Natural Gas Pros

Theodore Olson asked:


Fuel injection services are growing in popularity for the following reasons in the order of motive.

1) Increases service center’s profit

2) It’s an easy sell with today’s gas prices

3) Offsets manufacturers’ maintenance reductions

4) Poor gas quality

5) Poor adherence to vehicle maintenance

Notice that “It’s required” did not make the list. That’s because fuel injection services are not required the majority of the time.

However, injector services are at times beneficial, even necessary. See the following frequently asked question and answers…

What do they do?

Depending on the product, injection services clean naturally forming carbon deposits from the fuel injectors and fuel rails—some will even clean the fuel tank, and valve carbon deposits.

Do they work?

In short, yes. Provided it’s a premium product (such as BG), and the service is performed correctly. Fuel injection services can do amazing things. They can improve fuel efficiency, increase horse power, and repair some performance concerns, although these benefits are rare.

Whether or not fuel injection services will do all the above “every time” for your car is another story.

I have even seen fuel injection services quiet horrendous carbon knocks—a knocking noise from the engine due to excessive carbon build-up coming in contact with internal engine components.

Are they worth it?

Maybe. It really depends on the condition of the vehicle. If the service achieves any of the advertised claims, it may be worth it. In truth, most cars don’t need it. The consistent use of quality fuel, and proper vehicle maintenance should be all that is necessary to keep a car running properly.

However, consistent use of cheap gas and poor adherence to an auto maintenance schedule, as well as certain driving styles can significantly increase the accumulation of carbon deposits. Thus the possibility of poor fuel efficiency, decreased horsepower, and performance issues increases—all of which could be helped by injector maintenance.

The other factor to consider is the expense. How much fuel savings justifies the cost of the fuel injection service, and how long is the pay off. BG claims that their product will pay for itself in a year’s time. However, remember that the condition of the vehicle is a big variable! If the car doesn’t need it, there’s no benefit.

How often should it be done?

It depends on the product, but generally between 15,000 to 30,000-miles.

Are they necessary?

It depends: See the discussion under Are they worth it?

Can a fuel injection service do any damage to my engine or car?

Not if done correctly. Done incorrectly, anything goes. A technician could conceivably hydro-lock your engine, or blow a hole in the piston—although both scenarios are rare.

If anything does go wrong, there is usually an underlying problem, which gets exacerbated by the fuel injector auto maintenance.

Why doesn’t my manufacturer recommend fuel injector cleaning auto maintenance?

No manufacturer recommends fuel injector cleaning auto maintenance under normal operating conditions. From a manufacturer’s viewpoint: take care of your car right (i.e., as the manufacturer dictates) and you’ll be fine.

However, depending on the problem, some manufacturers will recommend fuel injector cleaning auto maintenance as the cure—especially carbon knock. With the wide variety of fuel qualities available, manufacturers are reconsidering fuel injector cleaning auto maintenance.

How much does fuel injector cleaning auto maintenance cost?

Prices vary depending on the service center and the actual procedure performed, and product used. The procedure you want should clean the entire fuel system including the tank and should not cost more than $150.

Also, make sure the service is actually performed as fuel injector maintenance is a common scam across the industry.

Lastly, fuel injection maintenance is often presented in such a way as if it is the magical cure for all your car’s quirks—it not!

When in doubt, don’t do it.

David Tanguay asked:


Biodiesel fuel is a form of “green energy for cars.” Although a debate on the pros and cons regarding biodiesel seems to be pretty endless, those advocating it speak quite highly of how fueling your car with biodiesel is a pretty amazing thing.

So, what is biodiesel? “Biodiesel Fuel can be produced from a variety of natural crops including rapeseed, soybean, mustard, flax, sunflower, canola, palm oil, hemp, jatropha and waste vegetable oils. This fuel source is said to reduce engine wear and produce less harmful emissions. Biodiesel is used as an alternative fuel source, but requires engine modifications.”

As stated, biodiesel can be created from numerous different resources. According to AgriFuels, “the oil and fats used to produce biodiesel will dictate important properties of the fuel, such as cold flow, energy content, and oxidative stability. Cold flow has to do with the temperature at which the fuel crystallizes. In regards to energy content, AgriFuels asserts that saturated fats have more energy. Oxidative stability deals the antioxidants. Some oils, such as soy, have antioxidants that lead to a longer shelf-life.

Various oil and grease can subsequently create biodiesel. Let’s take a brief look at a few of the various biodiesel fuel derivatives, both sources that are currently used and future prospects, that AgriFuels advocates in order to get an idea of this:

* Virgin oil is vegetable oil that is usually grown, crushed, pressed, and filtered for the oil and other co-products, such as meal. Many different oil bearing crops are grown around the world.

* Soybean Oil is the most common virgin oil for Biodiesel in the USA. Farmers in the Mid-west can grow use a soybean for oil, animal feed, and other products such as vitamin E.

* Rapeseed Oil is the most common oil for Biodiesel in Europe. Rapeseed oil is also very common in Canada, known as the Canadian variety canola.

* Mustard Seed Oil is oil with a lot of potential. Mustard seed can be used for oil as well as an organic pesticide from the oil.

* Algal Oil might be the next big thing for Biodiesel. Some algaes are 50% oil!

* Recycled Oil is waste restaurant grease or used vegetable oil that is collected and made into Biodiesel. Many restaurants and business currently throw away used oil in the dumpster. Using our waste streams as feedstock for other products is always a sustainable option.

In the search for alternative sustainable energies, producing biodiesel fuel to operate vehicles may be a viable option. It would reduce the amount of “non-green” fossil fuels that are currently in use to power automobiles. In addition, it would diminish the dependence the United States currently has on other countries for oil, and it would increase American jobs on top of that.

There are so many different options to look at in the acquisition of biodiesel fuel, and it could only assist the nation in becoming greener.

John Woolf asked:


Why would we spend an estimated $104 billion (that’s billion with a ‘B’) to go back to a dead world when ours is dying? It seems no one can come up with a compelling reason for NASA to repeat the “been there- done that” Apollo project of the 60’s and 70’s that President Bush has envisioned. In fact, we have been told by NASA to think of this as “Apollo on steroids.”"Yep, this ill advised and uninspired platitude (yawn) is essentially the very same space vehicle architecture of the 60’s- only a bit beefier. That says it all. There is really nothing new here. If you want to experience the buzz of this cold war relic anew, I would recommend a great book (at a fraction of the $104 billion that it would cost otherwise) Apollo 11: The NASA Mission Reports by Robert Godwin. It truly is a spectacular book, complete with a double sided CD Rom with lots of raw footage of most aspects of the adventure, allowing you to relive the heady days when we trumped the Commies in the space race and brought us such tangible benefits as Tang- the last time around.

And speaking of saving a bundle, when has NASA ever been under budget on any large project? Can you say ‘Space Shuttle’? Get real! Does anyone really believe it will only be $104 Billion? The irony of all this fluff is that it’s likely to be a substantial drain on resources for what actually is working at NASA. The “boots on the moon” program is in contrast to recent, highly spectacular and successful NASA missions, including the Hubble Space telescope, the Mars Rovers, and Explorer missions, which have provided a treasure-trove of scientific information of our universe, while relying on comparatively cheap, safe, unmanned robotic instruments. It is apparent that such programs will have to be scaled back or eliminated in the wake of a much more expensive (with limited return on investment), and dangerous manned moon project. “Trekkies” not withstanding( and perhaps Mr. Bush), it hardly stands up to any rational justification on any level, financial or otherwise, given the serious challenges we currently face in the real world.

Is it not time that we had a truly inspirational, practicable vision for our country in meeting the challenges of our generation?. We don’t have to look far. A blind man could see it in a minute. Remember last year’s hurricane season? The worst on record. With melting polar caps, massive mudslides and other environmental alterations due to global warming, we just might be starting to reap the ecological whirlwind of our blatant greenhouse emissions from fossil fuels. Now is the time to have a renewed “JFK Apollo mission” on the scale, urgency and funding of the Apollo program, to eliminate all fossil fuel based power generation within this decade. Given that we live in an unstable world, such a far-reaching initiative would not only make sense from an ecological, but also from a national security standpoint as well. As James Kunstler points out in his definitive book, The Long Emergency, we have no idea how life altering our condition would be if we suddenly had a serious disruption to our dependency on fossil fuels. A renewable solution for power would go a long way to addressing these germane issues that are bearing down on all of us.

But what do we do? Go solar? Wind? While anything we can do in this arena would help, the truth of the matter is that these alternatives are relatively diffuse in their ability to harness energy and they are intermittent in nature. In other words, their “cost to calorie” ratios are not all that efficient and they are not always dependable. Probably not what we would want for the national power grid. However, imagine having a river that is over a thousand times as massive as the Mississippi, dependably running year round. This vast, untapped, renewable resource of energy would be capable of generating many giga-watts of power for our homes, computers and businesses- and lies just off our shores in the form of perpetual ocean currents. Perhaps the most famous of these “ocean rivers”"is the Gulf Stream, running nearest to us around the tip of Florida and up the cost of the Carolinas. While not particularly fast moving, (just a few miles per hour) the kinetic energy of the Gulf Current is massive, being about 60 miles across. Given that ocean water is 832 more dense than the atmosphere at sea level, this translates into an equivalent hurricane force wind night and day- miles across and running over a thousand miles along our eastern shores. And this seminal approach doesn’t require NASA rocket science to harness the capacity of generating large-scale sustainable electrical power. By using existing hydro turbine technology, clean, low cost power could be generated underwater, out of sight, with no greenhouse gases, and with minimal impact to sea life as the hydro turbines (albeit with high torque) would turn at just a few rpm allowing virtually unimpeded fish and silt migration.

However, like the continental rail road of the 19th century, or the Apollo project of the 20th century, this 21st century project would also be colossal in scale requiring federal funding to accomplish the task- at least at first. If we unleashed our best minds of industry and science to this endeavor, and invested the $104 billion now erroneously slated for the moon into an array of marine power generation farms, we would be addressing the challenge of this, the 21st century. Future generations might view us as wise stewards of our charge, who on our watch, with our boots well grounded on earth, made the prudent choice.

Dick Jonson asked:


Nowadays global warming and the scarcity of fossil fuels are rarely out of the media. Some people carry on hoping that government will come up with some sort of solution, others don’t really care and then a few people are wondering, “how can I help reduce global warming?”

One of the most obvious answers to this question is to use less power by moving your power source from fossil fuels to a renewable energy source. The two most hotly discussed forms of renewable energy are solar and wind power and this article will pit the two against it each to discover which one is best.

Solar Power.

There are many ways to harness the suns power the most common of these is to use a photovoltaic module to convert the suns ultra violet rays into energy. This is the technology used in solar panels. Other forms of solar power include using materials with different layers of salt density to capture the suns power and using a super green house style device to heat air to power turbines. In this article we will just examine solar panels.

Wind Power.

Put simply by using the wind to spin a turbine with a magnet on it electricity can be created. This works in a similar fashion to the turbines powered by steam in a traditional power plant.

The Costs

Although these two power technologies may sound like a perfect solution to the world’s energy crisis both have their limitations. Firstly there is the cost, at the time of writing Solar power is cheaper than wind power when implemented on a small scale such as in an family home but wind power is generally cheaper when implemented on larger scale.

Efficiency

Efficiency is of course a big part of deciding upon a renewable energy source. For this particular round of wind power vs solar power home advantage will make a huge difference. If you live near the equator and experience a large amount of sunlight solar power is the clear choice, you should have no problem powering your home from solar panels. Like wise for wind power if you live on a blustery coast. The fairest question to sort this one out would be; what about if the contest took place in a neutral area with limited wind and sunlight. In general in an area with roughly the same wind and sunlight I would say you would be better off with solar power for the simple reason that all sunlight will be absorbed by your solar panels but not all wind will be converted to energy by a wind farm this is because the blades on the wind far need to spin at a certain speed if the wind is to fast or to slow electricity wont be generated.

Appearance

In my opinion for this round there can only be one winner and that is solar power I suppose it’s a matter of taste but I find wind farms to be very ugly.

The Conclusion

Well it been a tight contest with each energy source a good bet in right environment but overall Solar Power is the winner due to its lower cost on small installations superior adaptability to different environments and more pleasing aesthetics. That’s not to say wind power is a bad option as in the right circumstance it can be a much better solution than solar power.

David Tanguay asked:


Harvey M Sachs, PhD and director of the Buildings Program at the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy came up with the following 9 methods that a home owner can utilize in order to become more efficient.

1. Make sure your walls and attic are well insulated. When one has insulation properly installed, it can dramaticallyslow the rate that heat leaves the house. If your walls are already insulated, this does not usually present a problem. However, in homes where walls have not been insulated properly and instead have cavities where hot air can leak out, it would be prudent to look into blown-in insulation to fill up those empty spaces.

2. Upgrade or replace windows. Often times, in older houses, windows can have a tendency to “leak.” When you begin to think about replacing them, it is best to look into those windows with an Energy Star rating. However, do not go out and purchase windows just in the attempt to be more energy efficient. Because windows account for less than fifteen percent of heat loss, it would be wiser to look into other areas to become more efficient.

3. Plant shade trees and shrubs around the house. One way to combat the presence of poor insulation within walls and windows is to plant greenery. The benefits of trees and shrubs are twofold. Not only do they block the sun’s hot rays in the summer with the foliage, they allow these same rays through in the winter due the barren branches on the plants.

4. Replace an older furnace with a high-efficiency system. Furnaces built prior to 1992 may be wasting an unbelievable thirty-five percent of the fuel used. There are updated furnaces on the market that will waste ten percent or less of the fuel used. The annual fuel utilization efficiency (AFUE) may be determined through the aid of a heating service technician or energy auditor.

5. Improve the efficiency of your hot water system. The first step is to turn the setting on the hot water heater down to warm, which is 120 degrees Fahrenheit. Next, insulate hot water lines, reducing their ability to cool in between uses. The use of low-flow fixtures will increase efficiency when used for showers and baths. Rather than replacing a perfectly good hot water heater, try the above steps.

Steps 6 through 9 will be discussed in the next article… so stay tuned!

Paul Fitzgerald asked:


The fate of our economy seems to be in the hands of fuel and oil. The solution? Going green seems to be the new trend everywhere you look. For some of us, our vehicles are necessary. However, some car companies are making it easier for us to keep our cars and go green.

This is by running cars on Hydro water power. What does this mean? Hydro power, allows countries to be less defendant on oil and fuel from other countries. This keeps the cost of fuel down and also helps the environment by cutting down on greenhouse gases. Its use of water makes this a very eco-friendly option for vehicle owners.

This new form of fuel is not a new concept. Its research actually dates back to the 1800’s. Only in the last few years, have scientists found a way to fuel cars with it.

One pitfall of hydro power for vehicles is the networking effort. To enable the economy to really benefit from this new, alternative form of fuel, it has to be widely used. This is difficult because then everyone would have to convert to hydro power. Eventually this may be true. At the present manufacturers still need to make vehicles that accommodate the majority of the population.

What are some other benefits of hydro powered vehicles? Hydro water power is very clean. This is because it is carbon-free. A very useful one is that a car fueled by hydro power uses less mileage per gallon. This is because the fuel it uses is a combination of hydrogen and fuel. Another benefit is that these new eco-friendly cars will eventually give off zero emissions. Emissions are part of the harmful fumes that cause damage to the ozone.

As years go on, we will be able to save around thirty-seven percent of emissions. We will also be able to save three times of annual car emissions on the entire earth.

How much does hydro power cost? It does not cost very much at all. Hydro powers cost is one third of current fuel costs. This is only for maintenance, however, the rest of its cost is very economical as well.

How reliable is hydro power? It is very reliable and flexible as well. Coming from water makes hydro power renewable. Hydro power has constant energy.

Hydro power is not just a thought for the future. It is actually a reality. Other have been convinced that the hydro powered car has been nothing but a political sales pitch. This is not so. Some major

car manufacturers have already designed and made cars fueled by hydro power. It is said that by the year 2020, hydro powered vehicles will be most common among vehicle owners.

Hydro power is a way to utilize the natural resources we already have. Doing this will help maintain our earth. It will help us create a better and safe environment. Science and research may help us to truly go green.