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Biofuels Moving to the Suburbs

They're environmentally friendly but may be rather expensive

By Joe Benton
ConsumerAffairs.com

September 20, 2007

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Biofuel or biodiesel for home heating just may be catching on as oil prices continue their move higher.

Biodiesel, the vegetable-oil alternative to diesel that has sparked a small, grass-roots movement among environmentally-conscious motorists is expanding into the commercial marketplace and into private homes as a substitute for residential heating oil.

Made from new and used vegetable oils or animal fats, the fuel is biodegradable, nontoxic and renewable.

While fossil fuels took millions of years to produce, biofuels are created in just a few months, and the plants grown to make them naturally balance the carbon dioxide emissions created when the fuel is burned.

The idea of using vegetable oil as a fuel source isn't new. In 1900, Rudolph Diesel, the German engineer for whom the diesel engine is named, used peanut oil to power one of his engines at the World Exposition.

In most cases, heating with biofuel or biodiesel does not require a new heating appliance or retrofitting.

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Brookhaven National Laboratory on Long Island, New York. conducted a series of tests in 2001 on the use of biodiesel for space heating.

The test report found that biodiesel blends at or below B30 can replace fuel oil with no noticeable changes in performance. Burning of the blends also reduced carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxide emissions.

Downsides

There are some downsides, though.

The fuel can gel if stored outside in extremely cold weather, so New Englanders and others in cold climates should store their biofuel in a sheltered location or in an underground storage tank.

Also, biofuel can have a tendency to degrade rubber seals. In some cases, burning a concentrated biofuel blend causes fuel-pump seal failures, particularly with a high concentration of biofuel or biodiesel.

Most burner manufacturers are testing new seal materials to eliminate the problem in future burner models.

Then there's the matter of price. The fuel is not cheap.

Biodiesel generally costs more than No. 2 heating oil and how much more depends on who your supplier is and the quantity you purchase.

A B5 blend -- 5 percent biofuel and 95 percent oil -- should be only a few cents per gallon more than regular No. 2 heating oil.

Finding a local source of biodiesel to fuel your home heating system may not be easy. In New England, where 2.2 billion gallons of heating oil are consumed every winter, locating a fuel-oil dealer that offers biodiesel home deliveries can be a real challenge.

Although more than a dozen major producers are scattered around the country (as well as hundreds of local distributors), the vast majority of the distributors are in the Midwest, where biodiesel feedstocks are grown.

What to do

Here are a few tips if you plan to use biodiesel or biofuel to heat your home for the first time.

• Clean your furnace or boiler and replace the furnace oil fitter.

• If you have an old storage tank, clean it.

• Keep an extra oil filter on hand.

• Start out with a modest B5 blend and increase the concentration after a few months or in the next heating season.

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