BOISE- Does it seem like there's no end in sight when it comes to high gas prices?

It seems the price at the pump changes in the blink of an eye, and soaring gas prices have many drivers trying alternatives.

"It's what everybody needs right now with high gas prices," said Donna Drumheller, owner of 'Living Green Hybrid Kits,' based in Weiser. Donna Drumheller says she has an alternative: a water-burning hybrid device she claims you can put in your car. "We would get anywhere from 37 to 80 percent gas mileage increase," said Drumheller, while referring to her own vehicles; including her husband's old pick-up truck. Does it sound to good to be true? That's exactly what we set out to find out.

"When I saw the mason jars, I was like what is this?" asked Rob Taylor, a mechanic from Oakley Moody. "You can definitely tell this is a homemade item." Drumheller is confident her, 'Living Green Hybrid Kit,' will make a big difference by using hydrogen or what she calls Brown's gas (HHO).

The mechanics at Oakley Moody say hydrogen is a clean burning fuel and Drumheller's unit theoretically separates the hydrogen from distilled water and draws it into the engine to essentially give you better fuel economy and cleaner emissions. "The theory works, but if something like this works, I mean, it is all theory right now," said Taylor while referring to the device.

CBS 2 Eyewitness News put the theory to the test by making two trips: one using the hybrid kit and one without it. During the test we filled the tank of our 2008 Jeep Liberty (first, without the unit) with regular gasoline at the Stinker Station in Boise off Main Street. We made sure it was full before hitting the road.

We made a 56.3 mile-loop from Boise to Middleton and back. It included a run down State Street with stop lights and fast moving freeway traffic on I-84. We used a computer fuel spotter to help us gauge our miles per gallon as we went. The computer fuel spotter showed an average of 18.7 mpg on the first run without the unit. At the end of the trip, we used a total of 2.482 gallons after refilling the tank.

With the help of the experts at Oakley Moody Services in Boise, we were able to place the 'hydrogen hybrid' in the same 2008 Jeep Liberty. "That won't work there, I'll have to move it down," said Taylor, while installing the large mason jars under the hood. It seemed like an quirky set-up: two mason jars; tin foil; some wiring; and 3/4 of a quart of distilled water mixed with two tablespoons of baking soda. "A lot of cars there is no room under the hood to put this," Taylor said.

Now, it was time to test it on the road. Again, we used the same gas station; the same pump; same regular gasoline; same procedures; and the exact same route. We zeroed out the spotter and again set out on State Street and watched the miles per gallon (average) slowly climb as the trip progressed.

It started at 16.8 mpg, then increased to 19.9 mpg when we started picking up speed outside Middleton. While on the I-84, it maxed-out at 24.1 mpg. Finally, at the end of the trip (with the unit on), we used a total of 2.013 gallons; finding that's 0.469 gallons less compared to the run without the 'hydrogen hybrid' kit. "It's doing what the theory said it's gonna do," Taylor said.

But our experts at Oakley Moody still question, to what extent is it working; in terms of longer runs and over extended periods of time. "I would like to see more testing on it, I'd put it on my car for a month to see what it does," Taylor said. Now the question is: do you buy it? Well, Donna Drumheller does.

"We Idahoans like to drive our big trucks and our ATVs and our boats," Drumheller said. "Now, we'll be able to do it again." Athough our test was non-scientific, CBS 2 Eyewitness News saw a 23-percent fuel economy increase with the 'hybrid kit.' But, before you go to extremes and place something like this on your car, we thought you'd like to know the following.

1. Mechanics at Oakley Moody say this device would be somewhat difficult to place on newer vehicles, especially, on minivans; due to the lack of space under the hood.

2. Also the mechanics say there's a chance the unit could overheat your car if wired incorrectly, so you should have it professionally installed by a mechanic.

3. Finally, CBS 2 Eyewitness News called several dealers about the warranty of your car with such a device and found out, it could be voided by installing a non-factory component.

Never-the-less, the results we found seem somewhat effective during our simple non-scientific test-- with an overall increase in fuel economy of 23-percent. But much more testing would likely need to be done to see the longer term benefits, and it would be of our interest to ask an alternative fuel specialist the pros and cons of such a device.

To learn more about this Weiser company's 'Living Green Hybrid Kit,' check out the link: