I've also stumbled across these things and absolutely love them...so much so that I started carrying them in my online store.

I went an extra step in the one's I carry and ripped the plastic hookup out and stuck a brass hookup on it. They work like a charm!




I also added some stainless steel nuts to it for weight & they sink right to the bottom of a 55 gallon drum.

You can see more about them here:
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/washingsupplies.php#bubbler

The fine bubbles they emit are nothing short of miraculous. No matter how hard you crank the air pump up, these things just keep emitting small bubbles--just more of them.
-Graydon

Graydon,
I was just wondering how many of your limewood bubblers you recomend for a 55 gallon poly drum.

Thanks,
Shaun

Sorry, I need to "troll on over here" a little more often.

I recommend just a single bubbler for a 55 gallon drum. You'd be amazed at how well just one of them will work. It totally floored me when I first found them.

I carry a 2" and a 3" bubbler.

In order to get the full value out of them I recommend you power them with an air pump rated at 60 gallons or more though. The one's I sell via my site are rated high enough to do the job well.

Again, sorry for not catching this earlier.
-Graydon

how long would i have to run a bubbler in say 25 gallons or BD

it'll depend entirely on how soapy your biodiesel is and how hard your water is, and what temperature everythign is... oh and also depends on how much water you use.

I do the following:

2 hours first wash,
4 hours second wash
8 hours each for two more washes after that

But- your experience may vary. Bubblewashing is slow. I also often skip the first and second wash times and mistwsh instead- it uses more water which is inconvenient at my site but it minimises emulsification concerns so I can start washing after a very short settling time.

Mark

Can bubblewash water be used again or should it be discarded after each use?

It can be used again, but not for the "next" wash of the current batch. It can be used for the "previous" wash the next batch you make.

For example if you wash 4 times, the disgarded water from the 4th wash can be used for the 3rd wash of your next batch.

Doing this can save a lot of water, but requires you to store a lot of used wash water on site. Also, if you like to mist wash before you bubble...you'll need to run your mister off of a pump in order to re-use the wash water.

Graydon, I bought one of those bubblers from you and am attempting to use it now for the first time. I have made 102 gallons so far and have mist washed only so far. I just processed 30 more gallons, settled it for 18 hrs, transfered it to my wash tank and just started a bubble wash. I slowly added 8 gallons of water, and turned on the air. It has a thin layer of foam on top since i turned it on. Is that normal?

P.S.
The foam on top is similar to the foam you get when getting a soft drink out of a soda fountain.

Glenn

Is it better to heat the BD while misting and bubbling, or better to leave it at ambient temp??