29/01/2023
Just a quick overview of my latest 2 month trip around Scotland from November to late January, picking up used veg oil along the way.
Obviously twin tanked, I left Devon with both the main tank of diesel and my 160 litre veg tank full. After covering 3300 miles, going as far north as Lewis (Outer Hebridies) & Jon O Groats with starting temps of nearly minus 10 degrees, the van didn't miss a beat and always started as it should on diesel. On returning to Devon the van still had over 1/4 of a tank of diesel in it, despite even using my diesel space heater a few times too. I never plugged the van in once to an electrical hook up either.
I was able to pick up more veg oil than I could use along the way, bringing home over 150 litres as well. I never had to change a filter on the vehicle or on the filtration system.
Now time to change engine oil and filter and make a few more interior modifications ready for the next epic adventure.
I converted this van to veg in June 2017 with just over 110,000 miles on the clock. Its now on over 135,000 and still starts and runs as it did back then. We'll, even better tbh as I've had it re-mapped to around 150bhp so Infact it pulls like a train despite weighing in at over 3 tons. I calculated an average of 27mpg over the whole trip but I've no idea what quantity of fuel the space heater might have used.
I must have saved nearly £1000 on fuel on this trip alone as I never had to pay for any used veg oil I was given access to. It encouraged me to eat/drink out in local places to get access to used oil which was always fun and I met so many wonderful people along the way. It also meant I was able to run on a non fossil fuel; bio-degradable waste product which hadn't even left the establishment on a common rail powered self sufficient/off-grid campervan.
Its the 2nd time I've done a mid winter trip in this campervan to Scotland and can't wait to do it again. So it's a great test to the vehicke and our twin tank kits we fit here at 2Toc.
Running on veg oil adds a different dimension to the usual campervan trip, and tbh I wouldht change it with all the people I meet along the way. How many people do you befriend in a garage when you fill your tank up with fossil fuel, with most of the costs going to the tax man and oil companies? It's amazing how many people show an interest when I ask for used oil for my van, and I've made some life long friends in the process. It also means money goes back into smaller local businesses.
Don't be afraid to take the plunge and get your diesel vehicle converted to run on 100% veg oil. With every kit we install we offer a 24/7 call line/email/text service should you have any queries/questions/issues with our systems for the life of the kit/vehicle.
