Vp44 and B100

[OWeigel]

Anyone seeing any trouble using B100 and Vp44??

 

[truckstom]

I ran several tank fulls... with the fuel that was in the tank plus the B99 I added... I was at about a 50-50 blend... . no problems on either of my trucks. But that is only a short test. Loved the smell too.

 

[SHobbs]

Been running B100 for 4 months now with no problems. I have posted before that if you have alot of miles on your truck be sure and check the fuel filter often due to the bio being real good at cleaning the system. On my truck it sounds almost like a 12v hardly any pinging. I ran some #2 through it and could really tell the difference in the sound of the engine. You will get almost twice the lubrication out of bio compared to #2 so the VP44 should do just fine.

 

[OWeigel]

I´m on my first tank B100 and seeing all pros with it. Runs smoother, dont smells diesel anymore :-( , seeing 3 psi more boost(24 psi almost stock)?? and in sweden its cheaper than Gas and Diesel My service department complained their shop smelled like BK...

But they had a Chevy 6. 5 they changed three Inj. pumps on cause the B100 ate the rubber..... so i wonder if it is something in the Vp44 that can get damaged.

Here in Sweden we have RME B100. . Could it be what you call "Rape seed"

Have seen something like that but my english is not so good.



However it feels good to pay the Local farmers instead of big Oil... and being nice to earth

 

[Hammerhead]

.

Here in Sweden we have RME B100. . Could it be what you call "Rape seed"

Have seen something like that but my english is not so good.

I'm reading a book on bio-diesel right now and it said RME is "rape-seed methyl ester"



REE is "rape-seed ethyl ester"



just thought I would share that

 

[OWeigel]

Thanks! Have to get a dictionary.

 

[obert]

Curious as to what Cummins' position is on Bio-diesel. I read they had an 06 dodge pickup running on bean-oil with very high tourque figure (650 or 675??) at a press conference in Washington DC, so maybe their looking that way for future production, but havent seen any comentary on altenate feul in older engines.

 

[SHobbs]

I believe Cummins states no more than 5-10 percent bio. They calim that there have been engines clogged up with runnin higher numbers. I can see where they get that info due to bio really cleaning out the fuel system. I ran B20 for 3 months to start getting the gunk out and it did a great job of cleaning everything. I have since switched to B100 (soybean oil ) with no problems and the truck actualy runs better. It took 3 filter changes till I finally got a reasonably clean filter. All is back to normal now and I am back to changing the fuel filter every 6k, I was changing it every 3k when I first started. If the engine is newer with fewer miles there won't be as much gunk though.

 

[obert]

Sounds like I just need some extra filters. What is the "Gunk" composed of that it is not down stream of the filter? Just years of atmosphere stuff coming in while the fuel fill cap is off?

 

[SHobbs]

Not sure what the gunk is exactly, I do know that my first filter change the filter was very dark in color mostly due to the soybean oil being dark as well as the dirt and there was a white milky goo in the bottom of the filter canister. I cleaned the canister and put in a fresh filter and kept driving. My next filter change resulted in no white goo and a little cleaner filter. Each change from then on was definitely better and now the filter looks just like it did when I ran #2. This is the reason to check your filter often when switching to bio and this must be why Cummins does not recommend higher bio numbers when all they really need to do is inform people to check the fuel filter instead of shooting down the idea of running bio.

 

[obert]

Sounds like either some moisture getting washed out or (more likely) parafin that may have settled out of the dino oil. I have been changing fuel filters evry other oil change, which for me is around 10k miles. My manual says 15k for fuel filt. , which is still evry other oil change for factory 7500 mile interval.



I think bean oil is still a liitle more cost here, but there is a place its available not too far away, and I like supporting my local ag buisness, plus not using foriegn oil. Add to that the long term outlook, oil supply will end. As long as there are beans in the field out back, my diesel will continue to run the same as it does today. Ethanol seems to be the gas alternative, but I'd kill the wifes caravan if I dumped in half a tank of 'shine. Its nice to have the real "flex fuel" engine. :-laf

 

[SHobbs]

B100 went down to $2. 40/gal here, still a little lower than #2. The place where I get the bio has problems getting a load in at times though which is a pain. Two guys started the bio fueling place and had no idea it would turn into what is has and they are having growing pains, naturally. I have no plans in returning to #2 as long as I can keep getting the bio and like obert said I also like keeping my fuel dollars at home.

 

[HMistica]

I have a 2005 Cummins and usually run B5. Mileage is at about the 9000 mile mark. Well this Veterans day weekend I put on 1000 miles going from the Bay Area to L. A. running B99 on the first tank going there. My mileage went down from my average hand calulated 15. 5 mpg to 13. 5 mpg. I noticed the truck was a little sluggish when I got to L. A. after about 400 miles. Starting took a second or two longer to fire her up each time. I had to change the fuel filter when I got to my destination. It was dirtier than usual. I filled up with Diesel #2 when I got a half tank and then again when I got to a quarter tank. I'm back to 15. 5 mpg. Cranking is back to normal. I know if I stick to B99 and cycle the fuel filters out I'll be okay. I'll stick to B5 for now till Cummins does more researching and can recommend a higher blend.

 

[SHobbs]

Must be the HPCR engines. All I needed to do was watch the filter till all the gunk was out. As far as starting mine is normal and the idle has not changed with B100, mileage for me actually went up 1mpg. I think it has to more with who supplies the bio and how clean it is processed not with the engine. I could be wrong here but to me the B100 has twice the lubrication of #2 with a higher cetane number I don't see where any problems could surface except for the filter clogging if you didn't watch it. I have read that bio will collect more water, but I have not seen that yet.



My truck idles smoother, feels stronger ( could be the higher cetane ), is quieter ( less pinging ) and smells better out the pipe. At times mine sounds like a 1st gen.

 

[SFlicker]

B-100 and Gen 3

I had 2000 miles on the truck (2005, 2500) before changing to B-99. The previous post referring to sluggishness is no doubt the filter media clogging with all the dino dirt left behind.

 

[HMistica]

B100 and 3rd Gen

SFlicker:



How long did it take for all the dino dirt to clear out and for your 2005 to start running fuel filter's at regular changing intervals while running B99? I didn't think that filter media would have affected much with only 8000 miles before the trip and yet alone only 2000 miles on your's.

 

[OWeigel]

Just found this... http://www.doctordiesel.co.uk/

interesting info...

 

[SFlicker]

I never had a filter issue with the B-99 changeover because of the low miles. I just opened the filter drain and was amazed to see only trace water in the 2 oz clean sample. From your circumstance, it looks like over 8K miles of diesel fuel can leave quite a bit of junk for Bio to remove.

 

[AKDrifter]

Just found this... http://www.doctordiesel.co.uk/

interesting info...

So, anybody out there have a general concensus on the use of bio D in these VP44's ??



It seems like having the aux. tank for start up and purge before shutdown is a must.



Some here have reported no probs ... ... . so far. But the doctordiesel. uk site is saying the VP44 might be the most volitile pump for being damaged by the bio D.



Have I misread the info on VP44 and biodiesel use..... cause to me it seems like this particular pump has trouble already... ... let alone asking it to pump a blend thicker than standard #2.



I do understand that biodiesel has a better lubricity factor, just trying to see the big picture on this issue before jumping in.



Paul

 

[mhenon]

Didn't Bosch claim that the residual alcohol in the bio-diesel cause problems with the VP44. Alcohol is a great sovent (i. e. your tank gets cleaned and you need to change out the fuel filter) and must erode something internal to the VP44.

Anyway, that was my understanding of the problem. Cummins claimed B5 was ok but anything higher might cause trouble down the road.

Mike