Tech week: Build your own waste oil burning Garage heater

<OThis is a waste oil burning heater that I made from an old air compressor tank and some scraps I had laying around.
I use this to heat my 1400 sq. ft. garage.
I burn used motor oil mostly but it burns waste vegetable oil as well.
It burns between 2 and 3 quarts an hour.
No smoke and no smell.
I checked the EPA web site and burning waste oil looks to be the preferred method of disposal.

<OI cut the Motor mount and from the tank and then cut a 6 in. hole in the side of the tank 6 inches from the end of the tank that will be the top of the heater, for the Chimney pipe.
I then cut a 5 inch hole in the end of the tank that will be the bottom of the heater and drilled two ½ inch holes, one on each side for the all thread that hold will the primary burner lid and secondary burner to the bottom of the tank.
I used an old bed frame for the legs and bottom rails and primary burner bracket.


</O
For the Primary burner bracket I took a dethatching rake tine and welded a peace on the end that will stick out far enough to be able to step on it to allow the primary burner to drop and be removed for cleaning.
I also welded a nut on the mounting end of the tine, to adjust the tension on the bracket.
For the primary burner, I used a 10 inch Dutch oven.
I just cut a 5 inch hole in the lid and drilled two ½ inch holes, one on each side of that for the all thread that holds the Lid and secondary burner to the bottom of the tank.
In the lid, I drilled one ½ hole for the drip feed, then on the opposite side I drilled a ¾ in. hole for air flow.
I drilled two 3/8th in. holes for air flow perpendicular to those.
Inside of the pot I welded a 5 in. piece of angle iron for the oil to drip into and run to the center of the pot. (this heats the oil and routes it to the center for a more uniform burn).

For the secondary burner I used a 6 in. dia. piece of metal pipe with 1/8th in. wall, 8 inches in length (a 6 in. length would have been better).
I drilled two rows of 3/8th in. holes on 1 ½ centers, 1 and 2 inches from the bottom end of the pipe.
I drilled one row of 9/16 in. holes on 2 inch centers, 2 ½ inches from the top end of the pipe.

<O></O>
<O</O

After welding on the legs, I ran two pieces of all thread thru the holes in the tank and primary burner lid and centered the secondary burner between the two over the 5 inch hole in the lid and bottom of the tank and tightened it up. (I didn&#8217;t weld this part because I wanted to be able to disassemble it for cleaning).
Then I mounted the primary burner bracket.
For the oil valve I just used a standard water valve and metal pipe like you would use for a toilet bowl.
But a needle valve would be better.<O


For the oil tank I just used a three gal. bucket and mounted a valve on the bottom and ran a line to the oil drip valve on the tank. (I plan to redesign this but for now it works)
<O</O
<O</O

Put a damper on your chimney pipe to regulate the burn rate and temperature.
The chimney pipe should be at least 10 ft high for a good draw.

Here's a video of it in action!!!
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/LCYiHE70u7c?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
http://youtu.be/LCYiHE70u7c
That&#8217;s it.

Free heat and no more firewood cutting!!!
Hope you like it.<O</O

 

Great idea. I would be concerned about heavy metal poisoning from residue in the oil getting into the air. Lead, tin antimony off bearings plus zinc additives in the oil. Have you looked into this?

 

Yes, I checked the EPA web site and it addressed that specifically.
Used diesel engine oil has higher levels than used gas engine oil but is still very minute even compared to diesel exhaust. Check out the video and you can see there isn't even a trace of smoke because the flame is about 1200 deg. in the secondary burner.
Good point though.

 

That is neat. Just two questions. How do you ignite the heater (called a "stove" in Arkansas) when it is cold. Second, what is your oil source. Changing oil in your hot rod every 3,000 miles, no matter how fast and how far you drive, is not going to work.

 

Very nicely done.

I like the attention to detail, making the primary vaporizer bowl removable for cleaning is a very smart move.

For those worrying about "heavy metal", there is almost no zinc left in oil any more, and if there is bearing metal in the oil in measurable amounts you will not be running long.

Even if the oil was badly contaminated from a babbit engine that came apart, this slick design would keep all of that heavy, non-combustible waste in the vaporizer bowl at the bottom. This heater burns oil vapor, since it is not fed with a high pressure pump.

B.

 

To start it, I pour ¼ cup of kerosene in the primary burner and light it with a torch then turn the oil drip on to about 5 drips per second and adjust it accordingly after it heats up.
For my oil source, my buddy&#8217;s give me their old oil and there is a Mexican restaurant that I can get waste oil from when I need it.

I only burn it about 5 hours a week.

 

I buit a waste oil burner for my foundry, and I found out everyone wants me to take their used oil now!

 

I had one of these in my old shop. Worked good. Just don't have anything that can give off flamable vapors in the shop (not easy at times) and you're good to go. I thought about making one that was mounted up high, but then how do you gravity feed it??

...and I don't care what the EPA thinks about it, they can pack sand.

 

Very cool design, I had a commercial burner, and it was based on similar principles, but it was for kerosene. It had a carb and everything. Nice work, and a good way to get rid of used oil!

 

EPA should not be mentioned on the HAMB.. it goes against our very nature as thinking reasoning creatures.

Neat stove though. "free fuell" is nice of those mexicans.

 

If that studebaker guy from Berkeley sees this thread, hes gonna spazz.

 

I like this design way better then the one in Mother Earth News.
Think I am going copy this one.

 

nice your shop must smell like burritos and taco'lgandoes...
Nice thing about Death Valley? Its a friken oven.
Nice write up.

 

I fucking hate those things. Never seen one that worked worth a shit. I'll admit I am biased as the Commercial grade unit a former employer bought was junk......

Yours seems better thought out then the one I have experience with.

 

man that's some good stuff. I've always wondered about a home shop application. question answered.

 

That looks like some real nice work'well engineered and thought out.My concern would be with your insurance covering your property if there were a fire.The insurance people don't like un approved heat sources.They will find any way they can to not pay a claim. I came home from work one evening and saw tracks in the snow behind my garage,a couple of days later I got a notice from my insurer that I was being cancelled.They claimed I was using a barrel stove,but I have a 55 gallon drum outside the garage feeding a Montgomery-Ward oil heater. The fire cheif is a friend of mine and he signed a letter to the insurer stating it was a UL approved heat source and I have had no problem with them since then.

 

A friend had a heater in his garage with an open flame near the floor. When his insurance agent saw it (open flame near floor) he said get rid of it tomorrow or I will cancel your house insurance.........You might want to check this out!

 

This thing burns so hot that there is no smell or smoke. But come to think of it, there is a bean smell from time to time. But it ain't coming from the heater...

 

I know what your talking about. But this is truly a great design. It get's hot fast. It heats much better than the wood heater I had in the shop.

 

Good point,
I turn it off when I'm messing with anything flamable. Which is nice, because I couldn't do that with the wood heater I replaced with it.

 

Auto trans fluid works well

 

I've looked at a pile of posts on many site for information on how to build one of these. Yours is one of the best I've seen. Simple instructions and to the point. Any problem with tuning the secondary burner holes?

 

Hey,

What is inside the "dutch oven"?

I'm in Australia. It doesn't get cold here

 

If you don't have an old Air Compressor tank laying around, another good source is an old water heater tank.

 

That's pretty slick. It should work pretty good to heat shops that don't have a lot of insulation too.

 

way to share with us now that winter is over

seriously though, Looks like a killer design!!!

 

I like the design but suggest getting the burner up off the floor about 18 inches. here in Ct. this burner will be against the law for use in any area storing gasoline powered tools/vehicles Ct outlawed any form of heater getting intake air from the room any kind of Vehicle is in (Garage area) Wood stove very specifically!Unless it's a closed system the heater must be in a separate room sealed from areas that hold flammable materials.Just a heads up for any Ct. guys thinking about one of these. I think your furnace is very well designed one of the best designs I've seen for one in a very long time!Raising the burner will make it a safer unit getting the flame above the level fumes tend to collect, You could also enclose the burner with a second section of tank or sheet metal and connect it to the outside via a second section of stove pipe this would isolate the combustion from the room it's in.

 

Reminds me of the military heaters that heated water in garbage cans for KP duty. They were a drip design and caught on fire sometimes.

 

Bitchin! Subscribed. Thanks!

 

Oh jeeessh...I hadn't thought of those in years. I remember those when we would be eating in the field during FTX's in the states. Baaaaad memories.