When Aron and I first started talking about hydrogen and uses for it, it was 1996. It was a little beyond both of us at the time. We didn’t have the resources we do now.
Lately, it seems like hydrogen information is coming out of the woodwork. We started trying to make our own hydrogen generators in the last while, since it isn’t really that complex. And we aren’t alone; many others are busy building their own HHO kits for vehicles.
A lot of people want to find out more about homemade hydrogen generators. Not everyone will actually build one. Many of you probably just find it an interesting idea, and others will decide actually building one will be more work than they want to do themselves.
We can help out there, too. We will be reviewing the products of others, as well as showing you how we made our HHOs. We will give you links to materials ans even to completed units. Check back here later, or subscribe for email HHO hydrogen article updates.
May 12th, 2008 at 6:59 am
Very cool
Tom Howe Says:May 12th, 2008 at 7:00 am
how easy is all that
michael Carter Says:May 13th, 2008 at 11:57 pm
I am glad you showed that accidents do happen when putting these together, people are not realizing how dangerous these can be and it can be quite dangerous.
Tim Says:So were you able to find out and did changing the metal to stainless steal make a difference?
May 14th, 2008 at 3:37 am
Since we removed internal connections and use solid stainless steel for our entire one piece anode / lead, we haven’t had any trouble. Unless the positive and negative somehow touch, there won’t be any problems with ignition. We test the anodes in an open topped large container to make sure we have everything safe.
Audie Gates Says:May 19th, 2008 at 12:42 am
I like your wrapped double electrode, about how long do you think the spacers between will last & how do they stand up to corrosion? what kind of encasement are you housing this in? thank you
Tim Says:May 20th, 2008 at 1:32 am
The spacer material is a hard plastic mesh about a 16th of an inch thick, made for longterm outdoor use . I feel confident that it will last a long time. After repeated testing we have not had any troubles with it, and a few of our tests involved purposely overheating the unit to see what would happen. We don’t use caustic, only pure tap water so I have no idea what would happen with other fluids.
dart Says:Our housings have usually been made from PVC pipe, since it is easy to work with. These anodes will heat up if used at maximum draw (10 amps), so a PVC housing will only work if you have a small transmission cooler or a bubbler tank with more water to disperse heat.
May 20th, 2008 at 5:53 am
Awesome design guys!!!
What is the temp of the water solution at 10 amps ?
Have you tested this with a neutral plate ?
Have you tested this using a PWM ?
Tim Says:May 20th, 2008 at 12:32 pm
The water can get pretty hot if you don’t use a bubbler tank to recirculate, or if you don’t have enough volume.
Pete Says:We tested with a neutral plate, it didn’t seem to help at all.
Never used a PWM yet, but it’s on the to do list.
May 21st, 2008 at 4:43 pm
Do you have anyone using this on a diesel motor? I have a 2004 Chevy Duramax 6.6 Liter motor. And would like to find out how well it works on these motors.
Gene Jeffco Says:Also what would be the best thing to build the container out of for this generator?
Pete
May 29th, 2008 at 6:29 pm
I am interested in your generator, but have a question. What is the mesh material made of?
Tim Says:May 29th, 2008 at 8:07 pm
Thanks for stopping by, Gene.
Jeremie Says:The mesh is made from durable polyethylene plastic intended for year round outdoor use.
May 31st, 2008 at 5:48 pm
I was wondering if these could be hooked up in a series for a larger production of hydrogen
Tim Says:May 31st, 2008 at 11:28 pm
Hi, Jeremie.
brac Says:It would be possible to hook these in series or more than one in a housing. You just have to be careful of your connections. One way to keep wired connections safe would be to keep the cells upside down, so that wires etc would always be under water. If you can weld and have access to a tig or other appropriate welding machine, you could use stainless to weld up your units. Make sure that the rod or wire you use is compatible with the stainless you are working on. For instance, 309 rod is slightly magnetic, and should not be used with 304, 308 or 316 series stainless. Mixing will cause more corrosion in the weld or join area and may cause you problems.
June 4th, 2008 at 7:03 pm
Great work your doing, thank for posting. Could you explain what the bubbler is, how it’s made, and how it works.
As a side note if people are looking for the plastic mesh I got mine as a “tank sleve” from a dive shop.
Tim Says:June 5th, 2008 at 4:17 am
Hey, Brac
Wooly Says:The next post we will be putting out will discuss bubblers and how to use one. Check back in a couple days.
June 7th, 2008 at 2:18 am
Top stuff. My question is, What determins the amps?
Tim Says:June 7th, 2008 at 2:30 am
Well, Wooly, the more electrode you have exposed to the water, the more power it can draw. This is true up to the maximum of your power supply. Of course, too much power flow can result in a short circuit and arcing if taken to extremes.
mike Says:It is possible to regulate your amps using a resistor, or rheostat of some sort, or a multi setting switch like the one controlling a heater fan.
June 7th, 2008 at 3:50 pm
wow great explanations i hope to learn more
brac Says:June 8th, 2008 at 9:40 pm
Tim,
Josh Says:Thanks I look foward to the bubbler info. My next question is where you are connecting these to the engine, my thought was either just feed it into the air intake or into a vacuum line. Have you tried both?
Thanks again for posting!!
June 9th, 2008 at 4:25 pm
i have a slight question. what if you were able to figure a way to run your car completely on HHO? if im not mistaken HHO is Combustible if my assumptions are correct i should have a completely HHO fueled Vehicle in a matter of days.
Aron Says:June 9th, 2008 at 7:06 pm
Hi Josh. This has been done before so I’m sure it can be done again, you might want to purchase bullit proof vests, cars and hire security. Before a hitman sent by and oil company takes you out let us know how your project is progressing.
Aron Says:June 10th, 2008 at 12:00 am
Hello Brac. We have connected our generators to both the air intake between the air filter and throttle body and into a vacuum line. They both work but conecting to the vacuum line will work better especially for low rpm crusing. We will post videos about bubbles and condensation traps soon.
Steve Says:June 10th, 2008 at 2:41 am
We have built a small unit. It produces a small amount of bubbles. We heard that you can put something on to cause it to draw more amps and thus make more hho. for example, one of the comments said “I changed it from 2 amps to 20 amps”. How?
Aron Says:June 10th, 2008 at 4:02 am
Hi Steve. You are thinking of electrolytes. Put a teaspoon of baking soda in four liters of distilled water. Drain your generator and add the new water. Start it up and after about 15 minutes your generator will draw more amps and make more hho. Adding more baking soda will increase production even further but will reduce the life expectency of the electrodes.
joe d Says:June 10th, 2008 at 5:32 pm
I dont know how much it would take to ingnite the HHO,but care should be exercised with mass air flow injected vehicles.The mass air sometimes uses a hot wire in the intake to sense airflow.These have ignited ether and throttlebody cleaner when sprayed into the intake.Also any backfire into the intake might be bad with alot of cars now have plastic intakes.I have seen the end of a intake blown off the truck when it back fired with fuel in the intake.Have fun experimenting but be careful.
Aron Says:June 10th, 2008 at 6:18 pm
Very good point Joe D. Everybody should be aware of that ignition source. One of our test trucks does have mass air so we draw the hho from the cell through a vacuum line.
Steve Says:June 13th, 2008 at 3:47 pm
I’m interested in knowing if anyone has tried duplicating the efforts of Stan Meyer’s hydrogen generator that used pulsed high voltage, but very low amp power? I have many of his design documents, but I’m not smart enough in electronics to understand the electrical part. By using high voltage, low amps, his generator didn’t produce heat!
Geno from Reno Says:June 14th, 2008 at 12:34 pm
These generators fasinate me. I want to put one my Dodge Hemi, but am learning I have to make some modifications. Thanks for the info.
Jayson from phoenix Says:June 15th, 2008 at 1:57 am
I LOVE THIS STUFF. All these years as a mechanic and knowing the concept I never knew it was so easily applied, safe, and inexpensive untill just recently. I AM ORDERING MATERIALS NOW!!!!!
Darin Says:June 24th, 2008 at 1:10 am
Does anyone know if you can run any gas burning engine completely off HHO by use of HHO stored in a propane tank in the trunk? If possible; on average how many miles per liter would be produced on a car with an epa rating of about 20 miles per gallon?
IZZY Says:June 25th, 2008 at 5:02 pm
GREAT INFORMATION OUT THERE FOR US TO LEARN OFF OF BUT I JUST CAN’T SEEM TO GET THE RIGHT THICKNESS OF ELECTRICAL WIRE MINE GET;S TO HOT AFTER 15 MINUTES OF USE. ANY IDEAS WHAT I AM DOING WRONG
brac Says:June 28th, 2008 at 5:04 am
Darin, I think the problem would be how to pressurize it to get it in the tank, oh and the danger..
Walt Says:June 28th, 2008 at 11:50 pm
Hi Izzy;
The heating you are experiencing is caused by the amount of current passing through your cell. The current passing through the cell is controlled by four main factors:
1. The surface area of the stainless steel anodes.
2. The conductivity of the fluid in the cell
3. The spacing of the anodes.
4. The voltage applied to the cell.
If you are using 18 or 16 guage wire to supply power to your cell, try changing to 12 or 10 guage wire. Changing to the heavier (the smaller the number the heavier the wire)guage wire, should cure the problem.
If the above doesn’t cure the problem, try rinsing the cell out and filling it with plain distilled water.
You may have to reduce the voltage applied to the cell.
Don Says:July 5th, 2008 at 6:03 pm
Good site thanks
I like this stuff it can be fun and also very dangerous use extream care when playing with hho. I have one i made with s/s wall switch plates i have one neg and a nuterl and a pos. +n-n+n-n+n- 14 plates in all produces very well usning distalled water and baking soda the amount of baking soda u put in will determine the amps. I have my unit going through a bubbler then into the air intake as close to the plemptom as posable away from all the scencers. I like the idea of using a multi setting switch like the one controlling a heater fan.
Thanks Tim
Don Says:July 5th, 2008 at 6:05 pm
Oh ya i realy like the back ground of the Canadian flag way to go.
Bruce Says:July 9th, 2008 at 4:20 pm
I just talked to an engineer who said that the closer the pipes are the more Amps the generator will try to use so there must be a way to control it or a formula for the optimal configuration. Any suggestions
Bruce Says:Thanks
Bruce
July 9th, 2008 at 4:28 pm
My first comment must not have gone. I wanted to thank Aron for getting me started. I have a mechanical engineer that is going to work with me on this. We are going to use stainless steel pipes approximately 14-18 inches long. he is suggesting that we use acrylic pipe for our generator chanber. does anyone have any experience or comments on that idea.
2′nd question was: Does anyone have a formula or idea of how close the + and - pipes should be placed to get the best results?
Thanks
Nessa Says:Bruce
July 15th, 2008 at 6:38 pm
we have built a generator using s/s wall plates we have 6 alternating + and - we have learned by trial and ALOT of error …. we have to use #8 wire and a continous power cylinoid …we have a switch run into cab so it does not run all the time ….we are haveing a problem with our bubbler …we only have one hose from generator and one to the intake …some input would be great
Allen Says:July 21st, 2008 at 2:15 pm
I’ve noticed that many questions are related to tweeking the system that was built. It leads me to wonder if there is any definitive instructions to build these HHO systems? Secondly, do any of these manuals offered on the internet give you everything you need to efficiently and safely build and install one of these systems?
Steve Duvall Says:July 30th, 2008 at 7:24 pm
Ok ive done a lot of research, im a certified master mechanic in gas and diesel and am a hydraulics specialist
Ive seen pressurizing, pulse width modulation and other methods! Has any one experimented with keeping the system under vaccum, and an oxygen scrubber to isolate the oxygen to later introduce the oxygen before combustion!
I would assume that if you could heat the water with the exhaust then pass the water through an electrical current then under a vacuum accumulate the hydrogen it could be stored in small quantities safly and repleneished as it is being used or a method somwhat similar!
Steve Duvall Says:July 31st, 2008 at 6:26 pm
This is for Izzy
quote”# IZZY | June 25th, 2008 at 5:02 pm
GREAT INFORMATION OUT THERE FOR US TO LEARN OFF OF BUT I JUST CAN’T SEEM TO GET THE RIGHT THICKNESS OF ELECTRICAL WIRE MINE GET;S TO HOT AFTER 15 MINUTES OF USE. ANY IDEAS WHAT I AM DOING WRONG”
The Amperage is what is causing the heatup of your wires, it is possible that you could have a very efficient system but you just need some fine tunning, one way to control the amperage heatup is to use a pwm pulse width modulator, If you could describe for us your setup, # of plates and dimensions style, conical or plates etc! voltage amperage wire gauge, then your test results, voltage and amperage applied temperature of your circuit etc we could further analize and possibly help with a solution!
Johann Kristinsson Says:August 14th, 2008 at 3:31 am
Hi Steve.
pete Says:Sorry to hear that your wires are heating.
You are probably american and the american rules, although good, are not strikt enouugh for europe.
Here we secure 1.5 quadrat mm single core copper with 10 amp at 240 volt
50 hz ac.
Dc produces more heat because its constant, not dead or reduced half the time(sinus wave).
I recomend that you use wider multicore wires and find out what the regulations say about 12 volt ameperage and wires and protection.
Then you must put in security, bimetal or something.
Remember that fuses are to protect the wires, not the application.
The application is suposed to have its own protection, the fuse is to protect the network.
By the way, what q are you using and what is your amperage use, a simple vom meter will answer that?
Wish you luck.
Johann.
September 4th, 2008 at 3:01 am
safety is my main concern and doubling mileage i called a radio show called the auto lab on 570am in nyc they had no comment but felt it was not safe to install what are the best materials to make a hho generator and what flame devices and other items can be installed for safety i read that connecting to the fuel pump ckt is better because gas and hho would be on at the same time instead of the external relay p.s what circuit devices need to be installed to achieve the highest gas mileage result thanks very much pete appreciate the help.
Rasplanet Says:September 11th, 2008 at 12:44 am
This comment is for Pete. Your idea might not work because most electric fuel pumps have an internal pressure switch that cuts off the gas when enough pressure is built up. However, the power to the pump is still on. Unless someone proves me wrong, I would connect to the alternator(AC power) which will give you all the power you need and will let your unit run cooler. Always use a multimeter when in doubt about voltage, amps, etc.
Eddie Says:And to everyone: “Please use extreme caution when experimenting with hydrogen and electricity.”
This cannot be stressed enough. I see that Tim and Aron
are trying to keep everyone safe. Thanks guys. I love what you are doing and wish everyone the best. If we all
work together through information sharing, maybe we can
stop depending on petroleum.
September 15th, 2008 at 7:10 am
To follow up on my request for a current regulator I must admit that after delving through the correspondence on this site I am really glad that I found it. Since a friend emailed me about the HHO that I suspected was a joke 4 months ago I really got hooked and have’nt stopped experimenting since. I tried a variety of ideas. My conclusion so far is that the HHO production is proportional to the power supplied to it.
dougiefresh27 Says:I am still searching for the “Holy Grail HHO generator”.
My aim is to determine for best efficient simple setup that limits amperage and heat buildup.
You guys are going through the same experience I am having, and hope that we shall help each other to come up with a most desirable and satisfying conclusion.
September 19th, 2008 at 11:42 pm
My biggest question is how do you compete with the cars computer. How does the car get the information to put less gas in each cylinder? That is the only way that the car will use less gas. Please help!
gene Says:September 21st, 2008 at 10:58 pm
I would like to know what solution you use for winter or under freezing conditions?
johnmitchell Says:October 14th, 2008 at 1:00 am
i have a number of questions, my truck has a mass air meter, wouldnt it be a good idea to place my hho vaccum line before it? so the computer can read the difference in the air, and lean out the engine? or this wont work…?
steve v Says:ok, i also read on the many threads ive gone thru, that to help decrese temp in the cell, add a neutral plate or tube to use any extra current flowing thru the solution would lessen the temp. is this true?
next, the voltage, i also read that decreasing the voltage to the cell lowers temps too. i have a friend of mine, an electrician, says he dropped his down to 4 volts, and keeping his amps, hes getting same results of hydrogen at lower temps, is he pulling my leg?
i have a bunch more questions, but ill stop here.
October 15th, 2008 at 6:04 pm
Guys great work Ive just built a 14 plate system and have the overheating problem . If I cut back on the soda will it drop the temp or should I lower the amps
Zane Says:October 21st, 2008 at 9:29 pm
I saw someone build a generator using stainless steel condiment cups from Walmart (4 for a dollar). Can it really be this easy?
Danny Says:November 2nd, 2008 at 4:52 am
OK, Whats the trick?
Wayne Says:Have made a HHO system using 316L Stainless steel plates
Put in 1/4 gram of pure caustic soda about 20AMPs but no Hydrogen. One hour later still no hyrdrogen, so add another 1/4 gram caustic soda and then it jumps to 80amps and hyrdogen starts.How do I get more hyrdogen but lower amps?
Any suggestion?
November 6th, 2008 at 6:13 pm
I have constructed my first real HHO generator, after proving to myself how easy it is to make Browns gas in a Gatorade bottle, which I made in about an hour using 4 aluminum plates and salt water. It produced HHO but quickly got hot(unregulated power source)and consumed the electrodes after several demonstrations. I went all out when making my “real” unit after reading and analyzing other generators and can produce about 1 liter per minute of HHO gas. I understand that when applying this fuel source(water to HHO) to a car engine that it is not the combustion of HHO that provides a boost in performance but the chemical reaction of the gasoline/diesel with air and the extremely small percentage of hho that is mixed in. I calculated that by injecting 1 liter per minute that my car engine (3liter 4 cylinder) would be combusting 99% gasoline to 1% HHO. What is the ratio of gasoline to HHO that would alter my vehicles performance? It seems hard to believe that 1% is enough. Even if I could produce 5 liters HHO per minute(a hefty goal) would this be enough. What is the ideal mixture?
Wayne Says:November 11th, 2008 at 1:50 am
In response to Danny’s problem of low hho production with excessive current draw. Try changing the plate spacing.1/8 to 1/4 inch seems to work fine. I am using 1 gallon water with two tablespoons baking soda, 1/4 gap between plates and wired the plates together so that 1.5 volts drives the current thru each 2 plates. (for example: if you use 8 plates you have 7 gaps or cells ,using the cars battery = 12vdc / 7 =1.5 vdc.) This seems to work for me. Right now I am only drawing 10 amps and have good hho production. I will later increase this to 20 or a max of 30 amps ( any more and you may start to overheat hence boil the water) Good Luck!
yaughn Says:November 17th, 2008 at 1:16 am
I am definately looking into building one of these,… so let me run over a couple of things first. The Mesh is more than likely some sort of plastic or non conductive mesh Im guessing? There are two plates rolled into a coil with the mesh seperating them? OK, I know a flash back arrestor is needed for safety, however, how does one prevent sucking the contents of the bubbler, and or the tank into the engine, especially when the engine is suddendly revved. What is the way to gauge the size of the generator to the size of the motor for the best fuel economy? I’m looking for MPG savings here I commute 55 miles each way to work? Is there a safety range on what these utnis should normally run at? I have read, these units produce waste, how does one deal with that, and how often? Would it be prudent to design up a float shut off valve, so when the water level drops too low, the unit will automatically shut down until refilled?
yaughn Says:Can these units be installed directly to the EFI pleunum via a removed threaded plug if available?
November 17th, 2008 at 1:21 am
I hve access to titanium at work. Would this be a better sustitute for the electrodes, since titanium doesnt corrode. Also what do you reccomend to regulate the current into the unit to keep it under control?
Frank Cox Cape Coral, FL Says:Maybe an additional amps gauge to the unit?
December 5th, 2008 at 5:36 pm
Read and Heed First - Disposal - What should I do with my used electrolyte? If you are using more exotic metals like titanium… who knows? If you are using any metal that is chrome plated, contains Chrome or Chromium like Stainless Steel, Then you end up leaching something call Hexavalent Chromium out of the metal during the electrolysis process. Hexavalent Chromium or Cr(VI) is a known carcinogen and is bad juju if it gets in the drinking water (see the movie Erin Brockovich). DO NOT pour your used electrolyte down the drain or onto the ground. Mark it with the chemical name of the electrolyte {Example NaOH & Cr(VI) } It is always best to take all electrolytes to your Local Hazmat Collection Point. Look in your phono book for the location and hours of operation. Please - Protect the envioronment, yourself and other persons at all cost! Do Not act foolishly!
David Says:1liter of used electrolyte contains Chrome or Chromium,and if you trow it into clean water that will poison more than 10,000liters equals water for at least 5generations and it would take, more than 13generations for the 10,000 to be pure and clean:IT LOOKS TO ME,,NOW USING THIS TECNOLOGIES WILL WE HAVE A CLEANER AIR, AND A POISON IT WATER TO DRINK ,,so plez,,dont be trowing every the electrolisys.
December 12th, 2008 at 3:21 am
To regulate the current to the generator find a PWM (pulse wave modulator ) device. Use either an adjustable model or find a fixed one that matches your HHO eletrolyzers normal draw. I do not know if titanium works well as an electrode or not. I’ve read that platinum is the ideal and that pure nickel is also very good. The higher the nickel content the higher quality the stainless steel. Anyone out there care to comment? Pease respond and share your knowledge so that collectively we can reduce our dependance on Middle Eastern oil.
Lowell Prewitt Says:December 30th, 2008 at 7:45 pm
During the chroming process, the steel is
shawn Says:is plated with nickel. Instead of
using stainless, could we use nickel
plated steel? Has anyone tried this?
March 13th, 2009 at 1:25 pm
alot of you are making the same mistakes. the original browns gas generato produced 1,000 ltrs per hour of hho using a cell 6″ x 9″ at 15 amps 240 volts ac. if you want to place a unit in a vehicle the first install a power inverter to get 120 volts the wire your cell with #10 stranded to increase amp flow and reduce the heat use alum wire