New Blog

I will be continuing my Blog on ning.com

Click HERE to be redirected there, it is an awesome site with forums and the ability to post photos and videos.

Hunting for supplies

First of all, sorry for the delay in my next post. I've been very busy with life and have not had much time to work on the project. I have however been able to locate a great supplier for the electronic components for the HyTronics Module.

Those of you in South Africa will know what I'm talking about when I say that finding suppliers for some of the parts needed can be difficult. Knowing where to look makes a big difference however, and this is partly my motivation for this blog. I'm hoping that it will go both ways though, and I'd really appreciate any help if anyone knows where to find some of the stuff we need.

Back to the electronics. I found an awesome supplier in Cape Town called Communica:


108 Albert Rd
Woodstock
Cape Town
7925

Tel : (021) 447-0949
Fax : (021) 447-0959


They usually only sell in bulk to businesses but were more than happy to sell me what I needed and were very helpful! The one guy sat with me and deciphered all of the circuit diagrams and wrote up a list of what I needed and it all came to only a few hundred Rand. I spent a bit more because I also bought a soldering iron and some other equipment but they have some great specials and if you're new to all this and also need to stock up on your inventory this is the place to go!

All in all, its a great place with very helpful people and I highly recommend it to anyone getting involved in this project.

With regard to the rest of the supplies, I will be checking out a place called Andrag Agrico:


ANDRAG (PTY) LTD
PO Box 364
La Belle Rd
BELLVILLE
7535

Tel: +27 (0)21 950-4111
Fax: +27 (0)21 919-1184


They specialise in irrigation systems and I'm hoping to find that they can supply me with the CPVC supplies. If anyone knows of a better place or have been to Andrag please let me know. I will post an update as soon as I have procured the next item. Until then, good luck and happy hunting!

Where to Start?

So now I have the manual and some big ideas...

The first thing I have done is read the entire manual from cover to cover (no easy feat, seeing that it's almost 100 pages long). In fact I read it a couple of times.

The first time I read it, it was just to get a rough idea of all the steps involved and the components needed to start. At a first glance, the amount of work seems huge, but after a second read, I began to understand more clearly what is involved. I understand now that the entire system comprises of the following:

• the Generator (this creates the hydrogen and oxygen gas from water using electrodes and a coil),
• the water tank and pump (to store the water and supply the generator),
• the HyTronics module (containing electronics circuits for controlling and coordinating all the components),
• the in-dash indicators (to provide information to the driver of generator pressure, cylinder head pressure etc)
• the throttle assembly (to connect your accelerator to the generator.

The next thing to do is to read up more deeply into the individual processes. Really get your head around the details, until you can see every step in your mind while you read.

After that, draw up a list of supplies needed and categorize them according to the components I listed above.

Now we are ready to begin the search for suppliers...

The Beginning

I first thought of the idea when I watched a video on youtube.com about a guy named Stan Meyer who had developed the means to burn water by splitting the molecules apart into Hydrogen and Oxygen. Being a student studying chemistry at Rhodes University in Grahamstown, South Africa, I was skeptical but at the same time interested.

I immediately started researching this technology and found a wealth of information about it. One of the most exciting applications mentioned was the possibility to run your car off one of these devices. Although this idea is extremely skeptisized in the online community and labeled as impossible as it would defy the laws of thermodynamics, I began to see a definite possibility that people were utilizing it to decrease their fuel costs and emissions.

I eventually lost interest and it was not roused again until I saw an advert for a manual that would give you instructions to convert your car to run off water as well as gasoline (or petrol, as we call it in SA). It was offered by DriveWater and cost $49.95, I bought it immediately as I thought it would be a nice project for my girlfriend and I over the holidays. If it turns out to be successful I would save over 60% on fuel costs, if it were a useless invention then at least I would have fun.

This blog is for those people like me who are skeptical but interested. I will regularly post updates on our progress as well as photos. Hopefully when its done, you will be inspired to buy the manual and try it for yourself. I would also like to set up something so that people who are doing it at the same time could ask questions and help each other, especially those of you in South Africa who might have problems getting hold of suppliers and working in inches!!!

Hope you enjoy the reading and good luck if you're converting your car too.