Terrified About Lye!

[FastCote]

OK,

I have been collecting oil in preparation for my V3 install...

I just poured a gallon of oil from a friend into my almost full drum. The previous three gallons looked fine so i just tipped this on over and let fly. Tis one was completely milky looking. No, not creamy like partially hydrogenated, this was like the blue-white color and consistency of skimmed milk.

I fear that i have just contaminated almost 50 gallons of good wvo with this stuff. - UG!

I called Blackstone and they told me they really don't test for lye or other cleaners.

What should I do?

Is there a test I can perform myself (ph test or something)?

Jason at DFA told me of a way to take a sample, add water, and heat in a sealed container and look for foam and pressure. That got me thinking about the last 100 gallons i centrifuged. That had a big foamy slick on top when finished. I am almost certain that was good oil though.

I think I'm working myself into a lather over this (pun intended).

How prevalent is the use of boil-out and other caustics?

HELP!!!

[bas157]

Can't answer your question, but if you got the gallon from a friend, why not call and ask him if there was anything mixed in with the oil?

[FastCote]

Originally Posted by bas157

Can't answer your question, but if you got the gallon from a friend, why not call and ask him if there was anything mixed in with the oil?

I did and his answer was not clear, as in "i wasnt there when the cooks drained it, so I don't know".

I am willing (if not happy) to toss all 50 gallons, it just makes me worry how common this is. Say I get permission to dumpster dive, how likely will it be to be contaminated with lye?

[kinghawg98]

ph would be high if filled it had lye in it (upwards of 7)

if nothing else you're halfway to making soap! little ammonia and some cooking and you've got free cleaner for a while. (look up the recipe)

[tubular031]

you can always mist wash the oil to clean it out. If i was running SVO i would mist wash EVERY drop i use (if it were WVO and the source was unknown)

If you are going to toss it, where are you at? Ill take it if you are around north texas Ill make it into bio

[FastCote]

Originally Posted by tubular031

you can always mist wash the oil to clean it out. If i was running SVO i would mist wash EVERY drop i use (if it were WVO and the source was unknown)

If you are going to toss it, where are you at? Ill take it if you are around north texas Ill make it into bio

I am in Columbus OH. I was thinking of donating it to someone making bio. Anyone near here?

How do i test the ph of my oil?

[Clay Henry]

take a gatoraid bottle, put about 4 oz hot water in it and add a sample of the oil. Go outside your house and shake it violently. If there is Lye in it, the lid will blow off and you will have an oil fountain in your hand. If it just turns milky and nothing else, use it.
I have been lucky enough to get cantaminated oil from a dumpster so i no longer get any oil from any sorce that i can't physically talk to the cooks and make sure they understand that i DO NOT WANT THERE CLEANING CHEMICALS.
Dumpster dive at your own risk. Not sure if washing would remove it or not but its worth a shot.

[Clay Henry]

a titration test will tell you the PH i believe but i'm not familiar enough with that to tell you how to do it.

[tubular031]

Originally Posted by CHenry

I have been lucky enough to get cantaminated oil from a dumpster so i no longer get any oil from any sorce that i can't physically talk to the cooks and make sure they understand that i DO NOT WANT THERE CLEANING CHEMICALS.
Dumpster dive at your own risk. Not sure if washing would remove it or not but its worth a shot.

hell yea! i would not trust anything that I dont get directly from the cooks.

After a biod reaction there is left over lye, soap and methanol in the bio that does not settle out in the glycerine and that is why we wash the bio a bunch of times. I know this because my last 2 batches had lots of extra lye in them and I ended up washing them MANY times to get it all out! Its a pain i know...

[binder man]

I'm in indiana and would take it? Have to mapquest though how far is columbus?