How cold before using engine block heater on DP?

[wydeglyde]

Originally Posted by moisheh

I am smiling when I see all he posts where owners are using the block heater @ 50 degrees. Heck @ that temp we open up our convertibles and break out the shorts.

Gotta clean the coffee off my keyboard after that one

I did use my heater in the MH this fall while camping and the temp dropped to freezing. Turned it on for about an hour and she fired up right away.

Years ago a fellow that worked road construction in the far North told me how they would get the Dozers and such running. You turn the engine over for about 10-15 seconds and let it sit for 5 minutes. Turn it over again and let it sit for 5 minutes. Repeat until it fires. I have tried this method on construction equipment at -40 F/C and it works. Even though the engine doesn't start there is a small amount of heat created by the fuel under compression. Each subsequent cycle warms the fuel a bit until it will ignite. Lubrication is of course a huge problem until it warms up, and a lot of wear occurs, but its all part of the far north.

[mel s]

Originally Posted by moisheh

They used to make diesel fired units

Zerostart makes and sells a "Diesel Powered Engine Heater", (see: Performance Products).

I've also seen LP powered engine heaters but a recent search found none.

Mel
'96 Safari

[Murf2u]

Heat is expressed in BTU's a quantitative measure of heat.

If an oil pan in still air of 0 deg. F. loses 5,000 BTU's / hr., and the same oil pan, in the same 0 deg. F. air loses 10,000 BTU's / hr. because of it being exposed to wind, then yes, the one in the wind is losing twice as much heat as the one in the calm air is.

In fact you could say the heat is LOOSE because the wind is blowing it away. ;-)

BTW, oil heaters, be they adhesive, magnetic or immersion are widely available and reasonably inexpensive. Why run 0 deg. F. oil through a 140 or 150 F. deg. engine and cool it back down, the goal is heat, not cooling.

[DA_BUS]

Lots of post and comments....I have three diesel skid loaders sitting outside right now in -10 F weather and none of them are plugged in. After letting the glow plugs warm up....they fire right up. Everyone will call me an "engine abuser" for treating the engines so bad...but one of them is a brand new skidder..and the dealer stops by regularly to make sure it starts - he doesn't recommend screwing around pluggin it in. Good thing it is a lease piece of equipemnt - because many of you are predicting engine failure because of abuse of not plugging them in. The engines with oil pan heaters that warm the oil - I think - are more about thin oil so the motor will spin fast enough to fire...my guess is all of you are right...warmer is better...why chance it. By the way - my coach is in the shed and won't be turned over for another two month's. With glow plugs I probably would never use a block heater in Texas.....good luck.