a little since last year and had a more "professional" tone to it (not bad, not bad at all). It was still great to meet up with all the great people that are making Biodiesel happen out there and it's still one of the best conferences you can go to if you want to learn a ton about Biodiesel all in a couple days for just a little coin.

If you haven't been to one of these, be sure to go! The great amount of information you'll come away with will be well worth the trip and expense...and hey, you just might get to meet that nut from Utah that hawks Biodiesel supplies on his website....I hear he's quite the character.

-Graydon
The Biodiesel Nut from Utah
(With a cold tonight)

Selling Biodiesel. Is it worth it?

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Mon, 19 May 2008 05:01:00 +0000

I get asked all the time what it'd take to sell Biodiesel.

My canned answer is "It ain't worth it!".

But, some are persistent and continue to want to know why I feel the way I do.

Well, let's start from the top...

When I first got into this glorious fuel, I had big dreams of making and selling Biodiesel to people and getting stinking rich (me and every other person that gets into it probably thinks the same thing....)

Well, I spent literally MONTHS researching the possibility of selling bio and in my quest to do so figured I'd be much happier teaching people how to make it themselves and selling them the supplies to do it instead.

Here's why...
1) Competition.
Everyone AND THEIR DOG wants to sell Biodiesel. As soon as someone discovers they can make the stuff, out come the dollar signs in their eyes and they start wanting to sell the stuff.

For about every 100 people that think it, 1 of them does. And, the ones that do have to fork out a lot of time, money and investment.

Let's put it this way. The competition is stiff and getting stiffer each day

2) Going Legal is a nightmare!
If you're going to sell Biodiesel and do it legally (which is the ONLY way I propose you should do it), then my friend, you are up for one heck of a big surprise.

Here's a few reasons why.
A- Permitting....
So, ya think you wanna make Biodiesel in a residence eh? Well, I bet your zoning and health department don't want you doing that. The water department would also want to talk to you and, oh yeah, how ya gonna measure out the biodiesel to sell it accurately? In comes the Standard & Weights folks.

How ya gonna tax it? The feds & the state ALWAYS want their fair share of what you sell and Biodiesel is no different.

How bout certifying you're making ASTM Bio? That ain't cheap!

Oh yeah, what about registering your fuel with the EPA? You know, because IT'S THE LAW!!! Yep. That's painful too. Why? Because to do so you'll be forced to join the National Biodiesel Board because they were the ones that did all the Health & Human Testing on the stuff and hold the proprietary information on it...and because I bet you ain't got the millions of dollars that it cost them to do the testing yourself.

Now, how about selling it & distributing it? Did you know that your trucks have to be certified? Do you have a DOT Drivers license? Whip out that Drug Screen Test! It's mandatory folks! So is a DOT physical!

And the list goes on and on and on....

For a view of what Piedmont Biofuels had to do, check out their nightmare...
http://energy.biofuels.coop/2007/01/05/the-permits/

Now, once you have all THAT done, how will you market the fuel? How will you distribute it? How will you ensure that you have enough feedstock and that the feedstock you get will always be consistent?

How will you dispose of all that glycerin? What about storing all that lye and methanol? I bet the fire marshal will have a few things to say about that....

And the list just goes on and on and on.....

So, if you think you're really up to the task and really want to give it a go, more power to you! But remember, I warned you!

...ok, seriously, if you do want to go legal and want to sell the stuff, I highly recommend a book on how to do it.

It's called Building a Successful Biodiesel Business and is published by the absolute authorities in Biodiesel in the United States.

Here's the link to it:
http://www.biodieselbasics.com

I highly recommend it.

So, if you're still seeing those dollar signs in your eyes, go for it! Just be sure to give me a ring when you need equipment! I'd be happy to hook you up!

-Graydon

Ready to learn? Lights, Camera, Action!

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Sun, 04 May 2008 22:14:00 +0000

Recently we were asked by Parleys Diesel Performance to do some instructional videos on the Basics of Biodiesel. We, not wanting to pass up a golden opportunity, jumped on it and the video's below were born!

We tried our best to make the videos well planned out, instructional, and easy to understand. We think they came off really well (and so do many of our customers!).

So, sit back, grab some popcorn, and enjoy the fun of watching how easy Biodiesel can be to make....

The first one has now had well over 8,000 views and counting!

Welcome To Our Biodiesel Tutorial Videos Page!

Here you can learn about Biodiesel, what it is, how it's made, how it effects engines & performance, how you
make your own, and even a little history about this great fuel! So, grab some popcorn, a pen and a notepad,
and sit back & get ready to learn about Biodiesel!

We'd like to thank the great folks at Parleys Diesel Performance
for partnering up with us to put these great Biodiesel tutorial videos together!

Introduction To Biodiesel (06:20)

This video gives a basic introduction to organic oils and how they can be run in diesel engines.
We'll discuss some of the cool history behind the diesel engine, why they can run on organic oils,
how different oils can effect a diesel engine, and then we'll discuss the big difference between
Biodiesel and Straight Vegetable Oil (SVO).

9 Reasons Why We Think You Should Consider Biodiesel

Excellent Biodiesel Handling Guide Published by the US National Renewable Energy Lab

How Biodiesel Is Made - The Theory (08:03)

In this video we discuss how Biodiesel is chemically produced. We use simple drawings and diagrams
to keep it easy & simple to understand. Don't worry, we promise, there's no chemistry degree needed.
We think you'll find it really educational! We also discuss some of it's chemical properties
including some of the great benefits Biodiesel has over petro diesel.

How Biodiesel Is Made - Dealing With Used Oils (05:24)

Here we take things a step further and talk more about what goes on when
Biodiesel is being produced, including how to make it from used oils that
commonly contain things called Free Fatty Acids (FFA's). Yep. We keep this
one simple too so that it's easy to understand.

Click Here To Learn More On How To Get Started Making Biodiesel From Used Oils

How Biodiesel Is Made - The Basic Recipe (07:52)

Now that the theory & chemistry is out of the way it's time to talk about how it's made in a production setting.
Using a basic diagram, we'll walk you through how it's produced from start to finish. From filtering the oil
to drying the finished Biodiesel, we discuss it all! We then give you the basic recipe for making Biodiesel.

Link To The Graphic Used In The Video

Making A Small Batch - Part 1 (06:28)

Here we talk about how to get ready to make a small batch of Biodiesel from
new oil. We'll show you how to weigh out the chemicals, how to make something called
Methoxide, and discuss proper safety precaustions when preparing to make your first
batch.

Making A Small Batch - Part 2 (07:47)

While our methoxide dissolves we go over everything you'll need to make a mini batch.
We talk about where to find the ingredients needed including the chemicals needed, the
best kind of oils to use (hint: Chinese restaurants rock!), and discuss some safety issues
related to storing chemicals and methanol. We then dump the methoxide in and watch the magic happen!

Titrating Oil - Building A Titration Kit (04:11)

In this video we show how to build a basic titration kit that will be used to titrate oil with.
Titration is nothing nore than a method used to find out what the acid level is in the oil that will be used
to produce Biodiesel. It's necessary to know this because it will indicate how much catalyst
will be used to make Biodiesel.

Our Titration Supplies

Full Titration Kit |
Titration Scale |
Titration Beakers |
Titration Cups

Labeled Titration Syringes |
Magnetic Stirrer |
Oil Collection Test Kit

Titrating Oil - The Chemistry (05:04)

This video explains the chemistry behind how a titration works. We explain what a titration will indicate and why
it's important to perform them on used oil. Don't worry, like the other video's we keep this one simple. No chemistry degree needed.

Titrating Oil - Preparing Titration Solution (04:31)

This video shows how to prepare the titration solution that will be used to do the actual titration with. It's important
that this be done accurately because it will impact the titration readings. To make it, add 1 gram of catalyst (either
Potassium Hydroxide (KOH) or Sodium Hydroxide (NaOH) to 1 liter of water.

Titrating Oil - The Actual Titration (10:54)

This is where it all comes together. We do 3 complete titrations from start to finish. We measure everything
out, explain how to mix everything, do the actual titrations, and then explain what the results mean.

The Basic Titration Method

1- Add 1 mL of Oil to 10 mL of Isopropyl Alcohol

2- Add a couple drops of indicator solution (Phenolphthalein is what we used)

3- Start adding measured amounts of Titration Solution

4- Watch for the color change to stay for 30 seconds

5- Record how much titration solution was used

Titration Solution Used = Number Of Grams Of Catalyst To Use Per Liter Of Oil

If there were 4mL used, then 7.5 + 4 = 11.5 grams X 100 liters of oil = 1150 grams of KOH

Click Here To See A Complete Titration Kit

Making A Large Batch - Shop Intro & Filtering Oil (08:30)

This video highlights how you can set up a basic small scale Biodiesel production facility.
We introduce you to some of the basic components you'll need to produce Biodiesel. In particular, we show how to
filter oil, how to transfer oil around in a shop, how we store and transfer methanol, introduce the catalyst and more.
We also discuss a bit about which diesels can handle Biodiesel.

How We Collect Oil With A Lift-Gate | Pictures Of Our Lift Gate

How We Filter Oil With A Lift-Gate | Oil Filters (We Use The 400 Micron Ones)

Learn More About Starting To Produce Biodiesel Here |

Check Out Our Customers Biodiesel, Production Equipment, And More Here!

Making A Large Batch - Loading Oil, Catalyst, & Methanol (05:35)

Using a BioPro 380, we introduce how easy Biodiesel can be made. We show how to load the machine with oil using an inexpensive sump pump,
how to add the methanol, how to measure out the catalyst & get ready to start the batch. There are several different styles and kinds
of Biodiesel production equipment available on the market, this one just happens to be our personal favorite.

Pictures Of Our Sump Pump | See The Methanol Pump We Recommend

We stock Sodium Hydroxide (NaOH), Potassium Hydroxide (KOH), and
Sulfuric Acid.

Making A Large Batch - Starting The Batch (02:24)

Using the same BioPro 380, we show how to start the machine and get a batch running. This one's pretty small because it really
doesn't take much to get it going. Reach around back, turn the machine on, and push the start button. We then load it with sulfuric
acid (to give us higher yields) and then we let the machine take care of the rest.

Video On Making A Batch In A BioPro 190 Start To Finish (High Res) | (Low Res)

Making A Large Batch - Transferring Finished Fuel (06:19)

This video wraps up our videos on making a large batch of Biodiesel. Using a BioPro 190, we transfer
finished fuel from the machine into our storage barrels. We also give a basic overview of the BioPro machines, discuss the
differences in the machines, and then wrap it up.

BioPro 150 (40 Gal Unit) | BioPro 190 (50 Gal Unit) | BioPro 380 (100 Gal Unit)

Click Here To Locate A BioPro Dealer Near You

Testing For Conversion (4:15)

In this video we show you how to test your finished Biodiesel to see how well it converted.
It involves using 3 mL of biodiesel and 27 mL of Biodiesel. It's really simple to do and works extremely well.
As an added bonus, the person in the video just happens to be the chemist that helped design the BioPro processors.
Sorry for the noise in the background. The wind was blowing that day.

Link To Kit Used In This Video

Biodiesel Flammability (02:29)

One of the great properties of Biodiesel is its high flash point (the temperature at which it will burn).
In this clip we illustrate this by attempting to light a small amount of Biodiesel on fire (Hint: TRY being the key word).
However, once under pressure and atomized (ie. through a diesel fuel injector) Biodiesel burns great as we also illustrate.

Biodiesel Performance (08:51)

In this clip we discuss how Biodiesel performs against Petro Diesel. We talk about using it
in a modified diesel engine with chips and other performance parts installed (Hint: Yep! It'll work with those too!).
We also discuss tips for running Biodiesel in higher performance diesel engines,
talk a bit about running it in colder weather, using additives, and also touch on the importance
of changing fuel filters.

Link to Diesel Power Magazine Biodiesel Article mentioned in the video.

Read More On Using Biodiesel | Real World Biodiesel Experiences

More videos coming!

We have several more videos in the wings so be sure to mark this page & come back often!

We'll be covering everything from collecting oil, to titrating it, to producing Biodiesel on a large scale
and much much more! Our goal is to help you see that making Biodiesel can be simple, easy to understand, and
most of all, fun to do!

We also have a whole series on Biodiesel that we did for ExpertVillage.

Click here to see the series

Additional Instructional Videos

Methanol Safety Methanex, one of the largest distributors of Methanol in the United States
has put together a great instructional video on methanol safety for Biodieselers. There are two file types; A high resolution version at 73.4 MB and a low resolution
version at 41.1 MB. Both are in Windows Media (WMV) format. Look for the link
on the right labeled Methanol Safety - For Biodiesel Producers .

Thanks for stopping by & come on back soon!

My How Time Flies!

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Sun, 04 May 2008 21:29:00 +0000

Looks like it's time for another blog post...

We've been incredibly busy the last 6 months what with fuel prices shooting through the roof.

So, here's a few of the fun things we've done.

Lot's & lots of new products!
Introducing the BioPro 150!

This new item is like the BioPro 190, only smaller.
It allows you to make 40 gallons of Bio in the same 48 hours as the 190 but costs less.
It's not as automated as the 190 is (for instance, you have to drain the wash water manually after each wash) but it still does a great job.

More on that here:
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/biopro150.php

The Portable Magnetic Stirrer

This sucker can really hum! It allows you to mix up contents really fast and does an amazing job!
Check out the video on it:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=hUeeJmKk2_g
More on this cool, new toy here..
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/magneticstirrer.php

Amberlite

http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/amberlite.php

Chemical Resistant Beaker Set

This cool little set of beakers is great for lab work with Biodiesel.
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/beakers.php

New and improved water test kit!

Sandy Brae Labs recently updated their Water Test Kit to make it better for Biodiesel. It now has a complete 1 piece cup (instead of 2 pieces). Makes it much more Biodiesel resistant.
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/biodieselwatertestkit.php

Chemical Resistant Sampling Cups

We picked up these really cool new cups that are ideal for sampling oil, Biodiesel, wash water, or anything else you may need to do around the shop.

They even have a handy temp gauge on the side!
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/samplingcups.php

Oil Collection Sampling Kits

These things are cool! Similar to a Go/No Go Test Kit for the BioPro's, these ones are set at a lower titration value (5 on a KOH scale) and can easily be used out in the field to test oil. We're really impressed with them!

http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/oilcollectiontestkit.php

We promise to be a little more diligent in keeping up on our posts, but this should help to get things going again.

Enjoy!
-Graydon

We've Gone Full Time!

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Mon, 12 Nov 2007 00:12:00 +0000

Well, we did it! We finally bit the bullet & took Utah Biodiesel Supply full time.

It actually happened a while ago, but I've just been so darn busy I haven't had a chance to blog about it.

For those who are new to us, lemme give you a bit of history....

Around 2003 a nutty guy named Graydon Blair (that'd be me) started researching Biodiesel. (You can read more about that here)

Well, around 2005 I got so excited about it that I decided to start up a business called Utah Biodiesel Supply and the rest is, as you say, history.....well, ok, history is still being written so sit back & I'll share a bit about it.

Around April 2005 I took a trip out to California for summer vacation with the wife & daughter. While on the trip (in a cramped Honda Accord with a TV sitting in the back seat to keep our daughter happy) my wife & I listened to a CD about millionaires.

There's a book called "The Millionaire Next Door". I'd read it but wanted to learn more and since we were going to be hauling across the barren desert in a Honda, my wife picked up some "books on CD". One called The Millionaire Mind. It's basically a continuation of that book where the author delves deeper into the subject.

...ok, now a big more history....
To give you some background, I hail from Utah (yes, I'm mormon too! Go figure!) and have quite the entrepreneur spirit in me. At a very young age I became an "independent contractor" ...well, ok, so I was a paper boy, but they still sold me a product & I had to turn around & sell it...albeit they were newspapers....I still had to collect the money from folks, had to perfect some marketing (to get more people to sign up), and had to deliver the product in a timely manner (folks don't like it when their newspapers don't get delivered...especially if they get soggy wet in the rain sitting out in the driveway...I can still throw a rolled up newspaper from across the street & hit the porch perfectly...it's an "aquired artform" from my youth).

anyway, so I did a paper route when I was a kid, also had sold a bunch of newspaper subscriptions & earned my way to Disney land with said paper, and then when I was about 14 my dad decided he was going to teach his sons a little bit about business & bought us an Aerator.

If you don't know what those are, it's basically this big machine that is powered by an engine that punches holes in your lawn that look like a dog pooped all over your lawn. It basically pulls up little "soil cores" from your lawn & allows your lawn to "breathe" better. It really works, trust me.

Anyway, so once we got said aerator, it was our job to find people that wanted their lawn aerated & do it. He left all of that up to us. He had just bought the machine.

Well, I gotta tell ya, that crazy machine lit a fire in me that's never really gone out. I enjoyed providing a service to someone and I enjoyed seeing the green stuff land in my hand even more...especially when it was something I did myself.

So, after that I then got "a real job" at a restaurant and eventually became a waiter. If you think about it, waiter's also are "independent contractors". Follow me on this one....

They're basically paid really lousy by restaurants to deliver your food to your table, keep you happy, and make sure you have a pleasant experience while "dining out". If they do a good job, you leave them a tip.

Well, let's just say I became a REALLY good waiter! I LOVED IT!! I'm kind of a ham as it is (kinda comes naturally to me) so being a waiter was a shoe in. I enjoy delivering a product (good service) and perfecting the way I do it and in return I was paid well for my services.

So, then I left for a full time mission for my church (remember, I'm MORMON....and no, I don't have 5 wives...one's enough to keep any man busy). Off to Oregon I went to knock on doors & share the message of my faith with complete strangers.

Lemme tell ya, if you think door to door sales is hard, try knocking on complete strangers doors in a place you've never been to before and telling them about your beliefs in God. It is, shall we say, an "experience"....one that I utterly loved, but one that also honed my "marketing skills" a bit more as well.

So, now we have a paper route, an aerating business, being a waiter, and now a mission for my church under my belt.

Then I came home & started college.

I started out wanting to be an Engineer...well, let's just say I suck at math. Calculus & me didn't get along so well....so, I decided to change my major.

Lucky for me, I picked a really good one for my skill set.

I entered the John B. Goddard School of Business at Weber State University in little old Ogden, Utah. Yep. A business major was now in my future!

And, since I kind of liked computers, my major was actually in...get this....Information Systems & Technology (I know, kind of corny to have in a business school, but it works...well, ok, it works REALLY well!).

So, here's a kid already accustomed to "marketing" "product placement" "accounting"(remember, I had to COLLECT the money from my clients) and basically a bunch of other things that you learn about in Business & now I was getting a real degree in the stuff.

I absolutely LOVED college! Not because of the social life, but because of what I was learning. I know, call me weird, but I loved economics, marketing, and all those business related classes.

Wow...ok, we've really gone off the beaten path here...let's see if we can bring this puppy back....

So, I got a degree in Business w/ an emphasis on computers. Kind of timely too as the internet was all the rage around that time (I even had stock in Cisco & AOL at one time...but that's another story).

So I finished college & got a "real job" at the place I did an internship at....a place called Iomega (yep, those guy's that made Zip drives).

Did that for about 5 years & then took a job at a place called Intermountain Healthcare.

About 2 years into it I learned about Biodiesel & took that trip across the desert.

OK, bringing us back to our story....

So this kid that's done a lot of small business background, has a business degree, and is listening to a tape about Millionaires is traveling across the desert.

Having a strong desire to own my own business & wondering what it should be, I kept hearing over & over from that crazy CD about Millionaires that if you want to be successful in life, you need to find something you really enjoy & then exercise some business smarts with it.

Well....let's see....what do I like? Hmmm....there's this thing called Biodiesel!

And, after that trip, a little ole place called Utah Biodiesel Supply popped up on the internet.

April of 2005 was when we officially got the business license & went for it.

From the basement in my house I started this crazy thing and, well, almost 3 years later, we're one of the largest online stores for Biodiesel Homebrewing supplies around.

We have a huge selection of Biodiesel goodies and are pretty well known around the globe as one of the places to go if you want to learn about Biodiesel or buy biodiesel supplies.

And....because I'm absolutely passionate about it and have the business background, it's been a really good fit.

I'm having the time of my life! It ain't all easy and I'm definitely not "stinkin' rich", but I'm enjoying every day & loving it.

Like they say, find something you enjoy doing, create a business out of it, and you'll never "work" a day in your life because it'll all be "fun".

Yep. That's pretty much it.

So, now REALLY swinging it back around to where we started from. Right around June of this year I took the big plunge & left the day job & am now doing this gig full time...and absolutely loving it!

So, if you ever want to get ahold of us, just pick up the ole phone & give us a call.
Instead of having to answer phone calls between breaks at "Work", we can now do it all the time.

I actually even set it up like a "real" job too....

We run the business Monday through Friday from 9am to 5pm.
We close it on the weekends (well, ok, I TRY not to do any business on the weekends I should say....ok, the real answer is...I don't pick up the phone on the weekends) and I now have a bit of a "real life" in the evenings with my family again.

Tuesday & Friday nights we pack up all the orders that come in and they ship out the day after they're packed.

It's a heck of a lot of fun!

And....I still get to meet a ton of cool people. I still participate on the Biodiesel forums. I still make Biodiesel. And I'm still enjoying it.

So, if you're absolutely sick & tired of your "day job" (I really wasn't though...I really did enjoy my job, I just liked Biodiesel more), find something you enjoy & try to make a business out of it...you may just find yourself doing something you enjoy the rest of your life!

Well, ok, that was probably way more information than you probably wanted to ever know about us....but, hope you enjoyed the read.

And....if you're ever after some really cool Biodiesel supplies, there's this place called Utah Biodiesel Supply that sells some kick-butt supplies at their online store
http://www.utahbio.com (Yep. I'm still the consummate saleman...it's in the blood).

Because I was doing the books the other day I had to count all the individual products I carried. We now sell over 250 unique items on our site. Man, that's a lot of stuff to keep track of! But, we're doing it & loving it!

So, stop on by, you're guaranteed to always find some cool or nifty gizmo that can hopefully help you out with all of your Biodiesel adventures.....

Have a great one!
Graydon
The Biodiesel Nut With The Business Degree...

BioPro 190 Hits Full ASTM

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Sun, 11 Nov 2007 23:52:00 +0000

Well, it's been a while since I posted so its time....

One of the most exciting things that happened recently was the fact that a really good friend, Lyle Rudensey's BioPro, just screamed past the ASTM Tests for Biodiesel.
Check out his blog entry on it:

Lyle, who runs BioLyles Biodiesel Workshop, is an avid Biodiesel nut like myself & has been for quite some time (we both got into it around the same time..I think within a couple months of each other and we both went nuts over it).

Sometime last summer Lyle bought a BioPro 190 based on some tests he saw of the fuel that was tested in one. Once he got it, he became so impressed that he decided to become a dealer.

Well, he & I, being kind of nutty like we are, decided to team up to get some of the fuel tested. I paid for a Total & Free Glycerin Test & he sent it in.

Guess what? It screamed right past it!
It passed with flying colors!
- Monoglycerides - 0.084%
- Diglycerides - 0.027%
- Triglycerides - 0.007%
- Free Glycerin - 0.004% (Maximum Allowed - 0.02%)
- Total Glycerin - 0.122% (Maximum Allowed - 0.24%)

So, that was all nice & good, but then the State of Washington took an interest in what he was doing & offered to test his fuel with the full round of ASTM Testing.

And, guess what? It screamed past that too!
Check it out!

Now, most people that haven't been around Biodiesel (and especially home brewing) for a while will say, "So what! Big deal! So it passed some stupid test".

Noooo......it didn't just pass "some stupid test" it passed THE test!

In the US, the Federal Government has mandated that if you're going to sell Biodiesel commercially then it has to meet a strict standard battery of tests. If it passes then the government will let you sell it and you can claim that you indeed have "Biodiesel".

So why is that a big deal? Well, it's big because most homebrewers can't hit it. In fact, there's very few folks out there making Biodiesel in home-made processors that have hit the standard. Most fail this or that or some other thing, but few ever hit it.

Over a year ago I ran across this group though called AGR Energy that had created a personal biodiesel processor that they claimed COULD hit the mighty ASTM. So, after looking into the whole thing for a while I learned that, yep, it was legit. So I bought one!

One thing led to another & the next thing you know I now am a dealer for the things and not only that, I set up all the dealers for the company as well.

I liked the thing THAT MUCH!

"Bid Deal" you say, "so it can pass a stupid test & you're impressed with it. Why the big wup?"

Well, because not only can this thing pass an ASTM test, but it's incredibly easy to use and it's built like a tank.

Mix that with the fact that it can make good fuel and you now have a machine that practically anyone can use to make Biodiesel that's good enough to sell. Now THAT's something!!!!

So, now you can see why it's such an awesome thing to see these things scream past ASTM. Note: It didn't just "Barely" make it. It SCREAMED past it!

That means the fuel quality of bio coming out of one of these things is just incredible!!!

We now have a machine that anyone can use, that produces biodiesel, that allows you to make fuel good enough to sell.

So why is that such a big deal?
Well, have you seen diesel prices lately?

Don't know about you, but that trend sure looks like it's headed on it's way up!

Not only can we make incredible fuel in a BioPro, but we can do it for under a $1.00 a gallon. Now THAT's something to get excited about!

So, there you have it. Why I'm so excited to see Lyle's BioPro scream past the ASTM tests.

Congratulations Lyle! My hats off to you!

If you'd like to learn more about the BioPro's, go here:
Link to the BioPro's:

-Graydon
Still as rabid as ever about Biodiesel.

I hate washing machines....and other ramblings

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 13:57:00 +0000

Today's first post is a little "non-biodiesel" related "rant".

I'm now doing my business full time (Utah Biodiesel Supply) and I've been trying to help out around the house (keeps the Mrs. happy). As part of my "duties", I've been helping to do the laundry.

My first task was to get the laundry room organized so I could walk in, sort clothes, & start a batch of wash.

A trip to Wallys World (Yes, the dreaded Wal-Mart to some of you...is that shiver running up your spine yet?) netted me 4 laundry baskets. Two Blue, One Tan, and one white.

Blue#1 - Towels
Blue#2 - Dark Clothes
Tan - Light Clothes
White - White Clothes (duh!)

So, the past couple of weeks, when I've been in town (I was in Denver last week at the Biodiesel Conference (http://www.collectivebiodiesel.org) I've been helping do the laundry & keep on top of it with these super-cool laundry baskets.

Enter this morning (Damn washing machine!)
So I get up early (even went to BED early), got showered & dressed & decided to help the wife out by starting a batch of laundry.

So I walk in, sort out a bunch of laundry, put the whites in the washer & get it started, push the knob, turn the knob and "SNAP!" the knob falls off! CURSES!!!

So, here I sit with a load of laundry that's started and the knob to the washer in my hand. UGH!!! Not ANOTHER problem! (This week has been sheer hell!).

So, I think to myself, "Oh great, NOW what do I do?"

Tried the super glue....funny, super glue never works, I think it's the greatest hoax known to man....

OK, now what? So I jump online out to Sears website cause my washer is a Sears Lady Kenmore Heavy Duty 90 Series (I'm good, huh!)

See how to get the model # off the stupid thing, go back over to it and write it down, go online to Sears Parts website (man that thing is cool!) and start looking for my part.

Can't find it so I call the parts line & they walk me through finding it (I had a digit off when I was writing it down) and we determine what the part is.

$21.99 for that stupid knob!
$17.99 to expedite the stupid thing!
Add on tax & whoala! My "helping with the laundry" just turned into $40.00 that I really didn't want to spend!

Here's the diagram to my washer.

I had to buy Part #13.

$21.99 for that stupid knob!!!

So, for now we get to use a pair of pliers to start the stupid washing machine and I'm contemplating if I still like helping with the laundry. Seems every time I help something happens. When I first started helping the dryer started going "Thump, Thump, thump" Turns out the drum inside the dryer has a hole in it from wearing itself out.

A little Duct tape fixed that sucker! Ha! I won! I beat those stupid appliances....at least for now.

I'm sure in the not-so-distant future I'll be spending a crap load of hard earned mula on a new washer & dryer set. For now the duct tape, pliers, and a $41.00 part will have to do.

-Graydon
The Rabid Biodiesel Nut

AGR Energy - Quite the crew!

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Fri, 09 Mar 2007 07:02:00 +0000

A couple of weeks ago I had the chance to go & visit a place I've been eagerly awaiting to see for many months now. It was the headquarters for AGR Energy.

Now, you may ask who AGR Energy is? Well, they're none other than the inventors and manufacturer of the BioPro Biodiesel Processors! That's who!

These guys are cool too! During my tenure involved in Biodiesel I have yet to meet a group smarter, more polite, more ingenious, and more talented than this group of guys.

They've come up with what I believe to be the Mercedes of personal Biodiesel processors. If you've read my blog you've heard me rave about how cool their products are (the BioPro 190) as well as how great they've been to work with as well.

Well, now that I've been to their place, seen what they do, and watched them in action, I'm even a bigger fan!

These guy's have figured out so many of the problems that home brewers run into and solved them so well that it's downright astounding! I was like a kid in a candy factory!

Galen, their mechanical engineer (and the G in AGR), walked me through how the machines are built and how they were engineered. He'd be showing me something and a big "Aha!" would go off in my head thinking, "So THAT's how you can solve that problem!" A lot of the things they showed me I can't share publicly with you all here (or else I'd have to kill you), but some I can.

One of the neat things that really impressed me is their use of the vent fan. It's mounted way up on top of the machine just over the oil tank inlet. This puppy is HEAVY!!!! They didn't go for anything chincy here at all! Nope. The thing is The Real McCoy! And MAN can it put out some serious air!

Well, not only is it perfect for helping to get rid of fumes under the hood, but the thing acts as a venturi to draw out the moisture from the biodiesel when it's drying. Man, how cool is that?

Other things included an ingenious way for the machine to identify when it had discharged all the water and hit Biodiesel and things like how to keep the elements from burning out because of oil contamination.

I'm tellin' ya, these guy's are downright incredible!

So, how incredible? Well, lets talk about some of the cool advances.

How about a machine that regularly will pass the 3/27 methanol test?
How about a machine that's as easy to use as a dishwasher?
How about a machine that only requires you to push buttons to make Biodiesel?
How's dem apples?

It's true! The things just plain & simply rock!

Here's a link to a couple photo galleries I put together from my "trip" to AGR.

This link is to a photo gallery of how to use the processor.
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/biopro/biopro190/usingtheprocessor/
Check it out! It's pretty darn easy!

This one's to some pictures I took of the biodiesel passing the 3/27 test.
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/biopro/BioProqualitytestkit/

And this one....this one is to their new toy...the big, bad BioPro 380!
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/biopro/biopro380/BioPro380gallery/

This is the REAL reason I went! The thing is incredible! Instead of producing a measly 50 gallons every 48 hours, this puppy produces 100 gallons every 48 hours. Yep! It doubled it!

Now, that may not sound like much to you, and you may have seen some of the poly processors out there, but lemme tell ya, that 48 hours includes the following:
1- Processing (Acid AND Base method)
2- Washing (it washes 3 times)
3- Drying (an agitated heated drying With that cool fan!)

So, not only does it just make the bio, but it also washes and dries the stuff so that it's ready to use right from the tank.

The thing is just downright incredible!

I'm telling you the thing rocks!

Here's Galen with it:

And here's some of the Biodiesel it produced:

Pretty cool lookin' stuff, huh!

Wanna see why it makes such good bio?

It's all in that propeller.

Here's what it looks like when it's mixing:

Yep. It really can mix!

The thing is just incredible!

One of the other cool things it solved was how to mix the methoxide properly.

Yep, that oughta do it. Even the methoxide tank has an impeller in it!

I was so dang impressed by what I saw that it was astounding! I was sold on BioPro's before I got there but once I saw the new toy I had perma-grin on my face for the rest of the trip.

Amazing, simply amazing stuff!

I loved it!

Anyway, there's a lot more that'll be coming from these guy's. You can bet that's for sure!

I just figured I'd show you what I saw on my trip.

I also had a chance to have some great food (and introduce the BioPro crew) with Girl Mark and some of her class participants. The thing was great!

Well, more later....I just thought I'd share some of "what I've been up to" lately...

-Graydon

Biodiesel Toys Galore -- And Cool ones this time!

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Fri, 02 Feb 2007 00:33:00 +0000

Well, we've been busier than a squirrel collecting nuts before the winter....

Since it's been WAY TOO COLD outside, we've been concentrating on collecting a whole bevy of neat new toy's to help playing with Biodiesel all that much more fun....

So, without further adeiu...

Biodiesel Testing Equipment
In October, I had the opportunity to go to the premier Biodiesel workshop of them all. It's the one that Iowa State University puts on twice a year.

Take some of the most influential Biodiesel researchers in the United States, throw them all into the same room, throw in some incredible material for them to teach from; much of which has been the reference guide of all of the biodiesel home brewers out there for years as well as the commercial Biodiesel production shops, and you've got an idea what this conference is all about.

It's not cheap (runs $1,000 a head), but it's a week long and it's the most intensive and comprehensive Biodiesel workshop on the face of the planet! I absolutely loved the thing!

I absolutely loved it and I got to meet some of my Biodiesel hero's...

The guy on the far left is Dr. Jon Van Gerpen. The mans a genius when it comes to Biodiesel!

But, I digress...we're talking about Biodiesel Testing Equipment and what's some Workshop that Graydons so excited about got to do with that, right? Well, actually, A LOT!

While I was there we made several batches of biodiesel. We intentionally screwed up several batches of biodiesel.

Then we tested the crap out of them!

Here's a preview of some of the neat equipment we ran across...
Water Titrator

This thing would measure water content with extreme accuracy. What a cool toy!

A really cool Gas Chromatograph....Rick of B100 Supply sells these puppies too so I thought I'd get a picture by one.

Hot Plates & Lab Equipment

Really, really cool Gas Chromatographs...

Separatory Funnels (I really drooled over those...)

Screamin' Accurate scales (man I wanted one of those!!!)

Here's some of the soap we made...

And then we took the biodiesel we made and walked into the next room and that's when the REAL drool started....

As we shuffled into the room and took a seat we saw some interesting equipment on a table sitting up at the front. Dave Clements walked up & introduced some people from a neat company that claimed to have some really cool equipment to show off.

They told us that with little to no effort they could measure Total & Free Glycerin and the Free Fatty Acid content of any oil with great ease...

I thought, "Yeah, right...the only way they can do that is with a.....oh my gosh....with an ENZYME!!!!" We'd just learned about using enzymes to make Biodiesel and how good they are but how they don't really work economically.

Well, I was right.

Right before my eyes they sampled some biodiesel, stuck it in some test tubes, mixed it (with this REALLY COOL vibrator), and then stuck it in this machine, pulled it out & then the results printed out. THAT WAS IT!!!

We were able to measure total glycerin without a GC!!! And there was no interpretation to do! It was that easy! It just spit out the objective results!!!

I HAD to have one (or figure out how I could get one so I could sell it).

Well, one thing led to another and I was able to procure distribution rights and I'm now proud to say that I carry the thing. It's just incredible!!!

Here's what it looks like:

More info on it here:
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/saftest.php

....NEXT!!!!

Ok, on to the next piece of equipment...

So, while I was there I also met this really cool group of people that have a Biodiesel plant in New Mexico. Over the next month or so we arranged to go out & see them at their factory & while I was there I again had the chance to see some more really cool toys.

It was here that I saw Amberlite and saw & heard first hand just how cool the stuff was. Man, talk about some incredible stuff! Makes Magnesol look so.....last year!

But, that wasn't the neatest thing. While there he pulled out this thing that can only be called a jar w/ a gauge on it.

I asked him what it was & he said, "Wanna see?" Well, do dogs like to chase cats? Heck ya I wanted to see!

So, he pulls out this little packet of powder, pulls out a sample of oil & say's, with this [oil] and this [packet of powder], you can test the water content of oil or biodiesel...."NO WAY", I thought....I'd just seen this expensive piece of equipment back in Iowa that did the same thing, how in the world can something that small do the same thing?

Well, guess what...IT CAN!!! and it can do it with extreme precision (clear down to .005% water content).

It's called a Water Test Kit and it was designed by Mobil 1 a while back to measure the water content of any oil. Mobil 1 had certified it and used it on a regular basis. Well, a company called Sandy Brae Laboratories bought the rights to it and now sells the thing.....well....as you can guess, it didn't take long for me to get a hold of them too!

Behold, the water test kit!

The thing is just super cool!

More info here...
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/biodieselwatertestkit.php

...NEXT...

Biodiesel Glycerin Based Soap

As many of you know, I'm a HUGE fan of Piedmont Biofuels. Well, a long time ago they bought some soap that me & Jack Jones made & they said they really liked it....well, I'd quit selling the soap because I ran out & they said they'd explore making it.

Well, about 4 months ago I received a nifty package that had Soap Kettle, Inc on it & contained some samples of soap in it with a letter from a soap maker that wondered if I'd be interested in selling her soap.

For those that have been in Biodiesel for a long time you quickly realize that it's a very small world in Biodieselville and this was no exception.

Turns out this soap maker was making soap from glycerin that she'd received from Piedmont Biofuels that they'd asked her to make because they'd bought my soap so long ago and wanted to be able to show people that it could be done. Small world, eh?

So, after we got through the pleasantries and the "Holy Cow, You're Graydon Blair?" and the "You mean you're making the soap from Piedmont's Glycerin?" we got down to business and started putting together a plan to get me some soap to test the market with.

So, now I've got soap that's made from a soap maker that makes soap from glycerin made from Piedmont Biofuels biodiesel that came about because they bought some soap from me. Man, those Piedmont guys....they somehow fit into the picture of all things Biodiesel in one way or another....

Yep. I guess somehow I'm part of that small world. I consider it a great honor.

Now on to some cool things....

As many who've known me long will remember, I'm a big advocate of teaching others about Biodiesel. I give a lot of stuff away, I teach a lot of people, I put on workshops, I present a lot of presentations in schools, and I'll talk to pretty much anyone that will listen to me about Biodiesel and why I think the whole world should be into it.

Well, I had a chance to do just that the other day.

I sit on the board of Utah Clean Cities. Occasionally Beverly Miller, who runs the Clean Cities program in Utah, will give me a call & tell me about some cool event that is requesting a Biodiesel expert.

This day was no different and I was thrilled!

Turns out something called a Utah Debate conference was being held and the topic this year was "Should Utah create an alternative energy policy?" I was asked to put together a booth for Biodiesel for it.

So, imagine a lunch room in a local middle school with the lunch tables organized in a big U. Imagine that you have to fill a whole table with Biodiesel stuff and then imagine that about 600 elementary age kids will be filling the room throughout a 3 hour period and it's your job to convince them that Biodiesel is the way to go!

Well, it went off extremely well! Normally when I do these things I make about 20 or 30 copies of handouts and end up only giving out 10. So, for this one I figured it'd be the same. I made 20 copies of a really nice handout for these kids fully expecting I'd have some left over, printed up a bunch of other things to fill the table with & laid everything out.

I got everything laid out & ready and waited for the kids to come hoping they'd be somewhat interested in Biodiesel. Well, they DEFINITELY were interested! In fact, within one hour all of my handouts were gone and the kids were starting to take my single page handouts.

It was HUGELY successful! I had a chance to talk to lot's & lot's of kids and introduce them to Biodiesel for the first time. It was so fun watching their faces light up as I told them about how cool it was to make the fuel (I had LOTS of samples there to show off) and how good it is for the environment.

I think my booth was one of the more popular there as they just kept coming and coming. Question after question was answered and more kids kept leaving the booth with big smiles on their faces. I LOVED IT!!!

By the end of the 3 hours my voice was hoarse, my feet were tired, and I was absolutely thrilled to have been a part of it.

I even get to have some information published on their "debate" website so that even more kids will have a chance to be introduced to Biodiesel. It give ya a nice, warm fuzzy feeling inside when you know you've had a chance to influence that many of the future generations for good.

Here's hoping at least a few of them keep pushing for Biodiesel and asking for it at their local gas stations and maybe even try to make some one day. As they say, it takes a village to raise a kid, hopefully I got to be a small part of that to a lot of kids.

So, that's my thrilling adventure for the past few months. I celebrated my 4th year playing with Biodiesel last December and I'm still thrilled as ever to be a part of it. It's just so cool that you can take garbage from a restaraunt, filter it a bit, add some chemicals and turn it into fuel! It's just utterly amazing! It still excites me to talk about it and I still enjoy telling newbies how it can be made.

I know, I probably need my head examined, but if this is insanity, I like it!

Well, have fun folks & keep brewing!

Graydon
That Rabid Biodiesel Nut from Utah

A Piece of Biodiesel History (for me anyway)

noreply@blogger.com (graydonblair) — Fri, 08 Dec 2006 04:42:00 +0000

I was going through my old emails today (man I get a lot of email!) and ran across one that'd I sent myself with a list of forums to include on my website.

It was really old too..June of 2005 old...yep, that old.

Anyway, back to the story.

So I started going through the forums & posting them to my site (they're in the Helpful Web Links section) when I ran across Frybrids Forum http://www.frybrid.com/forum/

Frybrid is a company that sells a conversion kit that you can put on a vehicle and it'll run straight veggie oil.

Well, while I was there, I saw this:

I clicked on it & noticed that it was the SAME EXACT CAR I'd read about nearly 4 years ago! Not only was it the one that I read about, but it was the one that got me into Biodiesel.

Here's what it looked like when I read about it:

It was a bonified veggie oil-burning, uglier than sin Diesel Chevette.

Here's the two articles that I'd read all those years ago late at night one night.
Article #1:
http://www.dieselchevettes.com/greasel.htm

Article #2
http://www.dieselchevettes.com/3500_miles_in_this.htm

Boy, I can still remember the night I read the articles and a light went on in my head that's never dulled since.

So here's the short version of how the Rabid Biodiesel Nut went from a normal, diesel lovin' guy to a Rabid Biodiesel Addict.

My dad, who is massively into diesels, and especially Isuzu diesels, had just picked up a Chevette Diesel. You see the engine in it was made by Isuzu.

The car looked like crap (and I mean REALLY looked like crap) and I'd had it over to my place cleaning it up a bit. Stunk to high heaven inside too, but the stupid thing ran.

So anyway, back to the story....

So he's bought this ugly chevette diesel and since we were going to try to get it road worthy, I decided to start researching it & ran across the article above.

I thought, use Veggie Oil in a diesel? No way! That's just ludicrous! (I remember thinking that too!) Well, then I read how this guy had driven all across the US pulling a trailer full of WVO behind his Chevette and the magic happened.

"Dude, I can think of a TON of restaraunts that'd give me their grease!"

But then the brick wall....turns out to run a diesel on WVO you've gotta do a conversion to the vehicle.

Now, for those that know me, you know I also drive an Isuzu Diesel Pickup...thing looks like...well, about as bad as that Chevette.

And, seeing as I hadn't spent more than $500 for the thing, I wasn't too keen on investing a bunch of dough into it. I figured, heck, if I get in a wreck then I'm out all that investment.

....and that's when I stumbled onto Biodiesel.

Through doing some searches I ran across Biodiesel Now (http://www.biodieselnow.com) and started reading everything I could. I spent many a late night hooked to the thing, reading like crazy! I'd become a mad man! Obsession had set in....well, ok, maybe not quite yet, but it was getting there....

so as I went through the forum I started poking around & noticed that there was a guy in Salt Lake City (remember, I live in Utah) that was making & using this Biodiesel stuff. I thought, Hot Damn! I've gotta get ahold of this guy!

I think that was the winter of 2002. The Olympics were going on & everything.

So anyway, I got ahold of him & started emailing him & pestering him with questions about the legitimacy of it. Yep. It was legit!

So after the winter I got up the guts to actually try some in my truck. I drove up to his place & he let me put some in my truck & I headed home.

That wasn't my first time, but that's how I'd fill the thing up.

Anyway, half-way home the truck started to get quieter & I thought, EUREKA! This stuff is for real!

And...well....as they say...the rest is history.

I'm now a hopeless Biodiesel Addict, complete with my Biodiesel T-Shirt on while I write this blog post.

-Graydon
The Rabid Biodiesel Nut