GreenHouse Energy (GHE), a three-year-old San Diego company on Santa Fe Street, wants to make the conversion of beer byproducts into a clean-burning fuel as commonplace as brewing a strong pot of coffee. And it’s focusing on a brewery with a Downtown pedigree to do it. GHE has created the E-Fuel MicroFueler, which converts spent beer yeast and sugar waste into ethanol through the processes of fermentation and distillation. The company aims to sell these consumer-size machines to local businesses and private residences to brew beer fuel. To make its business model run, GHE requires large amounts of organic waste. Breweries and wineries are logical providers, and GHE President Russ Earnshaw knew early on he wanted to work with one brewery in particular. “Karl Strauss is a great local brewery,” Earnshaw said. “They have a well-known name and want to be on the cutting edge of green energy solutions, so we thought it would be great to step in and open up a relationship with them.” GHE is also partnering with Stone Brewery and Gordon Biersch. Karl Strauss Brewery and Grill, at 1157 Columbia St. Downtown, was Strauss’ first such venue. The nuts and bolts of GHE’s method consist of combining spent beer yeast from Karl Strauss Breweries with sugar waste to create an organic concoction called feedstock. The feedstock is then distilled to create ethanol with potable water as a byproduct. The beer yeast, which has a slurry consistency like soft-serve ice cream, can be reused 10 to 20 times before it is spent. GHE currently uses sugar waste from Sunny Delight and is looking to partner with some wineries. “In a week, we create 2- to 3,000 gallons of spent beer yeast,” said Karl Strauss quality control manager Shawn Steele. “It costs us money to dispose of and has not been 100 percent recycled. Now, [GHE] will collect most of that spent beer yeast to recycle.” Both companies look forward to forming the relationship as GHE receives its crucial distillation ingredient for free. In exchange, the Karl Strauss Brewery on Sante Fe Street will receive an E-Fuel MicroFueler free of charge. According to the GHE website, all the MicroFueler needs to function is a 110-volt electrical hookup, a water supply with a drain and a connection to the internet. “This process will require three kilowatts of electricity to produce one gallon of ethanol, which, in turn, will create 23 kilowatts of electricity,” Earnshaw said. The distilled ethanol will be stored in a 50-gallon tank that comes attached to the MicroFueler, which owners will be able to pump straight into their gas tanks. “Our MicroFuelers take up the same amount of space as a regular washing machine and have pretty much the same requirements to function,” Earnshaw said. “Through the Internet connection, each machine will be hooked up on our global networking system.” The connection between GHE and its MicroFuelers means the company will know if its machines need more feedstock or need to be repaired, relieving the owner of much of the stress. After a quick and inexpensive conversion procedure, ethanol will be safe to use in any vehicle manufactured after 1991, according to Earnshaw. GHE is prepared to set up and install its trademarked distillation system at any location and keep it filled with an unlimited supply of feedstock. In the case of a repair or malfunction, GHE technicians will be available to perform the required maintenance as well. The warranty lasts for 12 months, and the life span of the unit is estimated at 30 years. The real obstacle is the cost of a unit, which hovers around $10,000 for the machine and its installation. Consumers will also be required to pay GHE $2 per gallon for the fuel, a price that is not expected to fluctuate. According to the GHE website, however, customers will be eligible for federal tax rebates that could reduce the cost to $6,998. The state also offers a rebate program that could cut the cost even further. GHE plans to distribute the MicroFuelers to buyers by November and already has orders for more than 100. For more information, visit ­energy.greenhouseintl.com.