"Free Heat" Blue Flame Waste Oil Burner - Explanation / Startup / Update. (better footage)

[@wallacefrey6247]

If you don't get dizzy or pass out, then the air is fine. Trust me, I've lived among many chemical plants here on the Houston Ship Channel for over 57 years, and the second head growing from my neck gives me someone to talk to. It's great to see you making content again Joel, and I hope everything is going good for you.

[@loweredexpectations4927]

Haha... as long as you're not using that rule for more dangerous gasses like H2S ... There are lots of gasses like CO and CO2 and many TVOCs that give you lots of warning before they take you out... as long as you're not sleeping around them. Haha... "the seconds head". Thanks Wallace! Things are relatively well here.

[@billparker8954]

The hot water heater sounds pretty exciting!

[@loweredexpectations4927]

Yeah. Somewhat practical.

[@colinhamer6506]

You have now seen for yourself how amazingly well it works when you get it right. Now comes the harder part of making it reliable and safe to heat indoors . Keep in mind simple things always work best and use the power of heat rising to help simplify your ideas

[@loweredexpectations4927]

Yeah... the heater will not be indoors. The heater will be outside and the hot water will be plumbed inside. Still some safety considerations. I agree with keeping it simple. I'm going to try not to make it complicated and focus too much on efficiency. Easy to build, easy to clean and maintain, easy to use are my main considerations.

[@robertclark5752]

Thanks for the update. Nothing like making trash to treasure. As always looking forward to your next video.

[@loweredexpectations4927]

Thanks Rob !

[@dustinwild]

It would be very cool if you could have interchangeable blower tips! Like have it so that you can thread on different ends with different holes drilled in different patterns, to play with the flame pattern. I don't know if that would even be possible? Very cool build man! I could easily spend a lot of hours staring at that flame! Very cool little spot you guys have built!

[@loweredexpectations4927]

Yeah, I can't remember if I mentioned it in this video, or have just chatted in the comments about it, but I have thought of making interchangeable air systems. It doesn't have to be sealed well, so just a slip fit for something that drops on would be fine. (I assume) It's a fun place to hang out. It's really cool to finally burn "pure" WMO and see a nice blue flame. I wouldn't want this thing in my living room, but it burns surprisingly clean. Got some parts for a water heater version and have a basic idea of how I am going to build it.

[@ChrisDay-sx4lv]

Glad you decided to give one of these a go, try making one that is longer and thinner, your lower air jets should be very restrictive to the air and slowly adding more air as it gets to the top, it creates rich zone, then one with and lots of CO and that is subsequently burnt giving very clean combustion with almost no soot.

[@loweredexpectations4927]

Thanks for the comment / tips. My main soot issue is that the tank itself is the oil dish. The tank doesn't get hot around the air inlet, as the cool air coming in cools it, so I am basically cooling the oil dish. NOT IDEAL. I built it this way because it is simple and easy, but it would be smart to have a separate dish, that is directly heated by the flames and not cooled by the inlet air. I may build my second burner so that the air inlet tube can be changed out, instead of welding it in place... that way I can experiment with all sort of different designs.

[@ChrisDay-sx4lv]

@@loweredexpectations4927 Try adding the air from the top, like the farm café video I sent you a while back, this way the air will preheat as it travels down towards the oil, add the rest of that propane bottle on the top to give the gasses more time to burn and time for the incoming air to preheat.

[@benjaminnevins5211]

I love this project. It is mesmerizing staring at the flame.

[@loweredexpectations4927]

I agree... I sometimes stare at it for hours and then realize... "OH NO... I need to make a video" haha.

[@gregorydubois1387]

Hi Joel, if you are doing some new experiments to try to burn waste oil properly in a diesel heater. I suggest you: • try with a "fan" connected to the air intake of the combustion chamber, or something to push more air into the combustion chamber (like with your waste oil burner). • but also try it with "water injection" (water drops or something) into the air intake of the combustion chamber (water injection is sometimes used with 2 or 4 stroke engines, to increase performance, but also to keep the engine clean: it cleans the carbon inside and works well). • Maybe you can also find some interesting things by searching and testing things from "Pantone engine" by Jean-Pierre Pantone, or "GEET Fuel Reactor" (which uses a water/fuel mixture to work, using it in a way that allows, perhaps, to split the water into hydrogen + oxygen). Thanks for your interesting work. Hi from Belgium.

[@loweredexpectations4927]

Thanks for the comment. The main issue I have found with the diesel heater is that the burn area (where the fuel enters - not the chamber) burns too cool. While increasing air flow with an external can seems to work a little for some (for a while) I suspect this is because the combustion process is no longer happening in the burn area and moves out into the burn tube and or exchanger. Adding water may help some if you have excess heat, but water is really good at cooling things. If you have a heater that is already struggling with staying hot, water / steam will be a problem. This works in engine as they have excess heat. I have played with a HHO generator in the past, and it's not something that I would use on a diesel heater. Hydrogen is very explosive and requires a backfore arrest system to be safe (in the best of cases) Feeding this into a heater could potentially turn it into an inside out heater, haha.

[@tomasviane3844]

Nice to hear you have a deal with Vevor for some projects! I just bought my 3rd Vevor heater, just in case anything goes wrong with the one heating my livingroom so I can swap it out quickly (while I wait for the parts to arrive). Looking forward to the project with the heating coil!

[@loweredexpectations4927]

Lol... thanks. Literally the comment before you said "Vevor salesman, unsubscribed." 🤣 Thanks for your support. Stay warm !

[@billparker8954]

Nice looking axe.

[@loweredexpectations4927]

Thanks !

[@Truckinup266]

Now we're talking!! That'll burn waste oil, now perfect that....what's up buddy it's Chuck from Kentuck, hopefully the Benjamin's helped you in the slow season and hopefully your roomies are working out aswell, 😅😊we all know how that can go!!

[@loweredexpectations4927]

YEAH !! It burns waste oil like a champ ! Yes... your help was greatly appreciated and helped out. Things are going pretty well here. Always challenges, but we take them as we go, haha.

[@Truckinup266]

@loweredexpectations4927 also it looks like you have a variable speed control on the blower so you might also consider placing the blower on the other side of the wall ect so you can hear yourself think lol you can easily make a rigged cover from a milk crate or something

[@loweredexpectations4927]

@@Truckinup266 Haha... The blower isn't actually that loud... it's mainly the sound of combustion that sounds like a jet engine. This should quite down quite a bit when it is routed through a heating coil and flue. We shall see, but yes, it is a little noisy !

[@glyngibbs9489]

Excellent work. Thanks for sharing. Looking forward to the next one.

[@loweredexpectations4927]

Thanks !

[@Truckinup266]

Also I've seen videos where they leave the used oil in an adjacent room or outside then you don't have to keep adjusting the oil flow as it warms up and gets thinner...just my 2cents and keep up the great work!!❤ take care buddy

[@loweredexpectations4927]

Aaah yes... When I make the one for the garage, it would make sense to keep the oil tank in the garage. Easy indoor access and more stable temps. Good idea.

[@TheIronHeadRat]

Thanks for sharing 👍

[@loweredexpectations4927]

Thanks for the comment.

[@petermoritz2452]

Would be interesting to make one with round pipe, and angled holes in the same direction. So the air flow would form a vortex in the chamber. Also would be interesting to weld a large diameter pipe hanging down a few inches inward on the inner edge of the baffle. That would keep the flames spinning along the wall.

[@Joe-hj6pg]

Nice echo hoodie

[@loweredexpectations4927]

Thanks ! I like it. I got it from Dustin, a buddy of mine.

[@reidnichol9255]

The 2 pieces of flat bar have created a large baffle and put back pressure on your air supply, making a huge difference in your oil/fuel ratio. You will probably make many more changes to this this heater before the last piece of pipe is on the chimney and you have usable hot air? Try using lava rock in the puddle of oil? It will get the heater up to temp much quicker. Now you have a "Puddle Burner", the basis of the 1940's Coleman Stove Oil Space Heater. Next step forward most of us have made is to drip the oil from above, which provides a way to regulate the heat output. Mother Earth News is a good source which has documented the evolution of waste oil burners. ......SS tubing is very poor at transferring heat from air to a liquid and back to air again. We have had best results by heating a tub of coolant with antifreeze in it and moving the heat with plastic pipe to a 2 story 25' x 25' and 40' x 60' concrete slabs. The thermal mass of the concrete provides @ 48 hours of heat, before you get a temperature drop. Moving heat any distance is much more efficient using a liquid (water and antifreeze) and is much easier to insulate. ........If you burn waste cooking oil, tiny droplets of water are impossible to eliminate and when they turn to steam, you will get the huge flame you note. That is one more reason why our burners are completed to the chimney cap before testing.

[@loweredexpectations4927]

Yes, I think you are correct about the flat bar changing the AFR. It is a balancing act because trapping the air / flames can also trap more heat. That causes more fuel to flash off, and makes it too rich. This is why I'm so surprised that it worked this well on my first build attempt. I have not decided on a final design. It might literally be the heating coil sitting above my current burner, or a similar burner, or it may be one self contained unit. I plan / hope to use a sealed system and flue to quiet it down a little. Dripping the oil on a hot element is something I have considered and part of the reason I purchased the variable flow pump. If the oil flashes off as it enters, the fuel rate needs to be controlled accurately, unlike my current "let it fill and shut it down" I do realize that stainless is not the best at heat transfer, but it was selected for durability. The heat exchanger that disposes of the heat will either be a proper heat exchanger or a car radiator. I have floor heating in my garage, but I don't want to tie into it.... maybe in the distant future. I currently have a R40 insulated floor with a 200K BTU tankless natural gas heater. I built the system myself (other than pouring the concrete) and it has worked flawlessly for over 10 years now. Thanks for all your input !

[@reidnichol9255]

@@loweredexpectations4927 If you decide on the coil being in the heater, use a SS liner on the inside of the propane tank. You loose the radiation, but the inside burner temp goes up. Get the SS from panels on old fridges, stoves or dishwashers. IIRC that peristaltic pump can put out 2X to 4X the BTU;s of the 5kW STD CDH. The guy who makes the CDH pump in the UK uses an inkjet diaphram with a 1/2 length conn rod. I keep thinking of using a CDH ECM (No burn chamber) and the cabin air to provide controlled air to your heater. The $100CAD aftermarket aluminum car radiators provide cheap water to air transfer. The hotter you can run your system, the more efficient it will be. .....See if you can make a very slightly tapered or 2 piece cylindrical mold for your aluminium ingots. Higher price from hobby turners. ......www.aliexpress.com/item/1005002987973567.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.main.3.3dd6iDJqiDJqjX&algo_pvid=9ba63256-6891-4e50-a826-e07f97483db1&algo_exp_id=9ba63256-6891-4e50-a826-e07f97483db1-1&pdp_npi=4%40dis%21CAD%2195.38%2195.38%21%21%21481.72%21481.72%21%40210318c317312999701471291ed5d9%2112000023087113424%21sea%21CA%21824784789%21X&curPageLogUid=lfeE81ORQgYU&utparam-url=scene%3Asearch%7Cquery_from%3A

[@loweredexpectations4927]

@@reidnichol9255 So you're saying to use SS to insulate / shield the outside if the burn chamber ? Old appliances does seem line a good place to get SS ! I had considered a car radiator for a cost effective heat exchanger. I can likely fine one at the local scrap yard pretty cheap. Vevor had some of the "proper" units, but they appear to be sold out in Canada. I had considered that the hotter I ran, the more heat transfer there would be. I plan on running a vented system so as not to build pressure .... Or perhaps a pressure relieve and purge bottle like in a car. Even a car rad cap if I use a rad, I suppose. I hadn't considered that my ingots would be worth anything but scrap price. Interesting.

[@jean-louislabrie7809]

Nice project

[@loweredexpectations4927]

Thanks !

[@kirkwalsh1932]

Let me know when you have a yard sale. I could use a fishing tent....lol The heater tweaker is running strong here. Just using Mode 1 for now. 50/50 mix.

[@loweredexpectations4927]

Haha... the tent belongs to Andy, but he is thinking about buying a new smaller one from Vevor. I may see if I can get one from them for testing, but I know nothing about tents... so, yeah.

[@huf67]

I'm waiting on "Lowered Expectations" zip up hoodies to hit the market to order before Christmas 🌲....🤞

[@loweredexpectations4927]

🤔 You are obviously a smarter business man than I am, lol.

[@gusd0076]

You can use heat exchanger from a gaz boiler, put it on the top of the burner so the heat can only pass through, and insulte the outside of the burner to keep the combustion as hot as possible. With the stainless coil inside i am affraid that it Will cool down the température inside the burner and get to bad combustion.

[@loweredexpectations4927]

A heat exchanger form a boiler would be a fairly easy / dependable way to go about this, but they aren't cheap (where I am) it would likely be larger and more complicated than I care to deal with. I suspect your worries of it cooling too much are unfounded. The burner itself will stay plenty hot as that is where the combustion occurs. The area above the burner, where the coil will be, shouldn't matter what temp it is. If the stainless is able to absorb all of the heat, the burner should continue to run fine. The only real issue is making sure not to cause a restriction of the flue gasses.

[@TheCritterWindow]

Looks good but I would have to find a long hose for that loud fan.

[@loweredexpectations4927]

This is exactly what I thought before I fired the heater up, and this could still happen. I was going to put it in an enclosure on the other side of the yard. That being said, it is the roar from the combustion that makes most of the noise, and not the fan. It has a bit of a rattle at times, that is annoying, but the majority of the noise you can hear, the roar or jet engine noise, is the sound of combustion. WHen I make my water heating version, and the combustion process is enclosed, it may be that the fan is then the loudest part of the system. In this case, it would make sense to relocate the fan or put it in an enclosure of sorts.

[@RADMAN752]

awesome

[@loweredexpectations4927]

Thanks !

[@AtimatikArmy]

Wow, cool stuff! And beautiful axe BTW! Man, I've been wanting to make a waste oil heater to heat my garage for years! I haven't attempted anything yet, but the design that I've seen that I really like is by a guy with the channel "GerrysDIY" (I think that's spelled right). His are gravity fed like yours, but his require no AC (I really like that). He's uses a chimney and has sort of a rocket stove-esque design going on to get enough air flow to work without any fans. Looks like you got something working very well, but maybe check that out if you get a chance. On a different subject since I heard you mention Jacob's motor: I have 2 motors that I need to resleeve both Yamahas. One is a triple GP1200 and the other is from my WaveBlaster a 701 62T. How did you go about removing the sleeve? I'm assuming your hydraulic press? I've heard that they essentially need to be machined out? Man this might be a good idea for a video is showing this whole process of resleaving from start to completion. Good stuff Joel, thanks for putting out content that I'm always interested in! (edited for grammar)

[@loweredexpectations4927]

Thanks man !! The axe turned out really well. It was an old axe that belonged to Megan's dad. It was in really rough shape. I think you should build one, but it is worth it to use a blower. I have seen his videos, and I'm not going to talk trash, but an orange flame means CO and not a clean burn. Just because you can't see soot or smoke, doesn't mean it's a clean burn. A natural air flow heater, with a long pipe is simple and easy to make, and it will burn fairly well, but your neighbours, or anyone upwind of you is going to think 4-5 old cars are running close by. A 40 - 80 watt fan is cheap, easy and extremely effective. Jacobs cylinders had already been resleeved, and Yamaha cylinders have removable sleeves, but Kawasaki sleeves generally need to be machined out. WIth cylinders that have removable sleeves, you BBQ or bake the cylinders for about 45 minutes, and tap the liners out (or they fall out) If you are not quick, or they are unusually tight, you may need to reheat. 🤟

[@wallacefrey6247]

Any way you can get a hole or two on the corners of the square tubing with a right angle drill, or cut off wheel, to get air into the dead spots ?

[@loweredexpectations4927]

I was laying in bed last night and thinking this exact same thing !! Haha... Great minds think alike. I'm sure it will be fairly obvious when I start building my new one, but the trick will be to figure out what holes to relocate ... My brain tells me that I need things to be symmetrical so it might be a bit of a struggle, haha. I'm thinking that it would be a great idea to make an adapter on the bottom of the tank, so that I can fit all different air injection tubes. (instead of welding one in place) I have ideas to build a cyclone set up, something that directs air down at the pool of oil etc... but I want to be able to change it, just in case it sucks.

[@vclealj]

rocket stove using waste oil, should be good?

[@loweredexpectations4927]

I assume it will burn very dirty. This burns clean because it has forced air and some other design parameters to keep the burn in the heater.

[@wallacefrey6247]

Will the water heater be recirculating, or continuous cold water flow ?

[@loweredexpectations4927]

It will be recirculating. I plan on having at least 50 possibly 100 litres of water as a buffer. This will avoid temp spikes and allow for steady heat even if the performance of the burner fluctuates.

[@mightyfinejonboy]

if the air tube is replaced with a round one, could the holes be bent slightly to make the air spin the flame? this should increase dwell time and improve mixing?

[@loweredexpectations4927]

They could be if the tube was thick enough. I am considering making my next heater so that the air tube can be swapped out and I can experiment with different designs. There are a few different ways to introduce a vortex and I'd like to see if it makes any difference. I took some slow-mo of my burner and it seems the air flow is plenty turbulent and the design of the lid / baffle directs flow back into the bottom of the burner.

[@mightyfinejonboy]

@@loweredexpectations4927 try sticking a screwdriver in and bending the hole, easier with thinner wall.

[@loweredexpectations4927]

@@mightyfinejonboy That may be possible, but with this size of burner, my holes are 3mm so my bendy screwdriver could be a max size of 3mm. I could always try larger holes and less of them. That might happen.

[@Seelengeburt]

What if you make the air holes at an angle for the vortex effect

[@loweredexpectations4927]

This is something that I have considered and may experiment with. However, I think the dome shape top MIGHT cause the same end result. Not sure. The idea of the vortex is to cause turbulence and keep the burn contained for a bit longer.

[@Seelengeburt]

@loweredexpectations4927 the Flame will probably Look the same but You will see some Difference inside like tornado

[@PUBHEAD1]

The next rendition will be making it mobile enough to attach to your inflatable heated bubble suit without the necessity of a wheelbarrow

[@loweredexpectations4927]

LOL. It would keep me plenty warm... I just need to put it in the wheelbarrow.

[@lanceulbrich6249]

Keep those ingots for machining thats what i do when i need aluminum

[@loweredexpectations4927]

I guess so. I'm not sure of the quality, but one of my first lathe projects ever was made from recycled aluminum.

[@lanceulbrich6249]

@loweredexpectations4927 as long as you do a good job getting the dross out I have never had an issue. That cast aluminum of a transmission should machine well.

[@loweredexpectations4927]

@@lanceulbrich6249 Yeah... what do you use as a flux? Anything? Borax? I did most of them with no flux at all, and then tried salt after a google search... The salt actually seemed to make a difference.

[@lanceulbrich6249]

@@loweredexpectations4927 yeah borax. Never tried salt.

[@patchvonbraun]

Use the waste-oil sludge as your starter "paste"....

[@loweredexpectations4927]

Hmmmm. Maybe. I think some / most of it may be grease.

[@patchvonbraun]

@@loweredexpectations4927 Grease burns :)

[@loweredexpectations4927]

@@patchvonbraun Yeah... not as well as gas or diesel, but it sure does !

[@erikhenriksson455]

What is the purpose of this heater if you can’t use it for warming indoors? There must be simpler ways to get rid off used lubricants!!!

[@loweredexpectations4927]

The purpose of this heater is 1. to see if the design of the burner is worthy of further refinement and 2. To heat a shelter that I built outdoors. I have roommates that smoke, so I built a place for them to be out of the weather and to get a little shelter from the wind. This heater will make it a little more pleasant for them when it gets cold. At the end of the video I explain that I will be either using this heater or making another heater to heat water, and then use that water to heat my garage and or house.