Biodiesel

[MapleLeafFarmer]

Is all diesel sold in U.S. biodiesel?

I live on the border of US / Canada and in summer I use Cenex Ruby Red that I believe is 20% biodiesel. No complaints as I use enough to keep it fresh and DPF seems to regen every 27 hrs or so and never had water in separator. So no complaints and cheaper than from Canada.

For winter though, I read bio diesel can hold up to 20x more water than regular diesel and since I use much less in winter so hard to keep "fresh" I plan to use Premium Diesel from a Shell station in Canada that is "bio" free.

Looking around the US village just south of me (Cenex and Holiday) both seem to only have bio diesel so wondering if non-bio even exists?

 

[Shaneard]

Not all diesel sold in the US is bio.

 

[dodge man]

Its kind of a regional thing. In my area I think almost all of the stuff at the pump is.

 

[Rebeldad1]

Wouldnt know where to get bio diesel around here

 

[MapleLeafFarmer]

Its kind of a reginal thing. In my area I think almost all of the stuff at the pump is.

that's what i am seeing too. only two stations in town and both seem to be only bio.... I ask the people at the front counters and they have no clue. I go to Cenex and Holiday websites and no answer there either.

Diesel price in Canada almost 20% more but at least I know for the little fuel I use in winter I can get premium w/o bio

 

[ruffdog]

Do they have to label it as bio? Like B10 or B20?

 

[TerryR]

There was a small co-op in town that provides it to it's members, though I don't know if it's still operational. The nearest places that sell it are two hours drive away.

 

[Cougsfan]

I had a Motorhome that was based on a Mercedes Sprinter diesel that I drove around the USA a couple of times. A tag next to the fuel fill spout of the Mercedes warned you not to use over 10% bio-diesel. In some areas (mainly the Midwest) I could only find B20 diesel (20% bio). So I was forced to use it if I wanted to leave their town. In most other parts of the county I never saw any bio-diesel. It could be they are not required to state the bio-blend in some States(?)

As a side note: my neighbor is a road equipment maintenance mechanic for Washington State Dept of Transportation. He says they have a real dilemma with bio-diesel. State law forces them to run a very high percentage of bio-diesel in the State-owned rigs, but many of the providers of their equipment void the warranty if you use over 10% bio-diesel. He says the reason is clear why the manufacturers void the warranty. They have tons of problems with clogged filters and/or injectors as well as other problems that most commercial diesel operations don't have. He attributes the problems to a couple of things: 1) a waxy substance that may precipitate out of the fuel if the rigs sets unused for a long while, and 2) a high variability in the quality of the bio-diesel depending on the source. It is clear to him that in addition to Bio-diesel and petroleum based diesel not being equivalents; one bio-diesel source may not be equivalent to another source.

 

[dodge man]

The pumps in my area have a sticker that is kind of vague. I don’t remember it exactly but something like MAY CONTAIN BIO FUELS UP TO 20%. My understanding is it’s B5 but no one knows for sure.

 

[ruffdog]

From the Federal Trade Commission.....it seems B5 or less does not need labeling...more than B5 it does.

Complying with the FTC Fuel Rating Rule | Federal Trade Commission