Brew It Yourself Ethanol - Backyard Ethanol for Your Car

2008-06-21 00:35:14 - Why waste fuel driving to the gas station? You can tank up in your own backyard, with home-brewed ethanol!

You may not have oil in your backyard, but you can still produce plenty of fuel for your car. Just set up a still and brew your own ethanol. You can do it with corn, or sugar, or even good old beer!

The folks at Molson Coors Brewing Company are cooking up ethanol-made-from-beer to fuel all the official cars at the Democratic National Convention this August. They use beer they can't or won't sell to consumers, and convert it into about 3 million gallons of ethanol yearly.

A company in rural Georgia that produces yeast for pet food has been producing ethanol as a byproduct of their main business. They used to think of ethanol as waste, but now it's a money-maker.

But how do you make ethanol in your own backyard?

Well, you could pony up $9,995 and buy a ready-to-brew unit from a new company called E-Fuel Corporation. They're getting ready to sell a combination distiller-and-pump in an appliance-sized unit. Their system uses sugar instead of starches, shortening distillation time considerably. With one of these units out back, you can produce 5 gallons of ethanol a day, once fermentation is complete. E-Fuel's system will also turn discarded beer, wine or distilled drinks into ethanol, as well.

Of course, for a lot less money but a good investment of time and your own energy, you can build your own backyard ethanol still. Beer, wine, corn, barley, kitchen scraps or molasses will serve as raw ingredients. Designs for a variety of do-it-yourself stills are available on the Internet for around $30 each. About $500 more in parts and materials will do the trick. A typical ethanol still involves copper pipe and fittings, available from plumbing supply stores. You'll need a temperature sensor/controller valve, a drum to be used as a gas burner and a safety release valve. Some web sites will sell you whole kits for up to $2,000 - plans and materials, making the job that much easier.

WebTalkerPR has assembled lots of useful links at www.BrewEthanolAtHome.com, www.DoItYourselfEthanol.com and www.BackyardEthanol.com.

Oh, and if you're going to brew ethanol at home, don't forget to order a permit from Uncle Sam's Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau.