Who would have ever thought that we would look back to the days after Hurricane Katrina, when gas prices first approached $3, with nostalga?  Well, what if you could have gas or diesel at around $1 per gallon today?  If you're like me, you're keenly intrigued and so are two alternatives to look at. 

For you unleaded-heads, there's the new EFuel100 Micro Fueler.  The president was on Fox News today touting its many benefits.  The chief benefit is that you can make Ethenol fuel at home with sugar, water, yeast, and alcohol.  We here in America are busy sticking food in our tanks while in South America, they have been making sugar Ethanol for years.  The machine can make about 5 gallons of fuel per day and the government will actually allow you to use these silly carbon credits to buy the sugar! 

The price for the machine is around $10,000 and then there's the sugar you will need to make fuel.  The conversion is around 10 - 14lbs of sugar for every gallon of fuel. 

Their website has lots of interesting videos as well as a throrough explanation as to how they arrived at the $1 figure however if you steal a lot of sugar packets, you could probably do even better.  They, of course, say you can use it in any vehicle however there are differences between a non-flex fuel vehicle and a flex fuel.  Call your mechanic and get his opinion before you start dumping sugar in your tank.  I wonder how the homeowners association would feel about having one of these outside my garage?

For all of you oil burners out there (diesel owners for non-car guys), here's your alternative to $4.50 diesel: The FuelMeister II.  Using vegetable oil, lye, and methanol, you can make Biodiesel at home.  This system, which costs only $2995, can make 80 gallons of fuel PER DAY!  Now, I know what you're thinking...isn't vegetable oil expensive?  You can gather used cooking oil and use that in the system.  Most restaurants have to get rid of the oil in their fryers every so often and place their oil out for recycling or waste.  Simply ask the manager and 9 times out of ten, you've got fuel.  This process is a little more involved but think of the savings.  Pay nothing for the oil, lye is available at the hardware store for a couple bucks, and then you've only got to find Methanol.  Here in Charlotte, just look for a place that sells race fuel and they'll most likely have Methanol. 

Biodiesel is nothing new and the fuel this machine makes will work in just about any diesel engine.  Plus, you won't have the horrible black smoke and awful smell that accompany's some diesel engines as your exhaust will smell like whatever oil you put in.  Hit a chicken joint and you'll be craving McNuggets for a week but that's a risk I'm willing to take. 

Making fuel at home isn't anything new and if you can tackle 6th grade chemistry, you can handle either of these machines.  There is a catch.  Remember that in your state, you pay 18.5 cents per gallon in federal gasoline taxes and 10 - 60 cents in state gasoline taxes.  With this machine, the government gets NOTHING but that could present a problem for you if you get caught.  Some have found that their respective states will allow them to operate their cars as long as they pay a few thousand dollars a year for a waiver.  So just beware.  I'm not sure how they would know but if you had a big sticker on your car that said "i make my own fuel," I think you'd be easily caught.  Also, make sure you shake your fist at every gas station you pass so the authorities realize you're upset too.  But between you and me,  you'll be laughing all the way to the bank.

 Jonathan Osman
Charlotte NC Homes, Charlotte Real Estate