Trucker Kit Instructions

Important Safety Notes

HHO (hydroxy gas) is highly combustible, volatile, and explosive. It is no more dangerous than any other fuel, but only when it is used properly. It is important for your installation is to make sure that HHO is only being produced when the engine is actually running. For instance, you don’t want HHO being produced when you are sitting in your truck with the accessory switch on, listening to your radio. So the key is to find a circuit that is only on when the engine is actually running. These instructions will tell you how to achieve this product. Just realize the importance of getting your installation done in a way that will achieve this goal.

Other safety points to consider:

• NO spark or flame should be allowed near HHO gas.
• Do not operate the Dry Cell indoors.
• Use eye and skin protection when mixing or handling electrolyte.
• In the event of eye or skin contact with the electrolyte, flush with plain water.
• Mix and store electrolyte in heavy-duty plastic containers - keep away from children

Assemble the following items in addition to those provided in the Dry Cell Kit:

• Voltmeter or multi-meter
• Basic tools: wire stripper, screwdriver, pliers, etc
• 2 gallons steam distilled water for electrolyte (make sure it says "steam distilled”)

Assess the space available for installing the components. You must find or create space for the following components:

• Dry Cell(s)
• Reservoir. Note: the Reservoir should be installed above (i.e., higher than) the Dry Cell(s) to facilitate the flow of electrolyte into the cell.
• Bubbler Assembly
• PWM (see the separate instructions for installing the PWM and Controller/Display units)

1. Mount your components

Mount your cell, reservoir and bubbler assembly. Make sure the reservoir is higher than the cells, as water must feed to the cell by gravity.

Water Trap/Dryer Assembly

• Water Trap: This collects any water or foam that sloshes out of the reservoir and gets in the hose heading downstream towards the engine. This is just an empty housing that can collect water, leaving it visible so it can be emptied if needed.
• Dryer: This is just a 5 micron sediment filter to collect any mist that is still in the HHO gas stream. It’s a final point to stop any contaminants from getting into the engine.

The HHO gas stream enters at the water trap, then passes through and exits from the dryer. After passing through the dryer, it is ready to be introduced into the engine’s intake air stream. As you can see from the photo above, the direction of flow is from left to right. If you have a configuration where you need the gas to flow from right to left, you can just reverse the bracket. Remove the screws that secure the housings to the bracket, flip the bracket around 180 degrees and then screw the housings back in.

2. Make the tubing connections

Connect tubing between the cells and the reservoir as shown in the diagram. Notice that the lower fitting on the cell connects to the lower fitting on the reservoir. This is for the flow of electrolyte into the cell. The upper fitting on the cell goes to one of the upper fittings on the reservoir. This allows the HHO gas to flow to the reservoir. Any electrolyte that is pushed up this tube will drop into the reservoir.

When connecting the hose to the fittings, slip a hose clamp onto the hose before slipping the hose onto the clamp. This is easier than trying to retro fit the clamp later, after the hose is already slid onto the fitting. If needed you may use a heat gun (or hair dryer) to warm and soften the tubing to get it to slip more easily onto the fitting. Another trick is to use a little liquid soap which will cause the tubing to slide over the surface of the fitting.

At the air intake for your engine, you will need to drill a hole to fit a ¼” NPT threaded fitting. You want to drill this hole into one of the plastic air channels that leads to the engine intake. The size of the hole should be 7/16”. If you have thick plastic where you are drilling your hole, then you will need to tap threads into the hole. In this case, use a ¼” NPT tap. We provide a threaded elbow that will screw into this hole. If you were unable to tap the hole, use some clear silicone sealant to ensure that this connection is air tight.

The Drain T shown in the diagram should be routed to a place where you can reach it easily. It is meant to be used when you need to drain the system. You should tighten the nylon nut with a wrench. Finger tight won’t be tight enough to prevent leaks. There is a rubber washer in the cap that will allow a seal to be made.

Now you can complete the tubing connections to all the devices as shown in the diagram above. Go ahead and make your hose joints permanent by tightening down the clamps. Push the hose onto the fitting as far as it will go. Don’t put the hose clamp directly over the fitting's barb. Instead, place the hose clamp so that it just behind the barb (closer to the rest of the fitting). Then tighten it down. This is the way to achieve a leak-free joint.

3. Mix your electrolyte and fill the reservoir

It is very important that you use steam distilled water only. Look closely at the label. Filtered water is not good enough. Neither is reverse osmosis. Do not use tap water, mineral water, spring water, or purified water. It must be "steam distilled". The proportion of potassium hydroxide (KOH) to distilled water is approximately 1/2 cup per gallon. However, small adjustments may be necessary. This recipe is sometimes a little weaker than needed to reach your desired amperage. That’s because it’s easier to add a little KOH than to dilute the mixture when you may not have room in the reservoir for more water. If your system will make plenty of HHO, but if it doesn't come up to your full desired amperage, add a liitle KOH. Note that added KOH takes some time to get absorbed into the sytem so don't add more when the amps don't immediately raise.

If your mixture gets too foamy, then you can add a little pool defoamer to your electrolyte mix. It will not affect the efficiency of the system. One teaspoon of defoamer should be plenty to handle any foaming issues you might have. The defoamer should last until the next time you drain and refill the reservoir. Pool defoamer can be gotten from most hardware stores.

In freezing climates you may want to add some additional KOH to your mix. KOH lowers the freezing point of water considerably, and this is a case where more is better. Your system may run at a much lower duty cycle and may be less efficient, but it is better than having your system freeze up.

In freezing weather, don’t forget your bubbler. You can also use denatured alcohol in your bubbler. The water in your bubbler will freeze at much higher temperatures than the electrolyte with all of the KOH in the reservoir. People have even used anti-freeze in their bubbler, and that’s OK too.

When filling the Reservoir, keep the electrolyte at least 2” from the top. If you drive on bumpy roads you may want to hold the electrolyte level even lower. This is so electrolyte will not get into the HHO gas output hose and contaminate the bubbler, or go on towards the engine. Refill the electrolyte when the level gets to within 1” from the bottom.

To replenish the electrolyte, add distilled water only. After many refills, you may find you need to add a bit of KOH to keep the amperage up.

Once per year, you should drain all of the electrolyte from the system and replenish it with all new water and KOH.

For additional potassium hydroxide you should get it from a specialty supplier. If you live in the U.S., we recommend getting it from thelyeguy.com. They sell a 2 lb bottle for $7.95 that should last you for many tankfuls. We sell one pound bottles for your convenience, but we don't try to compete pricewise with The Lye Guy. His material is just as good. If you live in a country other than the U.S., you will want to find a local supplier. Importing KOH requires more paperork than it's worth. Just find a local soap making supply company and they can sell you KOH flakes.

4. Install the PWM

Refer to the separate instructions for installing and using your PWM. However, there is additional information below, that isn’t covered in the PWM instruction sheet. This information applies to our Trucker Series cells (12” cells) only and is supplemental to the PWM Instructions. But it does not replace them.

12” cells are provided with different numbers of plates. These start out with 5 neutral plates and 2 hot plates, and we call this a single stack configuration. The single stack has 7 plates total. Each time we add an additional hot plate and 5 neutral plates, we call this another stack. A double stack has 13 plates, and a quad stack has 25 plates.

For 12 volt systems, we use 5 neutral plates. For 24 volt systems we use 11 neutral plates. This gives us the desired voltage from one plate to it's adjacent plate for optimum HHO production. Therefore a 24 volt system cannot use a single stack cell. Only a dual or quad stack can be run on 24 volts. The following diagram shows how to connect 12 and 24 volt systems to your double stack dry cell.

24 Volt Systems: The PWM must receive 12 volts on its control wire. The control wire is the small red wire coming out of the PWM. The heavy gauge (10 Gauge) red wire can be 24 volts. This is the high current wire that supplies the power for the pulses that the PWM makes. The PWM can make pulses of nearly any conceivable voltage. But it must have 12 volts at its control wire. Therefore we have provided a 24 volt to 12 volt DC converter for this purpose. You can use the converter, or you can use a relay, but however you acheive it, you must supply only 12 volts to the PWM's 18 gauge control wire. Supplying 24 volts to this wire will damage your PWM and display. If you have a 24 volt system, then you will need to read the short instruction sheet named, “24 Volt Installations”.

5. Install Your Electronic Enhancement

Many commercial tier 1-4 truck engines will get excellent mileage gains by using the HHO without any electronic sensor enhancement. They will most certainly get a drastic reduction in pollutants, and an increase in horsepower. But you should also be getting a significant increase in fuel mileage. If you are not, you will need to add an electronic sensor enhancer. We include a device that is appropriate for your vehicle as part of the kit.

For diesel engines, we include a MAP/MAF Enhancer for this purpose. For gas engines, we include an EFIE. These electronics were designed and manufactured by www.fuelsaver-mpg.com. The instructions for installing them are posted on their website: Installation Instructions. If you need help with the install of these devices, they will provide you with good tech support. You can reach them at: support@fuelsaver-mpg.com. We also strongly recommend their Documents Page. It has a wealth of general information about HHO systems, and vehicle electronics that will help you succeed with your installation.

6. Initializing the system

Now you can start the system and begin making gas. Sometimes the system won’t start because the electrolyte didn’t go by the check valve and actually fill the cell. When this happens you’ll have very low or no amperage. You can fix this by opening the drain cap and letting the air out of the hose. Use rubber gloves for this, and if you get KOH on your skin, get it washed off right away or it will start to burn. But this should get the electrolyte to flow into the cell and it can start making gas.

Once your gas production is going, it’s a good idea to check all hose connections for leaks by applying soapy water using a spray bottle. If there is a leak, bubbles will be immediately evident. Repair all leaks. Also note, that failure to screw down the lid to the reservoir properly can allow your HHO gas to escape around the cap. Make it a point to always screw down that lid firmly. Also check for electrolyte leaks by visual inspection after it has run for a while.

Watch the display and you will see the amperage climb up to the amperage set point. Once the amperage comes up to it's set point, it will not go higher. But you'll notice that the duty cycle percentage starts to go lower. This is the PWM controlling the output amperage to maintain its set point. If the duty cycle drops too far, like below 50% or so, then you'll want to dilute your electrolyte. If the amperage never reaches the set point, you’ll want to add more KOH.

Before adding KOH, be sure that the electrolyte has actually gotten into the cell. If it has, you will see a steady flow of electrolyte and HHO gas coming out of the cell output hose and going into the reservoir. Lack of any flow is almost always caused by vapor lock in the tubing, where an air bubble is preventing the electrolyte from getting into the cell. In this case you must bleed the air out of the tubing to get the electrolyte flow started. The only other causes of no flow are: 1) No voltage being supplied to the cell, and 2) No electrolyte in the water.

Once your cell is basically operating, you may want to adjust your electrolyte concentration. I usually like to have my electrolyte be strong enough to come up to my target amperage when the engine is cold, but not so strong that the PWM has to start reducing the duty cycle. In fact, if the system is cold, I prefer that I’m just below my target amperage. That way as the system warms up, the amperage will climb to my set point, and the duty cycle will remain fairly high. If the duty cycle is getting too low during operation – such as running below 25% - then you are not going to be getting the best efficiency out of your system. Dilute the electrolyte by adding more distilled water.

If everything is OK up to this point, you are ready to start operating your cell for mileage gains. This is done by making adjustments to your EFIE or MAP Enhancer as covered in the EFIE installation instructions. You will make adjustments to the EFIE between each gas fill up, until you have reached the best possible mileage gains.

Big truck engines should be able to achieve a 15% mileage improvement without much trouble. If you have mileage results that fall below that, we consider you have a failed system and it’s in need of some debug. We have customers that have gotten 35% gains and even more. We feel that 20% is a reasonable expectation. If you are not getting gains like this then something is wrong with your installation, and if the problem is found and handled, you’ll get the gains you are looking for.

Note: If you have used HHO systems on a car, you may be accustomed to higher mileage gains. That’s because cars start out running less efficiently than most big rig trucks. There are more gains to be had in many passenger cars and pickup trucks. We expect to get 35% on a car, and gains of 50% and even 100% are not that uncommon. But we don’t generally see gains that large on tier 3 trucks. An improvement of 15-20% on a Tier 3, Semi tractor trailer rig is a good target for a successful installation.