Fuel Cell Diagram

I am a big fan of alternative fueled vehicles overall but I was always most optimistic about fuel cell vehicles. 5 Years ago I thought this was the automotive power plant of the future. Unfortunately it seems that the research and development of these vehicles has slowed to a crawl.

First let’s clear up what type of vehicle I am speaking of. A fuel cell powered vehicle contains a device that converts fuel directly into electricity to power the vehicle. It wasn’t long ago that fuel cells where seen as the solution to the problems of electric cars. We hoped that the technology would have been able to replace the lithium ion batteries currently installed.

In essence being able to remove the most troublesome part of an electric vehicle and replacing it with a renewable source of continuous electric power that would work in harmony with the electric drive systems that are currently installed in vehicles such as the Nissan leaf and Chevrolet volt.

How fuel cells work

Fuel cells do not store electricity they actually convert it as needed from chemical reaction. This power will spin electric motors that move the vehicle. Fuel cells release energy derived from the reaction between hydrogen and oxygen. They have high efficiency and depending on the fuel used produce little tailpipe emissions besides water.

Trunk mounted fuel cell

One problem is you need to supply hydrogen to the cell. There are several options for storing hydrogen and feeding it into the fuel cell to produce the chemical reaction that creates the electricity. One of the most common used in the experimental vehicles of today would be compressed or liquid hydrogen. The nice thing about a fuel cell is that it has no moving parts and ultimately requires no maintenance.

The construction of the fuel cell is similar to a battery as a fuel cell has two electrodes (positive and Negative). These are fed fuel and air through channels cut into plates. Between the electrodes is a coat of platinum catalyst which acts as the electrolyte needed to spur the chemical reaction. Hydrogen is pumped into one side of the fuel cell and air is pumped into the other side.

When the hydrogen flows across the catalyst material it turns into free electrons and protons allowing electrical current to flow between the negatively charged electrode and the positively charged electrode. These free electrons become current and are channeled to the electric motor that drives the vehicle. If power is not needed or created in excess it can be stored in a battery.

Slipping popularity of fuel cells

BMW Hydrogen Car

There are a lot of difficulties associated with this fuel cell technology. One of these would be safety concerns with storing compressed hydrogen. Another issue is that it takes some time for the cell to produce enough electricity to power the electric motor.

At this point the vehicles being built often include batteries to store energy and keep the vehicle going until the fuel cell is ready to take over. When I saw the first BMW 7 series luxury vehicle powered by hydrogen about six years ago I thought to myself that this would be the emerging technology of the future.

But the difficulty of mass producing the components has made it cost prohibited. Since gasoline electric hybrids are more widely accepted by consumers car companies have put most of their research and development dollars into this more popular form of alternative fueled vehicle.

Homemade hydrogen generator

Car-makers will research and develop technologies that have the best chance of being accepted by the general public. This makes a lot of sense and I can’t find any fault with that. For me I was always fascinated by hydrogen. I built my own science project type system. I was just blown away that my water and electrolyte mixture could produce combustible hydrogen.

It was like magic. I was totally into it and put a test system on my 2004 Chevy Blazer and entered it into the Fuel Cell HHO games that my local county sponsored. It was a lot of fun and there were a lot of creative people on the scene. As fuel prices pulled back people lost interest in pushing this type of hydrogen system forward.

It also didn’t help that people that got involved in this system where often attacked verbally for trying to think out of the box. But with all of this said I still think that hydrogen is the way to go in the future. You can’t beat powering your vehicle and the only byproduct coming out of the tailpipe being drinking water. I have many more articles on alternative fuels that may interest you. Read more articles about general auto repair from this next link that takes you back to the auto repair information blog. Interested in reading a few articles I wrote about increasing fuel economy on your current automobile? These type of articles always get popular when gas goes over the four dollars a gallon mark.

People Love Golf Carts

Why do people love golf carts and hate electric cars? I believe by now all of the major automobile manufacturers have developed an electric vehicle of some kind. The question seems to be why they are so unpopular with the general car buying public and will car-makers be able to turn this around and make them popular.

Some people argue that the EV’s still use fossil fuels, as in the power that recharges the batteries comes from power plants that consumes some type of fossil fuel or maybe if you’re lucky electricity that is produced from nuclear.

Just my personal opinion on the prior statement, I think that there is some truth to it but it would seem like a lot less fossil fuel is used to charge a battery then let’s say putting 20 gallons of unleaded regular or even diesel in your car or truck. You also get to send this electricity to your vehicle straight from the power plant.

In liquid fuel terms this is like an individual pipeline directly to your house from the oil refinery. And to be fair once the battery is charged electricity is able to directly produce mechanical energy. Other alternative fuels release stored chemical energy through combustion that creates a whole new set of problems.

On the downside the driving range for most electric vehicles is somewhere between 60 and 80 miles per charge range. If those numbers weren’t bad enough temperature such as a cold winter day, vehicle load such as a car loaded up for a camping trip and the high desired speed (above 55mph) will drastically reduce this range.

So even though there may be a list of drawbacks some of the primary advantages to an electric car would be the drastic reduction in emission levels and noise. Although the EV are far from the perfect solution it would be nice to see them become popular enough to push the technology further along. I think the current technology could be used in many families as an around the town form of transportation and more would take advantage of it if affordable.

Old technology electric vehicles

I’m stuck in the past using old technology on an electric vehicle project I may never finish. Meanwhile TV and newspaper articles are in my face about cool new stuff like lithium ion batteries or series hybrid technology. I started converting a pickup truck to an electric vehicle using old NiCad batteries from forklifts and construction equipment.

Heavy Comercial Batteries

The weight of the individual battery is impressive. Start putting these together to provide enough power to move the vehicle forward for about 25 miles between charging and you are talking about carrying an earth shattering amount of weight. Thankfully I picked a small pickup truck to haul the load.

So for me I’m jealous of people who start talking about how lame the Chevrolet volt is or all the problems they are having with a Toyota prius. These two vehicles use computer controls to push the envelope of efficiency. When I look at the dashboard of a Chevy volt my thoughts wonder back to the pickup truck I work on.

My electrical vehicle conversion closely resembles golf cart technology with speed controllers similar to radio controlled model cars. The Volt looks like it could launch space shuttle missions. I think electric vehicles are interesting and the more popular they become the more efficient technology will develop and of course the prices will come down.

If you do not like these kinds of automobiles I am fine with that. But as my girlfriend says if you don’t have anything positive to say don’t say anything at all. Maybe if we could reduce the negative rhetoric about electric vehicles they would have a chance to achieve success.

The above is just my opinion and whether you hate or love them I think we could all agree that there is no going back to horse and buggies. I have a bunch more articles about the alternative fuels subject. For the latest articles to the site this next link will take you to the auto repair information blog homepage.

alternative fuels device

To get the maximum fuel economy from your vehicle you have to have an efficient running engine. There must be the correct amount of fuel mixed with the correct amount of air. When the engine is running at maximum efficiency not only do you get the best fuel economy and power but also the least amount of pollutants in the exhaust.

With all of these things to gain and nothing to lose why not make sure that your vehicle is getting the absolute maximum miles per gallon that it should be. Run an actual mpg test on your car to see what your getting. Yes, the reason I am writing this article is because gas prices are on their way up to some scary levels I have not seen since 2008.

Back then I went off the deep end and was trying some crazy things to increase my miles per gallon with alternative fuels. This time around I just want you to think about getting what the car manufacturer states is achievable mpg. I know in the case of the automobiles in my family most of them are not achieving the number that was posted on the window sticker.

This is mainly because of poor driving habits and the word lead foot comes to mind. But in a few cases it may also be caused by lack of maintenance of things such as the automotive air filter, fuel filter, spark plugs and other items responsible for complete combustion.

Problems that reduce fuel economy

Modern vehicles use a variety of ignition, fuel, and emission system designs but they all have a similar goal. This is to improve engine efficiency that can increase the produced horsepower at the same time as getting the maximum fuel economy and lowest possible emissions. These engine performance systems can contain some impressive automotive technology.

Check engine light

They mostly depend on a network of output devices that are tied to an electronic engine control computer that make decisions based on real-time data from input sensors. To boil it down the cars computer studies how the vehicle is running and what the driver is demanding from it. It will then make lightning fast decisions to provide first what the driver needs and second the most efficient fuel economy and emissions for those conditions.

This means that the driver always has the power to override getting the best fuel economy by smashing down on the gas pedal. But maybe it is not the drivers fault?  As they say with anything that has to do with computers it is garbage in and garbage out. If the input sensors that the computer relies on for its real-time data are not providing the correct information than the end result will not be maximum fuel economy.

The computer has parameters for sensing problems with its input and output devices. It should turn on the check engine light to let the driver know that something needs to be looked into. If you’re driving around with your service engine soon light on and complaining about fuel economy at the same time think about getting the problem diagnosed.

Often when money is tight repairs to the check engine light when the vehicle appears to be running fantastic can be put on the back burner. In some cases the problems that are keeping the light on may also be stopping you from getting the maximum fuel economy that your vehicle was designed to achieve. With the gas prices as high as they are now it may not take long to eclipse the total price of the repairs that might be needed by spending more on gas.

If I didn’t talk you into replacing your automotive air filter and fixing your check engine light yet, I have put together several pages on my other website that talks about driving habits and other things that you can do to get the maximum fuel economy from your car. If you would like to see additional articles posted on this website this next link will take you back the auto repair information blog homepage.

Me working on a diesel engine

Diesel fuel is a petroleum product that is not as popular in the United States as it is in other countries. As a resident of the United States and a strong believer in the benefits of diesel fuels I hope that the North American continent will someday embrace this type of fuel.

One thing that can be said about diesel is that it contains more energy per gallon than gasoline and therefore can be considered more efficient. The engine that burns this type of petroleum produces much more torque at lower RPMs because of high compression chamber ratios.

This makes it a perfect choice for trucks and trains that haul heavy loads and that will require massive amounts of torque to get that load moving.

The difference between diesel and gasoline

The fuel in a gasoline engine is ignited by a spark plug. The diesel engine uses its own high combustion chamber pressure to compress the fuel until ignites on its own. Gasoline is extremely flammable compared to diesel fuel.

The flammability of gasoline is measured using the familiar octane rating. Diesel fuel also has a measured ignition quality known as the cetane rating. Much like the octane number the cetane number is measured in a single cylinder test engine with an adjustable compression ratio.

The higher the cetane rating the shorter the ignition lag time before it is ignited by the compression stroke. An average cetane rating that can be found at the pump would be around 50. Whereas the average octane rating of gasoline would be around 87 on regular grade at the pump.

Different grades of diesel fuels

Minimum quality standards exist for diesel fuel grades. The two common grades of diesel fuel available would be number one diesel and number two. Number two is most commonly found at the fuel island in the local gas station. Number one can be blended with number two to improve starting in cold weather.

Different areas will blend the two fuels at different rates depending on how cold the climate is. The number two grade is more efficient and contains more energy. In winter months when number one is blended in it can actually reduce fuel economy.

Bio diesel fuels to me are the most interesting. These can be made from recycled restaurant grease and many different types of vegetable oils. Bio diesels fuels can be used all by themselves are blended with number one or number two grade fuels. If it can be produced cheap enough and then blended it can have very positive effects on the cost per mile.

In most cases to use a blended Bio diesel no engine modifications are required. It also does not affect the vehicles overall torque or horsepower and in turn does not reduce the vehicle’s ability to carry a payload. Research has also shown that emissions from blended Bio diesels can be lower compared to the number one and number two grade types.

As we all know the world needs to get off of fossil fuels. Solar, wind power and other cutting-edge technologies may take decades to get off the ground. Diesel fuel may be exactly what we need to bridge the gap to the future. Read more articles from this auto repair information blog. Or this next link will provide a bridge to more information about alternative fuels.

Battery powered fuel siphon

Sometimes although not often fuel quality problems can cause extremely hard-to-find engine drivability problems and repeat failures of fuel system components. Described below will be an effective way for you to check the basics of your fuels quality.

Keep in mind that you will need an accurate fuel sample from the vehicle you want to test. Although there are several safe ways to remove fuel from your tank I recommend that you pick up a special fuel siphon hose from your auto parts store. Or I have a link to the one pictured to the left at the bottom of the article.

You will also need a glass cylinder that is graduated in milliliters (also available below). In order to keep the testing simple it is best to use round numbers. Your graduated cylinder should hold 100 ml and have a cap to prevent tainted results. Don’t worry you do not have to be a scientist to conduct this test but you will need a gas sample and a graduated cylinder.

Why test fuel quality

Premium Fuels

Before I get into this short and sweet procedure for testing your fuel quality let’s talk about why it needs to be done sometimes. On a few occasions I have been faced with drivability problem that seemed impossible to solve that was eventually traced back to contaminated fuel.

I have also seen repeat failures of fuel pumps and related components due to excess alcohol content in the vehicle’s fuel supply. Too much alcohol in the fuel can do a lot of damage but one of the most common results is repeat fuel pump failures.

Many areas of the country use oxygenated fuel to help improve air quality. The additive that is used to oxygenate the fuel is most commonly alcohol. Chemicals such as ethanol have the same effect on the fuel system as alcohol.

If the alcohol concentration exceeds 10% by volume this can cause the engine to run lean. A lean running engine has higher combustion chamber temperatures and can increase wear to items such as spark plugs, valves and seats and the fuel system components such as pressure regulators and injector nozzles.

How to test for fuel quality

Fortunately you do not have to be a scientist to find out how much alcohol is in your fuel. Take a fuel sample from the test vehicle and fill your graduated cylinder to the 90 mL mark. Next you add 10 mL of water to the graduated cylinder to bring the total contents to 100 milliliters.

Now you snap the sealing cover over the end of your cylinder and shake the mixture thoroughly for about a minute. Then you can place to cylinder on a level surface and allow the solution to settle so that the different fluids separate. I usually wait an hour or two before I examine the cylinder.

GM fuel pump

Since water is heavier than gasoline the water will settle to the bottom of the cylinder along with the alcohol that is in the fuel. Water and petroleum products do not mix but alcohol and water will bond to each other and fall to the bottom of the cylinder.

If the fuel contains any alcohol the water level will be greater than its initial reading of 10 mL if the new watermark exceeds the 20 mL mark on the graduated cylinder that indicates a concentration of more than 10% alcohol. If there is more than 10% alcohol in your fuel it should be replaced along with your fuel filter. This will avoid any of the problems that can result from having too much alcohol in your fuel.

Note if you just want to test for water in fuel, you will need to get the fuel sample from the bottom of the tank. You can then just fill the cylinder to the 100ml mark and let it settle before observing the results.

The above method was taught to me by an automotive instructor in a General Motors training class. He provided us with one of the glass cylinders for us to take back to our shops. I don’t use it that often but when I do I find fuel quality problems about 25% of the time. For more information that might help you out of a jam you can return to see the latest posts on the auto repair information blog.

Back 10 or 20 years ago, these two types of fuels were at the leading edge of most alternative fuel programs and were considered to be the wave of the future.

I was so convinced of this that I studied and became certified in CNG powered vehicles. Although both of these fuels are extremely interesting they are still both fossil fuels. This would seem to be the main reason that interest has faded in both of these types of fuels.

First, we will discuss LPG or liquid petroleum gas. Fuel grade LP is almost pure propane with a small amount of butane, which is why many people simply refer to it as propane.

They call this LP because it is stored as a liquid in a pressurized bottle. The most common containers look just like the one that’s mounted to your propane barbecue grill.
You will also find many forklifts that still use this type of fuel. The LPG tanks that are mounted on the forklifts will look more like a beer keg.

Propane or liquid petroleum gas is perfect for a forklift that operates inside of a large warehouse.

These types of alternative fuel burn clean because the fuel is vaporized at atmospheric temperatures and pressures. This means that it emits less hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide.

These properties also allow for easy engine start up even in the coldest climates. This is probably why we will continue to see LPG powered forklifts operating in warehouses.

Even though LP gas is a good alternative to unleaded gasoline is still a fossil fuel. Therefore, you will probably not see the automotive industry develop this environmentally friendly fuel into a possible solution for the future.

More alternative fuel types

Compressed natural gas vehicles offer some advantages over their gasoline-powered counterparts. Even though CNG is a fossil fuel, it does cost less than regular unleaded fuel. It is also the cleanest alternative fossil fuel.

CNG generates up to 99% less carbon monoxide than gasoline. There is also almost no sulfur dioxide in the emissions as well as greatly reduced hydrocarbons.

CNG vehicles can be safer than most people realize. CNG is highly pressurized at about 3000 psi. But the fuel tanks used are designed to withstand severe crashes.

These CNG tanks are made of a composite material with plastic bladders, wrapped in fiber. They have done extensive testing exposing these tanks to burning and even direct gunfire.

These composite compressed natural gas tanks have passed tests that no sheet-metal gasoline tank would have passed.

Another advantage to CNG is that it generally reduces vehicle maintenance because it burns so much cleaner than liquid gasoline. Also note that natural gas is abundant and readily available in the United States.

Although the infrastructure could use updating to make the retrieval and processing of this gas more efficient.

Disadvantage of CNG

This type of alternative fuel also has a couple of disadvantages. The largest disadvantage of compressed natural gas in the present day is its limited distribution network.

Fuel facilities are needed in greater number than are currently in existence due to the relatively shorter range of CNG powered vehicles.

Also, the space taken up by the CNG fuel tank is considered a disadvantage to most vehicle manufacturers. These fuel tanks can also weigh more than a standard vehicle’s fuel tank.

Another disadvantage of CNG vehicles is the pressures that they run at. As I stated above, the fuel tank pressure is at around 3000 psi. This used to make fueling the tanks a very slow process, although these fueling systems have been recently updated to quicken the refueling of CNG powered vehicles.

So even though both of these types of alternative fuels offer many advantages to the automotive industry. The disadvantage that they are still fossil fuels seems to have killed the development of vehicles that are powered by them.

Leave your comments and opinions in the fields below. Also, let me know what you think the best type of alternative fuel of all time is.

Alternative fuels

A concern of fossil fuel inventories reaching record lows and increased emissions standards for automobiles has led to an explosion in alternative fuel research. There are many factors to be considered when determining a viable source of alternative fuel.

These will include engine emissions, cost, fuel availability, safety, engine life and being able to build an infrastructure to deliver this combustible fuel.

Alternative fueled vehicles

Many vehicles on the road are designed to use something other than gasoline as fuel. These are commonly referred to as dedicated vehicles or multiple fuel vehicles. Dedicated vehicles are those designed to use one particular type of alternative fuel such as diesel.

Multiple fuel vehicles are designed to use more than one fuel. Some of these bi fuel vehicles will have separate fuel tanks and can operate on one or the other.

Flexible fuel vehicles can operate solely on alcohol-based fuel, unleaded gasoline, or a mixture of the two. This property gives the driver flexibility and convenience when refueling the tank.

Types of alternative fuel

Diesel fuel vehicles are gaining in popularity, slowly. The ability for the modern diesel engine to meet increasingly tough emissions standards has made this a more viable solution for car manufacturers.

Some of these most recent diesel powered cars are not only able to and meet emission standards. But receive 50 miles to the gallon or more in fuel economy without sacrificing power.

Being able to fuel these vehicles with biodiesel makes the subject even more interesting. Biodiesel fuels are derived from renewable biological sources for use in diesel engines.

Things such as animal fats, recycled restaurant grease, and vegetable oils derived from crops such as soybeans, corn and sunflowers are used in the production of these biodiesel fuels.

Biodiesel fuel can be used directly or be blended with standard diesel fuel. Another advantage of bio diesel is it’s a biodegradable alternative fuel that is non-toxic and free of sulfur. To use biodiesel no engine modifications are needed. And the emissions from the combustion are considerably lower compared to the standard diesel fuels.

Ethanol as an alternative fuel

Last year ethanol-based alcohol fuel was big in the news. Ethanol fuels are derived almost exclusively from corn, although Barley and wheat can also be used. The fuel is formed through fermenting and distilling starch crops that have been converted to simple sugars. Ethanol provides high quality, low cost octane fuel and is capable of reducing air pollution because it burns cleaner than unleaded gas.

Currently, ethanol is primarily used as an oxygen additive in gasoline, better known as winter blended fuels. Ethanol blended fuels account for approximately 20% of all automotive fuel sold in the United States.

Ethanol blended fuels are approved under the warranties of all major car manufacturers. Another advantage of an ethanol-blended fuel is that it keeps the fuel system clean because it does not leave varnish or gummy deposits like standard gasoline.

Being a type of alcohol, ethanol can absorb moisture in the fuel system and remove it during combustion very similar to a dry gas additive. If water contamination becomes too high it will separate out and fall too the bottom of the vehicle’s fuel tank where it can be removed.

The downside of using an ethanol blended fuel is a slight decrease in fuel economy. This will vary depending on the amount of ethanol blended into the fuel. But as a rule of thumb it is stated that an ethanol blended fuel will receive approximately 2% less fuel economy then straight up gasoline.

Alternative fuels discussion

In this blog post, we discussed two types of alternative fuels. We talked about biodiesel and ethanol blended fuels. My next blog post will address two more types of alternative fueling.

Leave your thoughts and comments about this post as well as ideas for the two types of alternative fuels to be discussed in the next blog post.

You can return to the homepage from this next link and see what else is covered on this auto repair information blog.

Electric hybrid vehicles

The big difference is, instead of a gas engine, this bus has a 5.9 L Cummings ISB common rail diesel engine. This diesel engine is coupled with a hi torque electric motor and power is blended to the wheels through an Alison CVT transmission.

The constant variable transmission is much like driving a snowmobile where you never feel the transmission up shift to the next gear. The transmission changes gear ratios on the fly to provide more speed at the optimum RPMs.

Electric hybrid diesels

Another thing that is different then on many hybrid vehicles is that the diesel engine never shuts off. In the best case scenario when the electric motor is driving the vehicle the diesel engine is still idling. The old transit buses received somewhere around eight to 10 miles per gallon.

The new hybrid electric transit vehicle will double the miles per gallon and should receive 16 to 20 miles per gallon. These specifications are for the ultimate of city driving. A transit bus is a stop and go vehicle and if it is lucky may reach 40 mph a few times during the day. Note that the batteries are on the roof of the electric hybrid vehicle and are recharged by engine braking.

Another interesting part about the diesel side of the vehicle is that this diesel engine manufactured by Cummings meets all of the latest alternative fuels emissions standards. You will not see belching black smoke from the fancy exhaust pipe shown in the picture below. The reason is that the 2009 standards include a particulate filter. This filter will pull most of the carbon from the exhaust being emitted from the tailpipe.

hybrid electric

These particulate filters are new to the market and do require service. I am scheduled for training on this alternative fuels hybrid electric vehicle. But I did poke around and see that the diesel engine and emissions system comes with a regeneration cycle to be performed by the mechanic. When you enter the regeneration cycle, you are basically cleaning the diesel particulate filter.

Hybrid electric maintenance

When I read the maintenance manual about this procedure, it stated that the exhaust gases during this regeneration cycle could reach 1000°F. They stress that you perform the regeneration cycle in a safe area because of this exhaust heat. After I go through some training classes about these electric hybrid vehicles I will add more details.

Another interesting feature to the alternative fuels bus, as you can see in the picture below is that the windshield is massive and in one piece. The front windshield has a slight domed shape that provides better aerodynamics than a standard flat windshield. Also the headlights are halogen high intensity but low power units.

electric vehicle image

This hybrid electric vehicle is packed with new technology including Multiplex systems throughout. This is were about ten different modules communicate with each other via cabling (soon to be fiber optics). Multiplex systems replace wiring harnesses and relays. This is said to have reduced the wieght of the transit bus by more then 200 pounds.

Bringing the total vehicle weight in at 29,000 pounds. This is very impressive for a bus that is 40 foot long and seats just under 50 people and 2 wheel chairs. Also this electric transit vehicle is pre-wired for cameras and traffic light changing satellite systems. Looking at the electronics is similar to looking at electrical systems on the space shuttle.

For more information about interesting vehicles that provide power from something other than straight up gasoline, Please visit my alternative fuels section.

My water 4 gas comments section continues to grow. I have kept my promise and posted all comments both good and bad. Even the ones that are filled with hate and directly insult me and my belief in the hydrogen generating system. People get really emotional about this subject. You can review some recent comments down on the right side column. One of the most common statements I get is:  if this thing really worked how come General Motors is not using it. Well, I really don’t have an answer to that. I am just a car mechanic from Florida but I can tell you that I have belonged to the water for gas website and community for 13 months.

For me it has developed into an interesting little hobby. And this is one hobby that has had as many failures as successes. When I built my first hydrogen generator similar to the one pictured here. The first time I turned it on it melted. Needless to say the next generator I built used a glass jar instead of plastic. In my opinion my little test system yielded a few more miles per gallon, which spurred me on to continue my science project.

Water for gas convention

As luck would have it good old Ozzie Freedom, and his road show came to a town near me.

It was an open event that was a lot of fun. Me and my blazer, joined hundreds of other like minded people that built their own HHO generating systems. We shared stories about our trials and tribulations and laughed about our successes and failures. Thousands of believers and nonbelievers attended the HHO games in Manatee County Florida along with a few local government officials and some water4gas scam hungry reporters.

The highlight of the day was when I had a conversation with Mr. freedom. He has installed second-generation water 4 gas system, in his Volkswagen Jetta. This is a diesel powered 1.9 L turbo engine. Good old Ozzy stated that he received 70 miles per gallon on his trip from California to Florida. Keep in mind that a diesel powered Jetta already gets about 50 miles per gallon.

Water4gas improvements

The water 4 gas system installed on this vehicle has a few advances that make his results extremely believable to me. The biggest advancement in my opinion is the use of a pulse width modulated voltage signal to the hydrogen generator. This is the reason that my first test system melted. This pulse width modulated signal also solves the problem of the alternator full fielding and causing a fuel economy-draining load on the engine.

The second big advancement that you can see in the picture provided is that Ozzy’s fuel cell that generates the hydrogen is a large rectangular advanced unit. Another lesson that I learned from my test system is the larger the generator the more the output of hydrogen gas. As I went back to the water for gas website I immediately saw a new marketplace for members. This is an area where they sell ready to go water for gas kits including the pulse width modulated controller.

Now the question is for me do I belly up and pay for a system that has a better chance of yielding large results. Or do I continue down the road of my do-it-yourself science project.

I invite you to leave your comments right here so we can start a fresh discussion. Hate filled, good and bad will all be posted. And also take a minute to review the previous Water4gas posts and comments.

water4gas hho games and expo

The turnout to the event was fairly light due to the recent falling of fuel prices. There were about 1500 people in attendance. Everybody I spoke with agreed that this recent pullback in gas prices is more than likely a temporary situation. This is the main reason that the event continued as planned.

Summer Smith Bay News 9

The water4gas convention was held at the Manatee County public Fairgrounds in Palmetto Florida. This was extremely convenient for me because I live only about a half hour south of this location.

It was also great to see our county commissioners attend the event, along with Bay news nine Summer Smith. She is standing with her cammera man in front of an hho powered jet dragster.

Water for gas inventor

To me the highlight of the day was a short conversation with the water for gas founder Ozzie Freedom. There is no question that Ozzie is dedicated to improving the on-demand hydrogen systems. Mr. freedom drove his water for gas powered Volkswagen Jetta from California to southern Florida to attend this event. Ozzy’s Jetta is a rolling advertisement for his website.

Water4Gas Jetta

The interesting thing is the side of his car says that he gets 60 miles per gallon with this vehicle. During our short conversation when he showed me his improved system. He stated that his trip from California yielded 73 miles per gallon. So he sold himself short, when he put 60 mpg on the side of his car. Keep in mind that this Jetta is diesel powered and gets close to 48 miles per gallon without any improvements installed.

As a member of the water 4 gas website. I asked Ozzie about the recent improvements to the members area. He stated that this was just the beginning and that all members should expect a completely revamped website, along with a new HHO forum as well as a certified marketplace to purchase either a complete water4gas kit or individual components.

You can visit Ozzy’s new water for gas website here. Also continue on to read the rest of this post to see more pictures from the hho games.

My Water4gas System

I was hanging out with my Blazer and talking to people who were interested in the test system I have installed. Some of the visitors pointed out that I should take a look at some of the advanced systems that were being displayed throughout the fair. So I locked up my truck and I took a walk with my digital camera.

Using Water 4 Gas

There are some amazing hho generating systems available on the marketplace today. Some of these systems are high tech and capable of producing large amounts of hydrogen fuel to be mixed with your air intake charge. Looking at these systems it’s hard not to believe that large increases in fuel economy are very possible.

Large hho generator

In fact, there was an H2 Hummer with a giant hydrogen generator installed. The owner of vehicle states that he receives 70 miles per gallon on the highway. This would be extremely hard to believe unless you saw the way the system was installed.

The drawback to his on demand hydrogen system that is pulse width modulated, Is that the cost of the complete kit ready to install was over $1500. Just as interesting as this high tech system I saw several basic water for gas six-pack systems. This is where you connect six standard size hydrogen generators together in series and collect the hydrogen gas produced to be fed into your air intake system.

Hydrogen generators

The gentleman I spoke with, that had a nice compact six-pack generator installed stated he doubled his miles per gallon on his 1994 Saturn, which is now receiving just shy of 50 miles per gallon. He has less than $200 dollars invested in parts.

The water for gas exposition was very exciting. And I took lots of pictures. I will be posting more stories and images from the water for gas convention so stop back and visit me soon. Or you can visit the inventor of the water for gas movement website right here.

Ozzies water4gas setup

Lets keep the conversation going. Leave your comments and thoughts both positive and negative at the bottom of this post. Maybe our resident chemist Bob will stop by to rejoin the water4gas debate.

Wish I had good news about the electric truck conversion project. But the truth is that the Toyota pickup truck fell through, because the owner of the vehicle could not come up with the title. Thank God I did not start pulling it apart before I had the title in hand. I was very tempted to jump in because of my excitement for the electric vehicle conversion task.

electric truck motor

As I stated in my last post I purchased a how to conversion guide. I e-mailed Les, who put the manual together to ask him for some advice about the vehicle selection process. The vehicle you start with is the most important decision you will make. After talking with Les he recommended that I find an S10 pickup truck with a 2.5 L engine and a manual transmission.

When I started to do some research on converting this vehicle I found a lot of support and information available. In fact, they make high line electric conversion kits for this vehicle that contain everything you need including a 9 inch motor capable of 70 mph and all the parts and brackets pre-made. There is no question that these complete kits would be the way to go, but they are expensive.

As a side note, Les provided me with a sample of his conversion guide to give to visitors. Here is a link to my You fix cars website were you can grab it. This free electric vehicle conversion guide is only 12 pages. I am also going to post the video that has been my inspiration to continue with this electric truck conversion project right here. This is an amazing must see video.

Electric vehicle conversions video

There is no question that this project is not for the faint of heart or someone that has no experience at all working on vehicles. The task is still within reach of people that do their own oil changes or change their own car batteries. The bulk of the work is the removal of the parts that you will not be using after the conversion from the donor vehicle. This is considered the demolition process and does not take a lot of skill, but is heavy work.

In this video to follow, you will meet a guy who has been doing these electric vehicle conversions for more than a decade. Since he does this for a living his shop is extremely well equipped. But take a look at the video to see some of his completed projects and also a look at why he has chosen to do this full time.

Electric vehicle conversion

Electric motor installation image

You can see from the video that there is a lot of work involved. But you can also see that the finished product is well worth the time and effort. A converted electric vehicle can provide a lot of fun as well as a lot of financial gains as well. 70 MPH and a round trip range of 40 to 50 miles will be sufficient for most motorists.

Remember that you will want to keep your newly converted electric vehicle for many years to come. This is why you must take your time in the original vehicle selection process. I am now hunting for a 1985 through 1995 S10 pick-up with a 2.5 L four-cylinder engine and a manual transmission.

I would like to find one with a blown engine and a perfect body. I have seen plenty of these vehicles on eBay, but since the engines are still running, the prices are a little high. If you know, where there is such a vehicle with a blown engine and in excellent condition. Please leave a comment for me below. Also if you have converted any vehicle to a fully electric one please leave a comment with your overall view of the experience.

The idea of an electric vehicle conversion has sidetracked me from my water4gas ongoing project. I’m hoping that this post will bring Bob back around to comment on the subject. But first let me start by telling you how this happened.

I live in the South East part of the United States. For the last three weeks we have been going through something that I have never seen in my entire life. Gas stations are out of fuel to pump. Long lines and high prices are breaking records in my area. In many cases, you can wait in a gas line for an hour or more only to be disappointed when you finally make it to the nozzle.

As I sat in line in my water for gas converted blazer, my overwhelming thought was. I don’t care how many miles per gallon I’m getting. I don’t want to buy fuel at all. The only way for me to accomplish this goal would be an electric vehicle conversion. Note I may not be the average citizen because my daily commute is less than 20 miles round trip. This makes me a perfect candidate to be behind the wheel of an electric vehicle.

I would like to buy a Chevrolet Volt but this vehicle is 2 years away from production and will most likely be out of my price range. So I have acquired a 1987 Toyota pickup that will be the target of my first electric vehicle conversion. This is what I think will be the perfect platform to carry the batteries and also has room for the modifications required. I’m hoping that this post will attract readers that have experience at this conversion. And that they can provide some tips in the comments area.

I purchased an electric vehicle conversion guide and I am currently reading through the 5 e-books. So far I like the material in the main book and will provide a full review in my next post. My 2004 Chevrolet Blazer will not be the vehicle I will convert. So my water for gas testing will be put on hold for now, but I am not giving up on it and will continue to test and improve it in the future.

Electric vehicle conversion guides

There are lots of choices when it comes to purchasing one of these step-by-step how-to guides. A family that lives completely off the grid writes the one I purchased. They use wind and solar power to operate everything in their home. They have been doing this for 15 years. They use large banks of batteries to hold the energy created by their generators. They have become experts at reconditioning batteries.

This is what attracted me to their stuff over the other ones that were available. They also provided 4 bonus books that explain in detail how they created a life that is not only environmentally friendly, But is free of electric bills. Like I mentioned earlier, I will provide a full review on the complete package that I purchased in an upcoming post.

But so far the most interesting section has been about reconditioning batteries that will be needed to convert a vehicle to electric power. Deep cycle batteries can be very expensive and have a short life span. The ability to recondition the battery saves a lot of money, and also helps the environment by avoiding disposal of the toxic substances that are contained in batteries.

You can take a visit to the website by clicking on the book image. I am looking forward to your input and comments on this electric vehicle conversion subject. I’m also looking forward to possibly hearing from people that have already completed this task. And if I’m really lucky, I hope that Bob will resurface and provide some of his own input on this subject and also give us an update on how he made out with his water for gas system.

For new visitors who don’t know who Bob is. Bob is a chemist that is dead set against the theory of hydrogen generation for cars and the entire water4gas project as a whole. On Bob’s last comment, he had decided to purchase the water for gas guide and build his own test vehicle. We never heard back from his progress. Read through Bob’s comments it’s worth the time!

I am somewhat guilty of this myself. I have the water4gas system installed on my vehicle now for 2 months and still have not purchased the MAP sensor enhancer. I did take the scan gage unit out of my wife’s corolla and put it in my blazer to get a second opinion on the current results.

The scan gage confirmed my factory installed fuel trip computers reading of 21 mpg highway. This is up from the usual 15-16 mpg this truck usually receives. I have stopped using the system for city driving because the results are harder to track but it seems no improvement over my standard 15 mpg city is achieved by using it.

Water4gas founder states changes are coming

Here is a copy of the letter from the creator of the water for gas website that was sent out to members on 8/30/08.

Dear Water4Gas members: Hello, this is Ozzie Freedom.  I’m writing you this letter to let you know about something that many people have been waiting for:  The on-board computer solution.

Firstly let me just clear up a common misconception that many of you may have: Yes there are already companies offering complete solutions to the computer issues as related to the air fuel mixture problem associated with the obd II systems.

The reason we have not been pushing these or promoting them to our water4gas members is simply because they are expensive, secretive and not based on the Water 4 Gas business philosophy of No Secrets, no patents and with affordability and simplicity being the main focus.

You could pay $1,300 dollars or more to have the computer on any new car reprogrammed and you would never have to mess with any of the sensors on the engine or exhaust. Your Water 4 Gas system would work very nicely and have permanent lasting results. You could also pay another vendor out there hundreds to sell you his secretive “Super-Duper Fuel Cell” that comes with an enhancer that balances the signals from all the engine’s sensors and makes any other enhancers unnecessary. Again, this is a patented product and not available for all to make and install.

But what about the rest of us that want to install a simple, cheap do-it-yourself solution that does not require a Master’s Degree? I write this letter to you to let you all know that this is exactly what I and Water4Gas are making. I know many of you have been waiting for the complete solution to all on-board computer problems, so I am 100% dedicated to getting this device fine tuned and released for public to use in a matter of weeks.

I am working on a device that can be built and installed at home that will simply take the data from a standard Scan Gauge or similar computer, then use this information to send many signals to the vehicles factory installed fuel injection system which will in turn bypass the ECU completely. Thus giving us complete control of the fuel-air ratio and allowing the Water4Gas system to do its job, uninterrupted.

I will let you know next week of a website that will follow up on these developments.  You can give me your input and help us create this solution. Please keep doing what you are doing and spread the word about this vital technology.  We are the planet’s only hope for lasting Water-Fuel technology.  This will happen only if we work as a united global movement, not as isolated businessmen in competition with each other.

Visit the updated water 4 gas website and let us know what you think. Thank You for your time. Your partner in the water for fuel movement, Ozzie Freedom.
So I am glad I held up on purchasing the MAP sensor enhancer. We will see what Ozzie comes up with to solve the computer issues that stop the water for gas system from achieving giant gains. I am still happy with my 21 mpg highway but I am sure this can be improved.

Talking about water to gas can cause troubles. I have not posted to this blog in a little over a month. It is not because I didn’t have anything to say it’s because this blogs recent high traffic has also brought with it some problems.

Water to gas blogger is threatened

As you may know when you start a website your information is available publicly. Unless you pay extra to have this information hidden. I didn’t think that it was necessary, because I have no reason to hide from anyone. Well it is too late now but maybe I should have paid the extra money to keep my contact information private.

I received a series of calls threatening violence to my family and me if I did not remove this blog from the Internet. The callers claimed that they were trying to save the world from the water to gas products that have emerged. But in reality they were selling the water for gas stuff on their own website and my blog was getting in their way.

If there is one thing I value is my right to free speech! I did not remove my blog and continued to approve comments that were both for the water to gas products, and also the comments that were against the theory of hydrogen generation and products. Just because someone does not believe in the water to gas system does not give me the right to silence his or her opinion. Therefore if you look through the comments section on each of the posts that follow you will find opinions both for and against what I believe in.

Water to gas blog spammed

In my attempt to approve the negative and positive comments and keep on track of my belief in the freedom of speech this blog was spammed with thousands of fake comments. So instead of posting updates to this water 2 gas blog like I would prefer, I was sorting through and approving the genuine comments from the Spam. I want to thank all the people that stopped by to visit and took the time to write genuine comments about this highly contested subject.

Water to gas update

Yes, I have the fuel heater, and the water to gas hydrogen on demand system installed on my 04 blazer that has a fuel sucking vortec 4.3 L V-6. I have run my vehicle for the last four weeks and will now share some results with you.

First of all I had bought this truck Brand new in 04 and have run it in varying conditions for the last four years. This suv has received 15 miles per gallon in the city, and only 16 miles per gallon on the highway. I do not know why the fuel economy is so poor from this small V-6 truck. But I know other people with this vehicle and their results are the same.

The window sticker that came with the vehicle stated 17 miles per gallon highway. So my results are in line with what the vehicle is supposed to receive for fuel economy. With the water to gas hydrogen bubbler and the fuel heater installed. I have received 18 miles per gallon city and a recent trip to Fort Myers has yielded 21 miles per gallon on the highway.

I am quite impressed with these results. I also believe that there is more room for improvement. My next purchase will be an oxygen sensor enhancer and test the operation of this device.

The water for gas website includes access to a marketplace area where you can buy these devices already built. I plan on visiting the water for gas marketplace and purchasing one of these pre built devices. I will continue to approve your water to gas comments and keep you updated on further results.

I am glad I revisited the members area, because it really has grown fantastically. When you first purchase the product you’re taken to a download page that also provides links to all of the other features that the water4gas website provides for its users. Let me give you some examples.

The VIP lounge is basically like a site map for what is available to the community. It also provides a list of vendors and electronic stores that have been used by the community with good results. Basically the links in the VIP lounge are websites that deliver what they promise for fair pricing. I also liked the tax credit links and am looking forward to the look on my accountants face when I ask him to submit the supplied forms.

Also provided at the top of this list is a link to the water for gas forums. I spent a couple of hours going through the different threads and posts to this forum and found it very motivational and helpful. There are lots of individuals discussing their successes and failures with their specific model vehicles. And this can be very helpful to people with the same common vehicle. If your still stumped they provide a help desk that I have not used.

Water 4 gas what else is inside?

The frequently asked questions area is a must visit. It answered every question I have ever been asked about the system. Some examples are: You can add washer fluid to prevent freezing, how to charge the water, why and how to mix the baking soda and I could go on and on.

The water4gas marketplace is only accessible to people who have purchased the program. The market place contains high and low quality kits that are completely built, tested and ready to go. These complete kits range from $90 all the way up to $300. But it is nice to have the option to go ahead and purchase these items to push your project along quicker. I’ve had a lot of visitors to my blog that have purchased systems without buying the books and cannot understand why their system is not getting the results claimed.

The reason being is that they never purchase the books and do not understand how the system works. In most cases they have installed the hydrogen bubbler, but not the O2 sensor or map sensor enhancers. If you do this you will only get modest gains if any at all.

I am guilty of this same procedure. I installed the electrolyzer and tank plus the fuel heater, but not the sensor enhancers. I have received modest results because of this. I am seriously considering purchasing the ready-made sensor enhancers from the water for gas marketplace. This is mainly due to time constraints to build my own devices using the instructions and parts lists provided in the books.

Over the last seven months I have had a love-hate relationship with my water for gas system. But after seeing the improvements to the water for gas membership website, I have a new motivation to push forward with my system. I know one thing for sure gas prices will not be going down. And there are even talks about
five dollars a gallon in the United States. This is further motivation to continue with the project.

To sum it up: The water for gas website has come a long way and has become a community driven open source project that I am proud to be a part of. I see a lot of people insisting that the system doesn’t work. Yet they refuse to try it because they are smarter than everyone else. You will get out of the system what
you put in and you will get nothing if you don’t take action.

Yes, I’m going to put a link to the water for gas website Here. Yes it is an affiliate link, and I will receive a small commission if you purchase it. I will use the funds to reinvest into my system and report the findings, pay for hosting fees and parts supplies.

If you want to purchase the water for gas system without supporting my effort that is fine by me. Just go to the address bar and type in the website address directly, which I’m sure you know by now, press enter and you will have cut me out of the loop. Or visit the website from this link.