Homemade natural gas gas installation for cars. Is it possible to refuel the car with gas at home
The desire of motorists to switch to gas from the usual gasoline is easy to explain. In this way, it is possible to reduce fuel costs and even extend the life of the vehicle's power unit.
But for some motorists this is not enough - they are inventing unique ways of refueling with household gas.
Is it possible? What are the preferred methods? When should you expect a cost recovery? Let us examine these issues in detail.
Advantages and disadvantages of refueling a car with gas
In the domestic market, motorists choose between two options - equipment using methane or propane (propane-butane). These technologies have a lot of fundamental differences.
In the first case, the fuel is cheaper and is in the form of gas. In the case of propane, the cost of fuel is higher and the gas itself is liquid. All that is required for the transition is to supply gas equipment.
The question is whether it is worth doing.
Benefits of converting the car to gas
Availability.
The main reason why motorists are switching to gas fuel is the desire to save money.
On average, the cost of gas is two times lower, which guarantees the benefits and payback of the system in case of long trips.
The price of equipment installation can vary and fluctuate around 15-50 thousand rubles.
Many experts have calculated and come to the conclusion that after 15-20 thousand kilometers, equipment in the middle price category pays for itself.
In practice, 9 out of 10 car enthusiasts buy and sell a new car.
Increasing the resource of the motor.
Gas has an octane number that is higher than that of gasoline, which guarantees its combustion without residue, no detonation and minimal load on the engine.
In addition, LPG guarantees a more uniform mixing of gas with the air flow, which eliminates the flushing of the lubricant from the inner part of the cylinders. This is why the motor lasts longer.
Rescue for the environment.
Due to the fact that the gas is almost completely burned out, the amount of harmful vapors in the exhaust is minimal. If we draw parallels with "diesel" gases from the exhaust pipe, then the level of nitrogen oxide is 60-65 percent lower, and particulate matter - 80 percent.
Multifunctionality.
Installing LPG does not mean that the driver should give up the main fuel. Moreover, petrol (diesel) or gas is available to him at any time. All that is required is to move the special toggle switch to the desired position.
Safety for life.
There are many stereotypes on the network that HBO explodes on collision or even spontaneously. In practice, such situations are known, but they are rare. The main thing is to entrust the installation to professionals and periodically undergo maintenance.
In addition, the HBO provides safety valves that exclude spontaneous explosion. But that's not all.
The installation of cylinders is done in such a way as to reduce the risk of contact and explosion in a collision with another object on the road.
At the same time, a lot of experiments were carried out that proved the minimum risk for the car.
If there is a leak, it can be easily recognized by smelling elements - mercaptans.
Disadvantages of switching to gas
Service problems.
Despite the popularity of HBO, there are not so many specialists in setting up and installing such equipment.
The reason is that maintenance of LPG equipment requires expensive equipment, which not all stations are ready to purchase.
When problems with the system appear, you have to spend a lot of time looking for an intelligent wizard.
A small number of gas stations.
The main reason for the small number of gas filling stations is the difficulty in obtaining permits for filling cars with such fuel, as well as the high cost of equipment.
On a long trip, you have to suffer to find a suitable gas station. The only thing that saves is the ability to quickly switch to gasoline.
Reduced power and dynamics.
The results of the experiments showed that after filling the car with gas (methane or propane), the power drops by 12-15 percent. Accordingly, the maximum speed is also reduced by 6-7 percent.
Problems with starting the motor in low temperature conditions.
When the ambient temperature drops below 10 degrees below zero, the gas turns into a liquid state and does not enter the system.
In addition, the ignition temperature also rises, which leads to a number of starting problems.
In such a situation, the only solution is to start on gasoline, and then switch to gas.
Dangers of depressurization with rising temperatures.
Cars with LPG are afraid of engine overheating due to the risk of depressurization of the system. For the same reason, direct sunlight should be avoided.
Increased vehicle weight and reduced trunk volume.
It is no secret that the installation of LPG equipment is carried out in the luggage compartment, which often leads to a lack of space when loading.
On average, 65-70 kilograms are added to the weight of the car and 40 liters of the luggage compartment are taken away.
There are situations when LPG is mounted directly behind the rear seats. In this case, the possibility of their folding and transportation of rangefinder goods is excluded.
Is it possible to refuel a car with household gas: basic methods
In recent years, natural gas, methane, has been popular in the US and the EU.
In Italy, for example, almost fifty thousand cars have been converted to this type of blue fuel, and in Germany, dozens of methane gas stations are opened every month.
For this reason, motorists are increasingly switching to more affordable fuel.
The difficulty is that filling the car with methane requires a pressure of 210-220 atmospheres, which is not always possible to achieve. So, a stlitre bottle holds somewhere around 20-25 cubic meters. meters of natural gas.
The highest pressure that the cylinders can hold is 240-260 atmospheres (at a test pressure of 300 atmospheres).
In the United States, Canada, and Italy, thousands of car enthusiasts fill up their garages with gas. Gradually, this trend reaches the CIS countries. All that is required is a compressor that costs 5-10 thousand dollars.
The overall performance of the devices is 20 "cubes" in 5-10 hours. By the way, the performance depends on two parameters - the pressure level at the inlet and the compressor itself.
But there are risks here. If the car enthusiast made a mistake with the pressure or installation, then the whole area remains without gas.
In addition, the use of a compressor leads to the suction of gas from the system until the protection at the hydraulic fracturing is activated.
According to the rules, the excess pressure should be up to 2 kPa. If gas is taken in excess of the established rate, then the gas supply is turned off.
So, in order to fill the cylinder with 20 "cubes" of blue fuel, it is worth pumping out the gas from almost one and a half kilometers of a pipe with a diameter of 140 mm.
If the gas is supplied with a pressure of 3-12 atmospheres (average level), then refueling the car with gas at home is real.
With this pressure, it is easier for the compressor to catch up with the level required for refueling.
Among the problems described above, it is worth noting one more - the bureaucratic one. Certification of such equipment in the CIS countries is akin to fantasy.
One of the alternatives is the use of the AK-150S compressor, which is used in the military industry and is mounted on various devices - infantry fighting vehicles, tanks, aircraft and other equipment.
How does it work (filling station with high pressure pump)?
Now let's take a closer look at the principle of the system, what are its features. Unfortunately, this looks fantastic for Russia so far.
Everything is easy here. A high pressure pump (HPP) is available to every car enthusiast. It is enough to connect the device to the home gas pipeline and refuel the car.
As for some requirements, here it is worth being guided by the current safety rules in relation to gas supply systems. It is also worth noting that the device is connected to electricity, so grounding is required.
If the compressor capacity is equal to 9-10 "cubic" of gas per hour, then full charge is achieved in 1-1.5 hours. In this case, it is not necessary to stand near the car while refueling. The system is completely safe.
Advantages and disadvantages of refueling with gas at home
Refueling a car with gas at home has a number of advantages:
- Convenience. You don't need to go anywhere to fill the tank;
- Benefit. Refueling with gas is cheaper.
Flaws:
- The high cost of installing LPG equipment on a car;
- The cost of purchasing a gas compressor;
- High pressure cylinders are large and heavy;
- There are not so many methane gas stations, so you will rarely have to refuel (perhaps only at home);
- There is a risk of leaving the microdistrict without gas (this was discussed above).
If the mentioned disadvantages do not deter you, then you can decide on such a re-equipment.
When will it pay off?
To understand whether it is worth spending money on re-equipping a car, we will carry out a series of simple calculations. For the calculation, we take five Gazelle cars, provided that each car travels 250 kilometers per day.
The price of a filling station (with a pressure of 10 cubic meters per hour) is about $ 3,000. This amount needs to be divided by the number of cars and get the cost per car - $ 600.
It is also worth adding the cost of HBO - $ 400-500. Total - 1000 USD per car.
Gazelle consumes on average 18 liters per hundred. As for the blue fuel, the consumption here is almost the same.
One "cube" of methane in Russia costs 15 rubles, or about 23 cents. It turns out that costs per 100 km of track are $ 4.14.
If you travel on gas, the costs are twice as high. One liter costs about 34 rubles - 50 cents. Accordingly, $ 9 is required for 100 km.
For every hundred kilometers, the savings are almost five dollars.
To pay off the equipment, the car must travel 20 thousand kilometers.
If we consider that a total of five cars cover 1250 kilometers, then the costs will be repaid quickly - in 80 working days. The greater the daily mileage, the faster the payback comes.
The issue of installing the GBU is especially acute if the car consumption is 25-30 liters per “hundred”. In such a situation, the cost of equipment will pay off in 50-60 days.
Outcomes
Transferring a car or refueling a car with gas at home should not be a snap. It is worth carefully calculating the costs and payback here.
If a vehicle travels 1-2 thousand kilometers per year, then there is no need to re-equip the car. It's another matter if the driver hardly gets out of the wheel. In such a situation, the transition to HBO is a chance to really reduce costs and recoup them within 3-4 months.
As experts advise, in order to reduce fuel consumption, you just need to develop a so-called economical driving style. Simply put, this means that you need to handle the gas pedal with care, that is press smoothly to accelerate and brake by the motor, at which the gasoline supply is cut off. This will really help keep your fuel economy down. But the percentage of savings will rise no more than 10%.
Some gas stations suggest simply switching to cheaper fuels that contain a higher percentage of ethanol. But this can affect the operation of the engine, as well as the fuel system. In other matters, this problem can affect only certain car brands.
Recently, the method of using the so-called "super device" has become very popular among drivers. Its principle of operation is to break up the clots of gasoline molecules using magnetic resonance, and then the combustion of gasoline occurs with less waste. So, experts strongly advise against using this method, since it is just pumping out money.
In fact, the additional installation of gas equipment in the car can be a noticeable saving. The cost of installing such a technical device can cost an average of $ 700 to $ 1,000, depending on the car brand. But this method can be beneficial only with a high mileage of the car., because in the opposite case, the installation of HBO will pay off for a very long time. It is imperative to take into account the type of engine, because not all engines function normally with gas.
The most daring way to save money is a home gas station. In appearance, it resembles a wall-mounted gas boiler, which is accessible at any time. Since the cost of natural gas for the population is about 5 rubles, and if we take into account that 1 cubic meter of gas is equal to 1 liter of gasoline, it turns out that this kind of refueling save 5-6 times.
But in all this there is a huge disadvantage. A home version of gas filling will cost about 5 thousand euros - this is the minimum, plus to this add the installation of gas equipment, which is adapted for natural gas. Compressor capacity for gas injection is not high, so refueling can take several hours. And to top it off, you need to constantly carry an 80 liter gas cylinder with you in the trunk.
To speed up refueling the car, the owner can arrange a receiver station. What does it mean? First, pump gas into stationary cylinders, and then refuel the car directly from them. This procedure will be shortened to 20 minutes.
But if the driver has a small car, then the installation of a home gas station is unprofitable... It can be more cost-effective for owners of gazelles or jeeps, in which there is a very high fuel consumption coefficient and can be up to 20 liters per 100 kilometers.
Gasoline prices are growing at such a rate that you can't remember them and more and more often drivers are thinking about alternative fuels. Alas, the high cost of electric vehicles does not yet allow them to massively switch to them, the same applies to hydrogen fuel. Now the most effective way to save on refueling is to equip the car with gas-cylinder equipment () and use natural gas (methane) or liquefied gas (propane, butane) as fuel. Propane is obtained in the process of oil refining, but methane is the same gas that we all use for cooking on gas stoves, it is fed through pipes to most apartments and private houses. Moreover, if we compare prices for 1 cubic meter. meter of methane at gas stations (about 15 rubles) and gas prices for the population (about 4 rubles), then a significant difference is visible. Therefore, many have a reasonable question: is it possible to refuel a car with gas equipment with ordinary household gas at home?
Indeed, such a possibility exists, but this does not mean that you can simply connect the hose from the gas pipe to the car and refuel it. The fact is that in the cylinders installed on the car, the gas is under a pressure of 200 atmospheres, therefore, to pump it, a special compressor is needed, capable of compressing the gas to the required pressure and supplying it to the cylinders. Such equipment exists, although it is mostly imported and it costs a lot - from 3000 euros. But craftsmen have learned to adapt the AK-150S military compressor for these purposes, which is used on tanks, aircraft, infantry fighting vehicles and other military equipment. It will take 4 to 10 hours to completely fill the car with methane, depending on the type of compressor used, so this procedure is best done at night. By the way, night is the best time for refueling, and for one more reason - fewer people use gas at this time, which means that the load that the compressor creates on the gas line will be less noticeable, because a 100 liter cylinder contains about 20 cubic meters of gas and to refuel it it is necessary to pump out methane from 1.3 km of the low-pressure pipeline with a diameter of 140 mm. This can trigger the operation of the protective automatics at the gas distribution substation and the technical inspection system of the gas supply company will sooner or later reveal the cause of the excessive consumption of gas.
You don't need to get any special permits for refueling with methane at home, but you shouldn't go to gas workers with questions either - they will surely find something to dig into. It is clear that such a trick will not work in an apartment; this can only be done in a private house connected to a gas pipeline. And of course, for commercial purposes (that is, to refuel anyone who wants to for money), no one will allow you to open such a gas station at home. As an option - to cooperate with neighbors in the village, buy a compressor together and refuel in turn, then the costs will pay off very quickly. You just need to remember about safety precautions. Speaking of costs, do not forget that the compressor consumes a lot of electricity, so the cost of refueling increases. However, some especially cunning fellow citizens even here manage to save money by unwinding both the electric meter and the gas meter, but this is a completely different topic. We invite you to watch a video of how home installations for filling domestic gas into a car work in Ukraine. By the way, gas prices for the population there are lower than in Russia ...
