didn't purge...now what
 

van wouldn't start and i checked the fuel filter and was full of wvo. i did purge, but maybe it was only a mile or two that i drove before i shut down. not sure of presence of wvo in the lines after the valve means that my valve is broken or that i just didn't purge long enough and i was seeing a wvo/diesel mix in the lines....as opposed to straight wvo.

anyways, my immediate problem though is trying to get it started again. i'm in nyc (i don't live here) and so my resources are limited...here's what i've done

i disconnected the line between the valve and engine supply and drained what i could (not much came out...only about a 1/4 cup?)

i pulled the filter and put a new one on. no diesel stations nearby but i disconnected the connection closest to my diesel tank and drained a little diesel into the filter just to get it going (not sure if this was a good idea).

my battery is charging at a convienence store across the street. once charged i'll try and start it. just wondering if:

a) there is anything else i should drain?
b) with all the air i've introduced if i even have a chance of getting it going or if i should just throw in the towel and have it towed to somewhere where i can really work on it ?

thanks for any thoughts...

Plugging in the block heater would help. Towing it to a warm garage and plugging it in would be better.

well, just to get the info into the ether world in case some day someone else is trying to figure out how to solve this problem with no access to a plug (for their block heater, hair dryer, etc) i ended up following the advice of a friend. i got as much wvo out of lines as possible and reprimed the filter with diesel cracked all injectors and and turned it over until i the injectors started to push diesel through. (he said if i was real desperate and only had one shot on a battery i could have also pulled the glow plugs to really blast it through).

theoretically i think that should have solved my problem. unfortuantely i had a pre-existing air intrusion that made starting difficult PRIOR to all this so after a day of bicycling my batteries to various coffee shops to sit on my trickle charger only to bring them back and drain them trying to start my car i finally threw in the towel and towed it to a shop at the end of the day. they are going to re-prime lines and let me know if i burned out my pump or not.

Dude, you're running experimental fuels on your only vehicle? You're a braver man than I.