'Watt' did you say???

[markrinker]

I am pricing a portable generators for remote starting of plow trucks and skid steers when they become stranded away from 110V power sources overnight. (Read: Operator error...)

How many watts does a stock GM 6.5 block heater draw? I want something double of that number. (My Case dealer just told me their block heater draws 700 watts.)

[AndyL]

I am not sure how cold it get up there but you shouldn't need to run a generator. My 99 starts fine (with in 2 or 3 seconds at 0 F). With a manual GP controler and Quick heats I would think -30 would be fine.

You could also get one of those Diesel friendly Auto-Start vehicle alarms that starts the vehicle when the coolant temp drops below a user specified temp. You could set it to start for 5 minutes when the coolant temp drops below 30 degress or so. I think they also have a provision for checking for Oil pressure.

[markrinker]

Case skidsteers have no glow plugs - their only provision is the block heater, or ether which is a bad idea over time.

Your trucks might start under the conditions you describe, but the wear and tear on engine internals shortens lifespan. Trust me - plug 'em in...

The generator is a backup plan for when machines won't start and are stranded away from 110V sources for block heat, battery charges, etc.

[DBlake]

The 6.5 block heaters are rated at about 400w-450w. It takes about .5 to 2 hours before it has much effect on starting the engine depending on how cold the engine was. As a cautionary note; an idleing diesel does not produce much heat. I would never idle mine to warm it up, as I think that practice really accelerates engine wear.

[markrinker]

Interesting thought on not idling diesels in cold weather - by chance, my truck is idling in the driveway!!! Today it as -15 when I first started my truck.

After reading your post, I stepped outside, popped the hood. Its been idling since taking my kid to school, so about 3 hours run time, 2.5 of that at idle. Oil pressure is about 45lbs, temp 180degrees, heater blowing warm. Pulled dipstick, oil is warm to the touch and drips easily off the dipstick. Idle sounds normal.

My policy with all diesels on days like this is to let them run if you are bothering to start them at all. Sometime we'll have 3 or 4 pieces of equipement running 24x7.

Another consideration is dropping cold transmissions into gear and driving away is a recipe for seal damage that costs you alot more in the long run that diesel fuel or gas. By running the engine, you pre-heat your transmission.


The good thing is that when its this cold, it rarely snows because 'arctic air' from way north is very dry.

[Dvldog 8793]

Mark
Have you ever considered the fuel powered block heaters? Do a search on them, I think there was some posts about this time last year.
Must be nice to be down in T-shirt country! ;) It was -35 by on my deck this morning. All the schools are closed up here today.
I agree with Idle issue. In the winter my truck spends more time at idle than running. I have a block heater, an oil pan heat patch, and an onboard batt. charger. I think the pan heater is the best. If I went out right now my oil would be warm, and it also heats the block up fairly well. It probably doesn't help as much for a fast heating job but if you leave it plugged all night it works great.
L8r
Conley

[DBlake]

Mark,
My point was not to try and warm it up (i.e. from a cold engine) by idling it. It will stay warm by idling and it will eventually warm a cold engine by idling but it will take a loooong time. A running cold engine experiences a lot of wear. A running engine wears least at operating temperature. Now as for idling it for long periods when warm, I would not recommend it because of the eventual carbon build-up and additional wear on the engine. If the engine is not cold, very little wear is caused by starting it, particularly if you are using a fully synthetic oil. However, I don't live in an area that experiences much in the way of sub-freezing temperatures so I don't much worry about things getting too cold(It was however down to 12F at my house last Monday though - time to find a job at lower elevation or further south!). Obviously, do what works for you, but I think it is important to be informed with all aspects that might affect our decisions.

[Govt issue]

Cool, it was 26 here. I thought that was cold. How cold can these trucks be and still crank without being pluged in. What is the coldest temp you have ever cranked your truck. When I pluged my truck in last night, It cranked like it was 75 outside.

[markrinker]

Thanks for all the input. Everyones experiences and opinions are valuable!

The coldest start I have ever put my truck through without block heat was around 10 degrees. Lower than that, they get the heat all night long first.

Like the racers say, the difference between hitting a wall at 80MPH vs 120MPH is exponential. Cold effects on batteries, starters, and oil/tranny fluid viscosities are exponential from say 10 degrees to -10 degrees.

Leave a quart of your favorite oil outside in this cold and see for yourself.

[rjschoolcraft]

I warm my 6.5 up by idling. It does warm up, but not as quickly as a gas engine. I run RotellaT synthetic in the winter. Starts easier and flows better.

On a side note. The owners manual for my dad's 4020 cautions against idling it for extended periods in the cold. It says the coolant temp could drop too low and reduce combustion efficiency...raw fuel to wash down the cylinders. If I need to keep it warm, I set the governor lever at about 1500 rpm and let it run. Since the 6.5 can achieve 170-180F coolant temp after about 30 minutes of idleing, I don't think it can be a big problem.

[tom.mcinerney]

Mark--i recently tried to buy a 400 watt block heater as replacement for my truck--only found a 600 watt one. If the issue is to get a cold engine running, a good assist is a heat gun on intake manifold or into intake. Resistance heaters have a heavy current draw when first turned on [plugged in], so if you don't try a heater on the generator, buy conservatively.

[markelectric]

As I remember generators start out very high priced for the smaller (size and watts) and get cheaper as they get larger up to about 4 or 5 thousand watts. Ask yourself what you would like a generator to do. Camping? Power tools? Light the house in a power outage? Give it some thought