HHO, Hydrogen, and Alt Energy News

How Long Does Electrolyte Activator Last in My HHO Kit?

From time to time, we get customers and people interested in purchasing one of our hydrogen kits, wanting to know how much electrolyte is consumed or used in their kits. 

There is no solid answer to this, as it varies by how much driving you do and how hard you run your hho kit, but there are some general usages I can tell you about.

First, let me clarify that you do NOT need to add more electrolyte/activator every time you add water. Remember that we are not creating hydrogen and oxygen out of thin air! We are breaking the water into its base molecules of hydrogen and oxygen (though it is a very small consumption rate of approximately 1800:1), so you will have to add some water to the reservoir on a regular basis: how much depends on various factors. 

An average hho generator running at 18 -20 amps will consume less water than one running at 25-28 amps. Our new series 880 generators use far less water than our older 77 series. When we were running and testing the prototypes, we found at 18 amps, we used only about 2 cups (Half a liter) of water for a whole month! At 25-30 amps we doubled the consumption which is still far less than others on the market today.

You will be able to get a good read on consumption after setting up and breaking in your hho kit after the first couple of weeks. We recommend checking it every time you fill up your gas, until you see what rate you are using. 

You ONLY have to top off with fresh distilled water, NOT water+ electrolyte! The electrolyte is a catalyst, not a consumable, so you will see your amp gauge slowly climbing as water is consumed. When you add more water- it will return to normal levels. Now, although technically the electrolyte is not a consumable. there is a very small trace amount that mixes with the hho gas (you can smell it in the unfiltered gas), so slowly, over time, you will see the amps start to drop as you keep refilling the reservoir. This is also why you MUST properly filter the gas before it enters the engine, or you WILL get white salts forming on your throttle plate and aluminum parts. Bubbler water must be changed frequently as well. Our new dry filters removes this very effectively.

When you see the Amps drop below your desired running amount, then it is time to add a spoonful mixed in with your next top off of water. Usually one spoon is all you need to bring it right back up.

Rule of Thumb: 

  1. Check every fill-up with fuel first few weeks, to see how often you need water in your hho kit
  2. Simply Top Off the reservoir with fresh Distilled water ONLY
  3. Monitor your amps as driving - when they get too low, time to add a spoon of electrolyte/activator
  4. Once a year, drain/clean and flush your hho system for optimum performance.

Hope that helps!

Bob

P.S. You can buy more electrolyte from our store, as well as the perfect Hydro Gen Cleaner. And if you do Not have a drain kit, get one to make life easier for you! Get any of those by clicking on these links if you need:

Electrolyte Activator: http://www.hhokitsdirect.com/collections/all/products/hho-generator-hydro-activator-electrolyte-16-ounces-454-grams

Hydro Gen Cleaner Power Pack: http://www.hhokitsdirect.com/collections/all/products/power-pack-cleaner-activator-for-hho-generators

Drain Kit: http://www.hhokitsdirect.com/collections/all/products/quick-connect-drain-kit-for-hho-kits

What is An EFIE and Do I Need One With My HHO Kit- Part 2

In Part 1, we talked about the basics of fuel injection, how they work and why you need an EFIE or Diesel chip with an HHO kit on a modern car.

We talked about how injectors are controlled by the cars computer (ECM) to determine how long they stay open or closed, and how fast they open or close. The ECM decides those parameters using a programmed set of "fuel maps", that utilize the information from the cars sensors to determine if the engine needs more gas or less gas. 

How Do EFIE's Affect the Fuel Injectors with an HHO kit Working?

Computers can only do what they are programmed for. They can't tell if you are going up a hill or towing a trailer, or anything else, without reading the information from the sensors first. The two key sensors are the O2 sensors in the exhaust to monitor oxygen levels, and the MAF or MAP sensors that monitor the flow of incoming air and the manifold vacuum.

The sensors transmit the data to the cars ECM using very tiny millivolt signals. An O2 sensor may be in the 400 millivolt range for example. When you install one of our EFIE's, you use a volt meter to adjust that millivolt rating down to say 300 millivolts. By doing this, you are telling the car computer to "Lean Out" the fuel, which allows the HHO generator to supply the additional energy, and still save fuel (If you do this without adding an alternative fuel, you will notice a lack of power, and could even burn your valves, so ONLY do this when injecting a new fuel like HHO gas). AN efie gas tuner allows you to slowly tweak and test to get the optimum performance from your hho generator.

The MAF sensor works on the same premise, but measures the mass air flow going into the engine to determine the work the engine is doing (engine load). When you use our EFIE or Diesel Chip, you adjust them to reduce the engine load setting. In other words, you are telling the car computer that it has a 20% lighter engine load than it actually is (for example). The computer then reduces fuel because of that. 

It is not as complicated as it may seem at first. You simply locate the one signal wire on a sensor and connect it to our EFIE or Diesel Chip, then adjust it with a screwdriver. After that, you never mess with it again. (we show you how to locate the wire, install it and adjust it in our free manual). 

By changing the signals ever so slightly, you are teaching the car computer how to reduce the gas or diesel usage, when supplemented by pure hydrogen and oxygen gas. That is the Long term way to make your hho kit function as both an emission reducer and fuel saver, without loss of power or performance.

Stay tuned for Part 3 where we get into the Pro series level chips and how they differ from our advanced series.

If you have any questions- feel free to email us!

Until next time,
Bob

 

Happy 4th of July!

Our offices are closed this weekend as our staff spends the weekend celebrating America's Independence Day with their friends and family! We will do our traditional LOUD explosions using one of our hho kits and some plastic bottles...LOL

We wish you all a great day and have a safe weekend!

Bob

What is An EFIE and Do I Need One With My HHO Kit?

This question is one of the most argued points when it comes to HHO generator kits on vehicles, so I thought it would be a good idea to go ahead and address the issue.

What Is An EFIE?

An EFIE stands for Electronic Fuel Injection Enhancer, and it was really invented back many years ago by a man named George Wiseman, who then shared it with the world to use as necessary to help cars with fuel injection work well with HHO boosters. The file was quickly shared all over the internet and became the standard for most EFIE's still in use today, though they have been vastly improved, and operate smarter (like in our advanced EFIE designs).

Why Are They Needed?

The tuner circuits were invented as a response to the advancement in car computer enhancement, and the advent of throttle body Injection (TBI), and Fuel Injection Rails to inject metered amounts of fuel into a cars engine. They solved a huge amount of problems that commonly occurred with carburetors, such as hard starting, vapor lock, stalling, rough idle, etc. 

The fuel injector contains a small valve that opens and closes rapidly to allow a fast, fine mist of gasoline or diesel to be injected into the combustion chamber of the engine at the perfect time, in the perfect amount, based on the circumstances of the car engine (ie: the car may be idling, accelerating, decelerating, going uphill, towing a trailer, etc), and each circumstance requires a different response from the injectors to vary the fuel properly. The programming used to determine these conditions is put together in a series of "Fuel Maps", that have pre-designated timing sequences for the injectors.

What Does This Have To Do With An EFIE?

The injectors are actually an incredible invention. Think of them as a miniature high pressure spray gun, that not only opens and closes in micro seconds, but with the computer programming, they are told to pulse faster or slower, and stay open faster or slower depending.

So what determines their pulse rate and timing? The computer programming. But how does the computer know what to tell the injectors? Only ONE way...through the engine sensors. The computer has No Other Way of knowing the condition of the engine. Without the sensors, it would be like a blind man trying to run a race in a country he had never been, having no idea what is around the next corner. 

THAT is where the EFIE comes into play!

Stay tuned for Part Two where I will get into the sensors of the engine that control, and how the EFIE affects them, and why they are necessary for long term gains when using an HHO kit

 

What Is a PWM and Do I Really Need One?

The PWM is used to dial in a more precise amperage of an HHO kit. It allows more experimenting for the best results of each vehicle. For instance: we have had some cars get just as good mileage increase at 18 amps, as they do at 30 amps. So by settling at around 18 amps, the mileage increase was there, Plus, the kit used half of the water as normal, from the reservoir, extending times between refills. This doesn’t always happen...sometimes a car responds better at 25 or 28 amps. The only way to really dial it in, is to test around a little. The PWM allows this tuning capability.

When you initially set up an HHO kit, you  dial in the approximate amperage draw of the kit, simply by varying the amount of electrolyte you put into the reservoir. Smaller generators actually need More electrolyte than the larger ones (our 881 hho kits use Twice the Electrolyte as our 884 hho kits!). Our manual shows approximate quantities for set up. If you put too little, or too much electrolyte, the amperage level is set, and you can only vary it by either diluting with more water (lowering amperage), or adding more electrolyte (increasing the amperage)). By using a PWM, on the other hand, you can add more than normal electrolyte at setup, and use the PWM to control whether you want zero amps (off), up to 35-38 amps (max recommended with our PWM's).

How Do They Work?

PWM's work by simply pulsing/modulating the battery current. They control the current by quick pulses (frequency) and adjusting how long those pulses stay on (duty cycle). Some argue that a PWM can create a better form of HHO gas, but I have not seen any proof that way. We have had many customers over the years, get great results with, and without a PWM. We prefer them on any commercial vehicle or cars that drive a lot in hot weather, as you can manually turn them down in the afternoon, if they are running a bit hot. They are also mandatory if you live in freezing weather climates, since you can add much stronger solutions of electrolyte to keep the water from freezing.

While adding or reducing the amount of HHO gas going into an engine may seem counter-intuitive, with this new technology, it is not. There are no precise formulas telling you exactly how much gas is better for any particular vehicle - only approximate rules, and opinions. That’s why a PWM is nice to dial it in to what is right for your vehicle. There are also more expensive PWM's with constant current control, and ability to add water level sensors/as well as connection options to the throttle body of your vehicle, that could control your hho kit precisely with the accelerator, and we will be introducing one soon; but they are not cheap, not really for a backyard experimenter or someone on a tight budget.

While a PWM is not necessary for an hho kit to operate and get results, we have grown to like them more and more as we dial in and play with the generators to get optimum results.

Liters Per Minute (LPM) Measurements for HHO generators

How Many Liters Per Minute?

When we first began 7 years ago, there were no standards for measuring HHO gas production from a generator (still are no standards today). There were various methods tried from plastic bottles in a bucket of water, to gas/air flow meters, to highly expensive hydrogen meters that no one could afford. One mfg used such a complicated method of measurement, that no one would ever be able to compare test results (he claimed his was absolutely the most efficient units on the market). Ridiculous. 

The upside down plastic bottle in a tank of water was and is most commonly used, but is not accurate and can have so many variables as to make it unreliable. One bottle may be ultra thin and light, another may be a heavier mil thickness, skewing the results. Since the measurement is based on timing, the start and stop times can be off by a few seconds either way, also skewing the results.

But the biggest problem in measuring the accurate production of HHO gas from a generator, is quite frankly, fraud and lying, not the measurement technique.

We used these types of gas/airflow meters instead of the bottles, as we felt they were more accurate. The argument in using these is that the heat and steam produced by an hho generator can also skew the results.

Our original kits were always tested after fully warmed up and broken in. But we found them inconsistent, and decided to not use them for hho generator systems.


How To Fake The Results

I cannot emphasize enough how MOST companies selling hho kits online, FAKE their results. That's why we quit even publishing them - whats the point if everyone is just lying about it? How do they Fake the numbers? Easy. They know you are not paying attention, so here is what most do:They Crank Up amperage/voltage Way higher than normal for short videos.They Don't show amp gauge/voltage meter at same time as gas production.They zoom in close to bubbles and turn up current out of sight of camera. They have NO PROOF and NO VIDEOS of production - so they just make up numbers.

How Can I Tell If They Are Accurate?

Best way to tell- Ask for PROOF. Not just a website claim that anyone can say. Ask to see a video of the kit working, with a visible amp gauge/voltage meter, visible at all times, while taking the measurement. If they can't or won't provide it, it is most likely FAKE. 

Remember, there are a lot of really bad kits out there, sold cheap for a quick buck. They don't care if you get results or not - just want your money. So, buyer beware! If they are willing to fake LPM claims, they are most likely willing to lie about their kits as well.

 



Will an HHO Kit Burn Out My Alternator Or Battery?

One of the concerns many newcomers to hho technology have is what kind of a strain an on demand hydrogen kit may put on their car or trucks alternator and battery. You would be surprised it is not as much as you may think!

The Alternator

Most people do not know this, but a standard car alternator is a very efficient electrical generator that creates 24-48 volts AC, in three phase operation. What does all that mean to you? Well, three phase is a special type of winding that is much more efficient than a single phase - it allows a much stronger, cleaner power with less strain on your engine or alternator. Most car batteries only charge at about 13.5 - 14 volts to keep them topped off, so a typical alternator can easily handle 2 - 4 times that.

The important rating on your alternator is the current or "amperage" rating. most modern cars are rated much higher so that all the accessories can be run, like stereos, power amps, TV's, computers, Air Conditioning, etc., so they will normally be equipped with an alternator that powers up to 100-135 amps. But remember- an HHO kit like ours, only needs from 17 to 30 amps on average, so you generally have lots of extra juice to run it.

The rule of thumb ranges from 10 - 20% of your total rating for best results. So if you have a 100 amp alternator, keep the HHO generator adjusted to about 20 amps or so. Some like to upgrade to a high output alternator, which gives them 200-300 amps of power. You get even more efficiency with those because you are using a smaller portion of the power available, and putting less strain on the engine while doing it. But usually, what comes with the car is plenty sufficient, unless it is from 1960's where the alternators only put out 35 amps. Then you definitely need to upgrade!

The Battery

Contrary to some peoples belief, the hho generator kits do NOT operate directly from the alternator. Rather, they are hooked up to the battery. This allows a "chemical buffer" if you will, and keeps the hho kit form putting too much direct strain on the alternator, which only has to keep the battery topped off, not directly drive the hho generator. Believe me- we have tried every configuration over the years and direct to battery is always better.

So dont fret about your electrical system when using a good quality HHO kit like we sell. In 7 years, we have never had a battery burn up, or an alternator go bad as a result of our kits, as long as they are installed and maintained as we recommend.

You can check our hho kits here to see more information on the different sizes we carry: http://www.hhokitsdirect.com/collections/hho-generators

Until later,

Bob