Lister Diesels Catching On Fast
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High fuel costs have increased interest in Lister-style diesel engines since FARM SHOW first ran an article about them in 2006 (Vol. 30, No. 3). For a while, ambiguous EPA regulations left buyers wondering if it was legal to import them, says George Breckenridge, a Lister enthusiast who maintains an informative website (utterpower.com) about the engines.
Breckenridge says that most Lister users build a generator set (generators are purchased separately) to charge batteries that provide all the power needed for a home or farm operation. Some ranchers use the engines to pump water or for irrigation systems. Some live a long way from power lines - others just want to be self-sufficient.
The 6 hp Lister BJCS6/1 engine (about $1,400) runs at low rpm's and has plenty of power provided by its high mass flywheel, says Breckenridge.
"They last a long time - 10,000 hours or more - and are inexpensive to rebuild," he says. They're also quiet.
The Lister was significant when it was built in the 1930's in Britain because it was the first engine that could be cold-started, without first heating it with a blowtorch.
Companies in India sell Lister-style (or Listeroids) replicas that vary greatly in quality, Breckenridge warns. Some buyers think they can save money by buying directly from an Indian company, but end up with an inferior product. While he doesn't sell Lister-style engines, he offers advice and referrals and sells a CD of information on his website.
There has been recent interest in the engines, because they can run on straight vegetable oil and filtered waste vegetable oil, says John Ferguson, who sells Lister-style engines in Canada.
"My engines run on 100 percent waste vegetable oil (WVO)," says Ferguson, who produces all his own electric power. "I collect it from local restaurants, then de-water and filter it before transferring it to my bulk tanks. The WVO sits in the bulk tanks until I need it, then it is transferred over to my day tanks. Filtering can be as simple or as complicated as you like. I use a common kitchen strainer when pouring the freshly collected WVO into my receiving tank, which is simply an old bulk milk tank. After that I heat the oil to about 160 to 180 F that makes the solids and water drop out of suspension. I drain the water off from the bottom of the bulk tank; the solids remain at the bottom. I then draw the oil off the top, filtering it through a double fleece blanket before it goes to the bulk tanks. In the bulk tanks it settles a bit more, so again I draw off the top of the tank when transferring to the day tanks. My final filter is a common automotive 15 micron, situated in the fuel line just before the fuel injector."
Ferguson changes the sump oil every 300 hours and since the engines don't have filters he uses a non-detergent oil so the solids in the oil drop out of suspension and collect in the sump of the engine, away from working parts.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, George Breckenridge, (gbrecke@vircom; www.utterpower.com) or John Ferguson, Belleghuan Ltd., 669 Co. Rd. 8, Bourget, Ontario, Canada K0A 1E0 (john@wood nstuff.ca; www.woodnstuff.ca).
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Lister Diesels Catching On Fast ENGINES Engines High fuel costs have increased interest in Lister-style diesel engines since FARM SHOW first ran an article about them in 2006 Vol 30 No 3 For a while ambiguous EPA regulations left buyers wondering if it was legal to import them says George Breckenridge a Lister enthusiast who maintains an informative website utterpower com about the engines
Breckenridge says that most Lister users build a generator set generators are purchased separately to charge batteries that provide all the power needed for a home or farm operation Some ranchers use the engines to pump water or for irrigation systems Some live a long way from power lines - others just want to be self-sufficient
The 6 hp Lister BJCS6/1 engine about $1 400 runs at low rpm s and has plenty of power provided by its high mass flywheel says Breckenridge
They last a long time - 10 000 hours or more - and are inexpensive to rebuild he says They re also quiet
The Lister was significant when it was built in the 1930 s in Britain because it was the first engine that could be cold-started without first heating it with a blowtorch
Companies in India sell Lister-style or Listeroids replicas that vary greatly in quality Breckenridge warns Some buyers think they can save money by buying directly from an Indian company but end up with an inferior product While he doesn t sell Lister-style engines he offers advice and referrals and sells a CD of information on his website
There has been recent interest in the engines because they can run on straight vegetable oil and filtered waste vegetable oil says John Ferguson who sells Lister-style engines in Canada
My engines run on 100 percent waste vegetable oil WVO says Ferguson who produces all his own electric power I collect it from local restaurants then de-water and filter it before transferring it to my bulk tanks The WVO sits in the bulk tanks until I need it then it is transferred over to my day tanks Filtering can be as simple or as complicated as you like I use a common kitchen strainer when pouring the freshly collected WVO into my receiving tank which is simply an old bulk milk tank After that I heat the oil to about 160 to 180 F that makes the solids and water drop out of suspension I drain the water off from the bottom of the bulk tank; the solids remain at the bottom I then draw the oil off the top filtering it through a double fleece blanket before it goes to the bulk tanks In the bulk tanks it settles a bit more so again I draw off the top of the tank when transferring to the day tanks My final filter is a common automotive 15 micron situated in the fuel line just before the fuel injector
Ferguson changes the sump oil every 300 hours and since the engines don t have filters he uses a non-detergent oil so the solids in the oil drop out of suspension and collect in the sump of the engine away from working parts
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup George Breckenridge gbrecke@vircom; www utterpower com or John Ferguson Belleghuan Ltd 669 Co Rd 8 Bourget Ontario Canada K0A 1E0 john@wood nstuff ca; www woodnstuff ca
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