From grease trap to power line - Owl Power’s Vegawatt

June 10, 2008   by Jozef Winter

More and more frequently you will find slinking figures in dark alleys, not bent on mugging you, but rather poised to suck away as much grease and vegetable oil as possible from restaurant grease traps to fuel their cars. With rising fuel prices, this grease-thievery is becoming a common practice and not one that restaurateurs are happy to see. While some pay for their waste oil disposal, others are actually paid for it, and now a new system can satisfy both parties and prevent theft, it’s the Owl Power Company’s Vegawatt.

The device is quite simply a quiet-running generator that can produce up to 5kw of electricity, running on waste oil found in deep fryers, on cook surfaces, and in other processes. The Vegawatt, which stands at 6 feet tell and 2 feet deep is very compact unit which can be easily fueled up by employees. Once it’s running, it can provide power to the restaurant, offsetting their grid electricity consumption, and because of the heat it produces, it will also heat water. It’s a great idea and one we’re surprised that no one has thought of before.

The company plans to do some trial tests at local restaurants first and then expand from there. They expect that each unit will rent for $400 per month, maintenance included, and yield a monthly savings of about $850 from waste disposal fees, electricity saved, and the hot water it produces. We almost wish we had a deep fryer…

via Cnet