I realize gas prices are high and you want to find any
solution you can. Please don't let it blind you.
Firstly, I will apologize to all the people making profits from other people who are unaware.
Some are actually trying to make products which work. Please keep it up. There are many hydrogen products which do work, but there are things to consider.
The laws of physics and thermodynamics are really hard to escape . . .
(I figure if you are reading this, you are not a scientist. I have received the looks from people when I go into the properties of metals and electricity.
Please consider this to be an easy guide. If you feel it is incorrect,
please notify me.)
- Hydrogen burns faster than gasoline or propane. This means the timing on a standard vehicle would need to be changed to run it. It does not need to be changed if you are not running enough hydrogen to make much difference on your fuel economy.
We have personally ran hydrogen boosters which put large amounts of hydrogen
into a vehicle. What happens is the hydrogen immediately ignites and
leaves a bunch of gasoline left in your cylinders. It then tries to lock
up because of the excess fuel. You need to think of it as any extra fuel
you would be adding to your existing fuel. If you can explain how you are
going to stop the injectors from injecting fuel, then you will have an answer
for really saving on fuel economy, otherwise most of the on demand systems are a
hoax.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUGX0bq9vUs&NR=1
Roy McCalister explains how combustion works using hydrogen. Youtube.com has many of his videos. Just simply type Hydrogen fundamentals #1 or #2 and so forth to see his videos. (great stuff and he has been doing it for years)
http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/hydrogen.shtml
Department of energy basics.
- 10 amps constant draw is very hard on a standard charging system. Turning your lights on or air conditioning will use more amperage causing you to get worse gas mileage. (for the people who think driving with your lights off is good. If you are dead, gas mileage won't matter. You can read any insurance or highway patrol report to find out the safety of having your lights on)
Lights and A/C units can take an average of 3 amps constant draw on the battery. If you are running a device which takes more than 10 amps constant draw, you will have a hard time getting better fuel economy. Batteries and alternators will also fail prematurely. They are made to run at a certain load and generally it takes a 50 to 70 Amp alternator to keep your battery charged while running lights and A/C. Please note the size of wire going to that alternator.
- Stainless Steel is expensive and deteriorates.
I have had thin stainless steel plates last less than 3 days running it constantly. Most of the generators available will last quite a bit longer, but you should know this information. This is an expense and with a catalyst (baking soda, vinegar, peroxide or bromate) it will deteriorate faster and draw much more amperage. The higher the number of steel the longer it lasts and the more expensive it becomes. 304 is a lower grade than 316. 400 series lasts even longer. 500 or higher would be getting into special metals such as Monel or Inconel. I know, too much information.
- Electronics are not made to be shorted out. (water is a short)
There are many transistors (Mosfets/Hexfets) which are made to switch large amounts of power (voltage). They become what is called (saturated) making them not work when you put the electrodes in water. Although they are rated at high amperage, the avalanche rating is what they can actually work at. Generally, if you are going to run an Amperage of over 6 to 8 amps you will need to do modifications to your vehicle. http://en.wikipedia.org has good information on transistors.
- So, what can you do?
Saving money or fuel is actually not that hard. Quick Alternatives are:
- Start your own alternate energy source group or help us. We have came up with some great solutions to many of these problems thanks to all of our support.
- Ride a bicycle or walk more.
- Buy a better fuel economy vehicle.
This is a great site to look up what vehicles actually get in mpg. http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/findacar.htm
If you must modify a car:
- Tire pressure and the type of tires you run can help quite a bit. (2 mpg more)
This is the most reasonable. - Run an extra battery with a better ignition system. Some aftermarket ignition systems produce less than the manufacturers (you may want to check the specifications). 1 to 4 mpg depending on the vehicle. (California Smog Laws prohibit some ignition changes). You may want to check with your local laws to find out what is accepted.
- You can pre heat the fuel. Approx. 2 mpg (miles per gallon) more. (in hot weather, this could cause a problem)
- Get an exhaust system with better flow. With a more open exhaust it may also end up changing the flow through the intake, so with an already tuned vehicle you may be making it worse. (California Smog laws do not allow this). I have heard 20%, but don't expect more than 2 mpg depending on the vehicle.
- Slightly higher compression can help. Injector duration would have to changed to match the compression. Also the lift of the valves need to match your compression. You would actually get worse gas mileage if you drove the same depending on the vehicle. Otherwise the vehicle would run lean, reducing its life.
If I got the actual mileage people claim I should get with modifications, my car would be giving me fuel back.
Does Adding hydrogen to my car work?
Actually adding hydrogen to your vehicle can help a lot if you have a fuel cell which draws less than 5 amps and puts out a lot of hydrogen (I mean a LOT of hydrogen). A pulsed signal is really hard for an amp gauge to accurately read. I have found if your fuel cell takes 10 amps connected directly, pulsed at half the time would be 5 amps and the battery would take twice as long to go dead. I have found the longer my pulse is on, the more amps it draws and the more hydrogen it produces. If you add baking soda, lye, bromate, or pretty much any catalyst, your amperage draw can become twice as much or even more. All of these are caustic and bad on steel. It will take time, but it can hurt your engine. The pulse keeps the heat controlled and deterioration to a minimum. I am glad to share our experiences and which one may work best for your vehicle.
There are modifications you would have to do to your vehicle for this to work.
If you must buy a hydrogen generator or pulse generator, I can suggest some or sell you one from our products page. We also have used parts. If you simply want a video or the conclusions from the tube or other type generators, I can post or email them to you.
Here is a video of a cheap generator. It will fill up a balloon really fast and it bubbles really quick on 12V 3 amps constant and is 5 X 2 inches with a 1/2 inch outlet and No catalyst. Just plain tap water. It produces 2 times more with a little baking soda.
Small hydrogen generator.
No, it will not save you 40% on your fuel economy. I doubt it will save you 10%. But it sure puts out a lot of hydrogen. More than some of the bigger generators we have.
Tube type generator production
Meyers
replica electrolyzer production
- This concludes the basic hydrogen principles.
My general experiences in fuel economy:
I have worked on hydrogen, propane, methanol, electric, diesel, and of course gasoline vehicles and yes, many times using your tax dollars. I have drove thousands of them and checked the fuel mileage of many. I currently drive a VW diesel and run homemade bio-diesel in it. So what, this does not help you or the world. This is very short term.
Hybrids: I like the hybrid vehicles. My favorite would have to be the Honda. We had over 20 of them in our fleet and they were very dependable. With my long legs, the Prius was not as comfortable, but the mpg was better than the Honda. With the Toyota Prius, we found fewer dealers worked on them, so be aware if you are in the sticks. We did have small problems such as the touch screen and various other electrical goodies (Don't touch the Orange wire!). These are the screens that display you are getting 70 or 80 mpg at times. If you know the distance to your work and back, add up the miles or look at your odometer and divide the miles by the gallons of gas used. You may be surprised. 5 gallons of gas used in 100 miles is not 50 mpg. We got an average of 35 mpg out of our Prius with two large people and stuff in the back on a 300 mile trip. The display said we averaged 48 mpg.
In general, the Hybrid has two drive systems. Electric motor and a combustion engine. This is many more parts which can go bad. The Honda hybrid gets an average of 42 mpg which I found to be more like 38. My dads 2000 Honda civic 5 speed gets 40 mpg which averages around 36 mpg. My friend D Mark has a Honda with an
taller gear and a bit taller tires getting 42 mpg in his 1996 Civic. It cost a lot less
than a hybrid and has less parts to go wrong. These are all factors somebody should consider. You really need to look at http://www.fueleconomy.gov to determine which vehicles get the best mileage. Some Hondas only get 20 mpg. If you are doing city driving and do not carry large amounts of weight, I would buy a hybrid (electric/gas) vehicle. Actually, I would probably walk. This is the best for all life.
Fuel Economy: This is a very difficult subject and has cost me lots of money buying different cars to find a vehicle which gets great gas mileage yet hauls my family or stuff. I can shorten your look for that. So far it does not exist. I have had many Toyota pickups and Vans. I used to carry large amounts of weight for long distances. I would have to change the brakes and tires quite often, and if it was an automatic, the transmission every 120,000 miles or less. The engines are very dependable and without weight, the automatics could do better than 160,000 miles (average). I averaged about 24 mpg empty and 18 when it was full. Yes, I have heard 30 mpg and those people have lost bets. I found if you don't use it as a pickup, it can get great mileage and last 200,000 miles pretty much trouble free. A Toyota corolla or Honda civic will do the same thing at 35 mpg instead of 25. I found my Dodge Cummins held a lot more and still got 20 mpg. The Cummins engines last just as long if not longer than the Toyota. If you are going to haul something (not
extremely heavy), buy the Dodge Cummins. Small weight, stick with the Toyota. Yes, I actually own a Ford Diesel, and I recently sold a 6.5 Chevy turbo diesel. I am not making conclusions without experience.
Weight and Driving: These are the biggest factors. We tested GEO metros to see if they were cost effective. What we found is on a flat road not carrying much weight they could get 42 mpg. Yes, I have heard 50 and 60 and with one person driving slow it can be done. I remember getting 70 mpg out of a Ford Aerostar Van one time during an eclipse and the gravitational pull of the earth quit for a second. Well, at least this is what the little screen said. However, my dad lives up a hill and down a curvy road. The metro averaged about 36 mpg. The convertible one he had got even less (32 mpg). My conclusion is buy a Honda Civic HF (high fuel) or HX if you live in these conditions (hills and curves). Buy the GEO if you live in a flat area and don't carry much weight. His 2000 civic can average 38 mpg if driven slowly. Why have a smaller car with less braking if it gets less mpg? This is the same issue between the Toyota Yaris and Corolla. The Yaris is smaller and gets the same fuel economy. If it is just looks you want, throw reasoning out and just buy it.
My wife and I wanted to get a gasoline vehicle which would carry the same amount of stuff our VW diesel wagon held, and we still wanted good gas mileage. We never found one. We purchased a RAV4 and we couldn't put the stuff from our Toyota Camry in it. The RAV4 held less than half the amount as the VW wagon. When it was loaded, we averaged 18 mpg. 22 mpg empty. The seller told us it averaged 30 mpg. What is it with simple math? Maybe for some people 200 miles divided by 10 gallons of gas equals 30 mpg. 5 times I drove that same 200 miles. I didn't even need to use a calculator and I hate math. I admit sometimes it was 10.2 gallons and maybe 10.5 gallons. Maybe that is the confusing part. The brand new RAV4's get better mileage, but they are even smaller. The Honda CRV was the same issue. Bad mileage when you load it down. These are great dependable cars, but I am talking MPG here. Our VW diesel held almost twice the stuff and still gets 42 mpg. This means diesel would have to be twice the price to make it less economical (not to mention the biodiesel option). I drove a Toyota Tercel wagon across the US and it averaged 22 mpg and the transmission went out. I would have been better off with a larger vehicle which could handle the weight. Empty, the Tercel wagon got 30 mpg and didn't break down nearly as much.
Conclusion: Weight is important. If you are going to carry cargo and people, a larger vehicle may get better fuel economy, especially if someone helps with the commute expense. One vehicle at 20 mpg is better than two vehicles at 35 mpg. It is not just the burning of fuel, it is the wear and tear and the use of the worlds resources. If you find yourself being the only one in a vehicle all the time, find people going to the same place or simply buy a more economical vehicle. I know a lot of you are not going to like this one, but if you are worried about your safety buy a safe economical car. If you are fearing for your life, maybe it is time to get a job you can walk to or move to a place where you don't have to be afraid. I agree change is difficult, if you let it be. It is all a matter of doing. ~