Month: April 2007

Ethanol Conversion May Save Gas Money

You bought a still, are making your own home brew in that backyard and want, through ethanol conversion, to start burning alcohol in your car. It may seem like a good plan as by distilling even one acre of corn into 200 proof alcohol and mixing it with gasoline to produce E-85 ethanol can provide enough fuel for a 5,000 mile trip.

However, before you go dumping alcohol into you gas tank and thinking that is all there is to ethanol conversion, consider that even the most efficient still only produces about 195 proof alcohol. To get that final five percent you are going to have to remove that last of the water by filtering it through zeolite. While this may sound overly technical and complicated, rest easy as zeolite is not all that expensive and a 10 pound bag can last almost forever, as it is reusable.

Allow the distilled alcohol to soak overnight in the zeolite, drain through a filter, and you have 200 proof alcohol. Still, do not pour it into your gas tank just yet, you are not ready for ethanol conversion as some modifications are need to the carburetor system. Not only that, but also some of the fuel system parts may be damaged or destroyed by alcohol. You will want to verify that the non-metal parts do not disintegrate with alcohol use and replace them with metal if needed.

Carburetor Rebuilding Will Be Necessary

Typically, fuel metering jets, that is the main jet, idle jets and accelerator pump nozzle will have to be larger by either replacing them with a larger size or machining them larger to an appropriate size for your vehicle. Other considerations as part of your ethanol conversion process are the fuel filter and fuel gauge.

Alcohol is a dirt remover and burning a mixture of 85 percent alcohol and 15 percent gasoline, will loosen dirt inside the fuel line. You will want to consider installing a filter between the tank and fuel pump and a second one between the pump and carburetor and monitor them closely the first few weeks.

Due to ethanol being heavier than gasoline by about eight percent, part of the ethanol conversion process should include an adjustment to the fuel gauge float. This can be by bending the float rod, or find a heavier float to assure accuracy in the gauge s fuel level reading.

Lava Lamp: Making A Comeback

Lava lamps are no longer devices from times past. They are now making a comeback into many households. What used to be seen as a symbol of the hippie generation is now making a significant form of expression for many people who want to decorate their homes with something a little different. Lava lamps make great center and conversation pieces and they do something special to whatever room they re in. For this reason, many people are snatching up lava lamps. Get yours today and rediscover what made these lamps so popular in the first place.

Hypnotizing

Lava lamps implement the idea of two fluids that don t mix, such as oil and water. As you watch the substance inside, usually a color such as red or blue or green, roll around inside with the other substance, usually clear, the result is a hallucinogenic experience without the need for pharmaceuticals. You can stare at a lava lamp for a long time and never get tired because the way the two fluids inside interact is almost hypnotizing.

That s the reason they were so popular in the sixties and seventies, because people who were into the underground culture were taking hallucinogenic drugs and such and the lamps became much a part of that culture. However, today, they are seen as just great to look at and shouldn t be labeled with the stigma of merely being a hippie furniture piece.

Great For Decoration

Just having a lava lamp in the corner of your room, say on a table or on top of the TV, is great for decorating your living room, bed room or even office. If guests come over, they will undoubtedly comment on it. Usually, it will amount to something like, Hey, I used to have one of those. That s the case with a lot of people. Lots of people owned lava lamps and then the devices just sort of disappeared. Now, people are once more discovering the fascination of lava lamps and are using them to decorate their homes.

Search The Internet

The best place to find a lava lamp that suits your taste is to use the internet. Use your favorite search engine and you ll see many lava lamps for sale, large ones, small ones, and in every color you can imagine. Get one or get one for every room in your home. They re great to look at and, look at it this way, you ll be helping this special lamp with its comeback into many more households.