The manufacture recommends the oil to be near 150 degrees F to properly clean. I think that temp would be dependant of what you are filtering and the viscosity of the oil. I tried mine without the heater this weekend and it was doing an ok job. I have decided to build a flash heater just prior to my centrifuge one similar to this link.... Dieselcraft Centrifuge for WVO, vegetable oil fuel, biofuel, alternative fuels, svo, cooking oil, biodiesel
AS for cost so far I have about 180 bucks in the centrifuge and I have most of the other stuff needed such as the pump, fittings, barrels, hoses, gauges and filters. I plan to spend 50 bucks or less for the flash heater.
Just keep in mind depending on what you are cleaning your fuel for that the higher temp will improve several things such as water removal even if you think there is no water in the oil and filtering issues.
Cheap and centrifuge don't go together. There's two main kinds: oil-pressure & motor driven. The first looks cheaper until you finish building the system.
Both need hot oil- don't kid yourself, you WILL need a heater. Heat also helps water either settle out, or flash off in the centrifuge.
That dieselcraft unit & my Spinner 76se both need a powerful pump to feed it fairly high-pressure oil (50-100PSI, depending on centrifuge models). Mine needs 90psi @ 2.5gpm+. My last pump was rated at 5gpm at the speed I turned it. As the oil warmed it couldn't keep up with the centrifuge & pressure dropped. They're repurposed bypass filters & will NOT completely clean the oil in one pass. Sediment capacity is very low. Cost goes up quick when you remember the need for pressure/temp capable pump & hoses.
Motor driven units use a bowl spun by, well, a motor. You adjust a dribble of oil to control the feed rate- output oil is clean in ONE pass, unless you set the feed too high, or overfill the bowl with sediment/water. Newer designs improve feeding to reduce splashing, allowing cleaner oil than older models. Huge sediment capacity compared to oil-driven models. No high-pressure pump needed, just one big enough to lift oil back up into the feed tank.
If I had to invest time/money all over again, I'd get a new motor-driven unit like the 'Raw Power' series. Gravity-feed from one tank into the centrifuge, then into the 'clean' tank. If the bowl fills up from a really nasty batch, I can just pump it back up to the upper tank & re-run it. If the centrifuge runs dry, it won't hurt it. Open the valves, set a timer on the motor for longer than it'll take & walk away.
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****, on to plan "B" I guess... >>sets fire to head<<
I haven't heard anything seriously negative about any of these unit. The Absolute unit is a mystery as the website doesn't really give much info and there are no vids showing the unit at work. I really like how the unit has a built in heater and looks professional.
Trying to decide which unit to buy is making my head hurt.
