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Thursday, September 5, 2013

Fair Food and alternative fuels



It's Fair season in New England. I didn't go to the local one, but friends did. They called me the morning after the fair. They'd noticed quite of few jugs of waste fryer oil that was headed for the trash. Knowing that I run vehicles on waste oil, they gave me a call.

Now I've got good steady local sources, but I'm not one to pass up bonus fuel.

The jugs were piled up just where they said they were. I grabbed the first two, but something didn't feel right. There was no liquid slosh to the jugs. In fact, it wasn't waste oil in those jugs but waste shortening.

Shortening is a lot harder to use than waste oil. It needs to be heated to a liquid state, filtered, then pored into my vehicle's heated veggie tank. It takes longer to switch from diesel to alternative fuel. When shutting down, it's critical to switch to diesel first and really flush the shortening out of the engine. There's some thought on the WVO forums about shortening and other high transfat oils being hard on an engine's rings. I know it's tough on pumps and filters.

I unloaded the jugs and left them for the trash, as I'm not desperate for fuel.

Since then I've learned that those traveling Carnies use the heaviest shortening they can find. Once the fryers cool, the grease is in one solid lump. Liquid oils would slosh around as they drive down the highway.

So not only do I know something about alternative fuels, now I know why Fair food takes me three days to digest.

-Sixbears

11 comments:

  1. I guess ALL your readers have learned something!

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  2. I guess ALL your readers have learned something!

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  3. That is a good analysis, clogging the pipes can be used in several contexts it seems. Maybe keeping only the containers would have been a good idea - but where to store them ?

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    1. The containers don't really last that long. They are make just strong enough for single use. I get more of them than that, but they are fragile.

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  4. A fryer with hot oil sloshing is one reason i dont do frys with my BBQ i have jerry cans i can drain it in to but it is a pain todo.Most food vendors at a fetival use shortning/lard or peanut oil.These handle higher temps better.Six bear the solids those jugs would have probable were 25 to 40 % o the volume.At 40$ for 35 lbs a vendor works the oil to its death.A reasteraunt will filter it for more life a carnival just turns and burns as much product from it as they can.

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    1. They were unfit for use as a motor fuel, so what does that say about the food quality? I guess I'd better stick to the BBQ.

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  5. This is some good information. Thanks for sharing it with us!

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    1. You are welcome Hermit Jim. Thanks for the visit.

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