HHO-Monster Blog: Articles and Information about HHO

Electrolytes Explained

admin — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 11:20:22 +0000

Tap water should never be used. Ever. Tap water contains various contaminates and minerals that not only reduces the productivity but also creates serious premature corrosion. Distilled water has been properly conditioned and cleaned of minerals which will aid in productivity and keep your generator running as efficiently as possible.

Water does not efficiently conduct electricity which is why we add electrolyte. The electrolyte helps the current travel through the water from the anode and cathode which is the basis of the electrolysis process. Here is a rundown on the popular electrolytes in no particular order:

White Vinegar
Baking Soda
Sodium Hydroxide (Also called Lye or NaOH) – Popular in professionally built units.
Potassium Hydroxide (Also called KOH or Potash) – Popular in professionally built units.

The best electrolyte stays in the water and is not consumed by electrolysis process. This is the safest form of electrolyte since only HHO is sent to the engine. Do not use drain cleaners that include a mixture of other chemicals. There are pros and cons to all electrolytes from foul smell, discoloration of water, corrosive and dangerous to handle. Do your homework and try several electrolytes to see which you prefer.

HHO Safety Equipment Defined

admin — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 11:17:58 +0000

Safety equipment not only saves you from getting hurt, it also protects your HHO system and more importantly, your car!! HHO gas is very dangerous. Not only is it flammable, but explosive in even small quantities. HHOMonster IS NOT responsible for any damage or harm caused by HHO systems. Below are a few safety devices:

Bubbler

This is a simple yet very important part of any HHO system.

The bubbler has 2 benefits; 1) it protects your generator from a flashback (backfire) and 2) it acts like a filter to clean the bubbles that generate from your generator from particulates that may be present depending on your electrolyte and other factors. The bubbler is simply a container filled with water where the HHO gas is fed to the bottom and allowed to bubble thru the water and continue thru a hose to the engine. Some bubblers are designed to allow the top to pop off in the event of a backfire.

Flash Arrestor

This is another simple yet invaluable device designed to snuff out any flashback (backfire) from the engine. A majority of these devices are constructed of a tube gently packed with fine bronze wool and fitted with hose barbs on each end. The reason for bronze wool is due to the resistance oxidation (rust).

Check Valve

Another inexpensive safety device used is a check valve or one-way valve which allows gas to flow only thru one direction. These devices are not 100% effective so they should be used in conjunction with a flash arrestor. DO NOT rely solely on a check valve to protect your HHO system from a flashback/backfire.

Fuse

Simply put, all HHO systems great and small are subject to electrical shorts. Medium to large HHO systems can pull anywhere from 15 to 40 amps (depending on the design) so a short can cause serious damage under the hood unless a simple, inexpensive fuse shuts things down before it gets out of hand. The fuse should be installed on the positive power feed to your relay and should be properly sized.

PWM Pulse Width/Wave Modulators

These handy devices are a must for any generator that could overheat. These units act like a limiter by allowing you to limit the amount of amps your generator can pull. The last thing you want is a generator getting too hot as you are not only very inefficient but risk damaging your generator. Another issue with a hot generator is the water will boil and water vapors will enter your engine causing serious and costly damage. Professionally built HHO systems which have been thoroughly tested may not need a PWM.

AMP gauge

It is very handy to install a Amp Gauge under the hood to allow for a quick read on your systems performance by glancing under the hood.

Proper Wiring

Wire is cheap, don’t let a poor wiring design limit the performance of your HHO system. There are a number of simple wiring diagrams that are easy to follow that are safe. Good, quality connectors are also very important as poor connections will overheat and could short.

Attention Do-It-Yourselfers

admin — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 11:14:56 +0000

Anyone who is mechanically inclined can build and install an HHO system. By system we mean HHO generator, bubbler, safety device and likely a sensor adjustor or two. Undoubtedly, the #1 suggestion is do your homework before you start your project. Do NOT pay for an e-book as the information is FREE. We at hhomonster.com would be glad to help answer questions and offer free, unbiased information.

Some questions you should ask yourself:

1. How much output do I need?
2. What kind of space do I have under my hood?
3. What style generator do I want to make? i.e. generator housing, internal components made of wire, plates, mesh, etc..
4. Where can I find all of the parts? It’s never fun to be half-way into a project to hit a snag by not finding all of the parts.
5. Did I think of everything? Generator, bubbler, flash arrestor, automotive wire (Not the same as building wire), etc..
6. What will this cost me? You may find the cost of your unit might exceed a professionally pre-built system. Were not trying to talk you out of it but want you to know what you’re getting into ahead of time.

Other notes to consider:

1. HHO gas is very dangerous. It’s not only flammable but explosive in even small quantities. HHOMonster IS NOT responsible for any damage or harm caused by HHO systems. You can never be too safe; you should have at least 2 safety mechanisms in your HHO system. See our blog on Safety equipment.
2. The engine compartment is not a friendly environment. Most home-made generators tend to get very hot so take care in finding housings capable of withstanding excess heat. NEVER use a glass generator in your engine.
3. The electrolysis process will degrade most metals fairly quickly, be sure to use only stainless of the highest quality you can afford which includes all hardware.
4. Once you decide on your design, try to find someone who’s made it before and ask questions. We have yet to find someone unwilling to discuss their HHO project and offer pointers.
5. Once you’re system is constructed, test it and monitor it carefully BEFORE installing it in your ride. Check for overheating wires or wire connections as well as possible leaks.
6. There are a number of very helpful HHO forums

Factors that affect your MPG

admin — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 11:12:22 +0000

Vehicle Maintenance

Your tires can reduce your MPG if they are not properly aligned or properly inflated as this would increase the rolling resistance.

An dirty air filter would make your engine work harder and struggle thus reducing your fuel economy.

An engine that is poorly tuned will burn more fuel and reduce your MPG. Even though your engine sounds fine it’s always good to have routine maintenance performed to keep your engine running as smoothly and efficiently as possible.

How You Drive

Running electrical accessories such as headlights, air conditioner, high-end sound system, etc. can reduce your fuel economy. The air condition alone can reduce MPG by 5-25%.

Aggressive Driving can reduce your fuel economy by up to 33% on the highway and 5% around town.

Attachments to your roof such as cargo racks will increase the aerodynamic drag and lower fuel economy.

Driving at high speeds will increase the aerodynamic drag (wind resistance) which in turn will reduce your fuel economy.

Cold weather reduce your fuel economy since your engine does not operate as efficient until it warms up. (Note: Allowing your car to idle to warm up prior to driving in cold weather will only waste the fuel you save by driving once warmed and creates even more pollution.)

Excessive Idling will decrease your overall MPG.

Excessive weight, especially when towing, will decrease fuel economy.

Terrain such as unpaved roads, hilly or mountainous roads will have a negative impact on your MPG. Roads with even a slight rise can cause the engine to struggle and provide poor MPG.

Vehicles equipped with 4-wheel drive will have worse MPG than like 2-wheel drive models because of the additional gearing and additional weight. Driving in 4-wheel drive mode is worse as it makes the engine work harder to turn all four wheels.

Not all Fuel is created equal

The temperature affects the energy content of gasoline. Gasoline contains about 1.7% more energy during the summer than during the winter.

Using oxygenated fuels or reformulated gasoline can reduce your fuel economy by as much as 3%.

Check your MPG using gasoline from a variety of gas stations and see if your engine has a preference and stick with it.

HHO - Fact or Scam?

admin — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 11:07:40 +0000

Scammers have placed a negative misconception about HHO by selling deceptive ebooks and information that is difficult if not impossible to understand without a PhD. Buyers pay up to $100 for a book so confusing they find themselves in their garage with $200 in parts from various hardware stores and find the seller of the e-book does not return e-mails or answer questions which starts to look like a scam. Another misrepresentation of HHO is “running your car on water”. First, unless you have a steam engine, you are not going to run your car off of water. What the ebook sellers aren’t telling you is adding HHO to your intake will rarely improve your gas mileage without modifying your cars sensors to reflect the addition of the HHO gas. As you could imagine, the sensors and computer(s) in your car are not design to automatically detect and utilize HHO gas. There are a variety of simple sensor adjustors that help your engine take advantage of the HHO gas.

Critics are quick to point out that it takes energy to create HHO and we are only trading energy for energy. What they fail to understand is we are not running on HHO alone but using the HHO to get more “bang for your buck” out of the gasoline by squeezing more energy out of the gasoline.

HHOMonster does not sell ebooks, in fact, we help get you in touch with free information, schematics and drawings. Don’t pay for information!! We also don’t sell or promote scams or ridiculous statements such as doubling your mileage or the like. We are here to clear out the scams and promote nothing but factual information in an unbiased playing field as we do not manufacture products but sell quality systems from a variety of manufacturers that we have inspected and checked out ourselves.

What is HHO?

admin — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 11:04:36 +0000

HHO stands for 2 parts Hydrogen & 1 part Oxygen. When 2 Hydrogen atoms are bound to 1 Oxygen atom are bound together you have water, but when we separate the atoms from each other you have Hydrogen & Oxygen mixed gas. There are many names for this gas mix such as browns gas, green gas, Hydroxy, Di-Hydroxy and water gas. The wonderful thing about this gas is the byproduct which is water. No smog or fumes that are plaguing our planet today.

Ok – So now you know what HHO is but how is it made? By a simple method called electrolysis; a method first recorded in 1800 by William Nicholson and Johann Ritter. Electrolysis involves the passage of an electric current (DC) thru electrodes. As we know, batteries have a positive and a negative. With electrolysis, you have 2 types of electrons called cathodes and anodes. The cathodes are positively charged, the anodes are negatively charged. The electrolysis process causes oxidation (rust) which can wreck havoc in an HHO generator with corrosive materials.

Water, by itself, is not a good conductor of electricity so an electrolyte is commonly added to the water to allow electric current to pass thru the water to break down the water into HHO. There are many types of electrolytes and each have pro’s and con’s and most manufactured HHO generators are designed for a particular electrolyte.

We discussed what HHO is and how it’s made but how does it help? “Modern gasoline engines have an average efficiency of about 25 to 30% when used to power an automobile. In other words, of the total heat energy of gasoline, 70 to 75% is rejected (as heat) in the exhaust or consumed by the motor (friction, air turbulence, heat through the cylinder walls or cylinder head, and work used to turn engine equipment and appliances such as water and oil pumps and electrical generator), and only about 25% of energy moves the vehicle.” Source – Wikipedia. Adding the HHO gas to the air intake increases the efficiency because it creates an atmosphere that allows the gasoline to burn cleaner and more efficiently allowing the engine to require less gasoline to operate smoother and produce less carbon monoxide. Reduce pollution, gas consumption AND run smoother with HHO.