You could always collect rain water, it’s pretty free of minerals, and filtered through a filter paper it’s good enough for topping up lead-acid batteries.
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-You MIGHT be able to use a pressure sensor, Then you can figure out the airflow by the pressure. 
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hydrogen peroxide will kill the bacteria.
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Diaphragm pumps are okay to run dry. But if you want to do actually water metering, they have other pumps, that essentially all they are is a wheel controlled by a stepper motor with rollers on it that roll over a tube to squirt precise amounts of water.
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“peristaltic pump” is the search term for the metering pumps. Lots to choose from on Amazon.
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I watch your videos that some how I missed. Very nice work on your build and improvements you have made. Thank you for the drive with you in your car and the beautiful country side.
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Bob,
Thanks for riding along and for the nice comments.
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Greetings All,
I haven’t researched similar problems others may have had, but thought I’d ask for some feedback before I try to figure out what happened today.
I haven’t driven the CharCar since August. At the end of the last probably 10 mile trip I ran it on gasoline for the last mile or so and sprayed some carb cleaner in the carburetor before shutting down. This morning it started readily on charcoal, but with an alarming clicking sound coming from the engine. Disappointed, I switched cars for my Saturday morning errands. This afternoon I started the Corolla on gasoline briefly and once again heard the clicking sound. I assume it is valve related. Maybe Monday or Tuesday I’ll start trying to figure it out. Any suggestions as to how to proceed. This is an '89 Toyota Corolla with the 4AF engine.
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Bummer Steve, I hope some of our engine knowage members can help you out here.
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Steve, if it’s a klicking valve sound I don’t think you have anything to worry about. It has happened to me from time to time.
To eventually accumulate some soot up front, especially on the downstream side of the carb’s or throttlebody’s butterfy where it’s turbulent, is impossible to avoid. When some of those deposits let go they can sometimes end up interfering with an intake valve. A few miles of ticking along, the sound will fade away as the lump if soot will smoothen out towards the valve seat.
Engines with rocker arms are probably more likely to get noicy. I was terrified the first time it happened to my Mazda pickup. Knowing it’s a 3-valve per cylinder interference engine I didn’t know what to expect. 20,000 miles or so later, it has happened maybe a dussin times.
For some reason it never happens during winter. I think with less moisture in the gas, soot doesn’t stick and accumulate as much.
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I’d try running some Sea Foam through the fuel system and in the crankcase Steve. Project Farm guy says it will clear up carbon deposits. I know it won’t hurt anything even it it doesn’t fix it. Worth a few bucks to find out.
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Bob, JO, and Tom,
Thanks for your responses. Tom, today I bought Seafoam. I put some in the gas tank, some in the oil, and some in a spray bottle. I started the engine on gasoline and sprayed Seafoam into the carburetor air intake for a while as it rattled on. Slowly the noise became less frequent and eventually stopped. I’ll start it tomorrow and see what happens. Thanks for your thoughts.
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That seafoam seems to be good stuff. I used on my 1995 Jeep when I first started it up from years not being running. I thought it had a stuck valve but it turned out to be a broken valve spring on the exhaust valve. They run a double spring on them and it was hard to see that the inside spring was broken on inspection. I am sure you will be good to go now. Just keep a can handy in the trunk.
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If you have watched hours of youtube videos on fuel additives then like me, your brain will have turned to mush. All conflicting reviews. One person thinks a product is great and another gives it a big thumbs down. Sea Foam is in that category, as is Stabil. Pri-G seems to get consistently positive reviews. I have found Sea-foam to work well for cleaning carbon deposits and I have found Ethanol shield to work well for prolonging the life of E-10. I have treated E-10 that I neglected to drain from both the log splitter and snow blower and with the Ethanol Shield treated gas in them for 10 and 7 months respectably, both fired up a few weeks ago. The advice of St Paul is cogent. “Test all things. Hold fast to what is good”
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Bob and Tom,
This morning, once it started, there was no valve noise–a successful recovery. Thanks.
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