Engine coolant heater

[cranetruck]

I have two of these devices, one 220VAC unit, which Kenny gave me a couple of years ago and one 110VAC unit, which was installed on the XM757 engine.

I'm thinking more seriously about using these now in light of "dry start" oiling problems discussed in other threads. Heating the coolant/engine and the oil will speed up the flow and minimize the period of zero oil pressure.

I'll monitor the time-to-pressure with and without the heater, all else being equal.

I currently have some kind of oil pressure problem and this is a good opportunity to cover all bases.
So, besides installing the coolant heater, I'm considering the following:

Also previously discussed. a bypass filter (Amsoil?) is relatively easy to install. The bypass coolant filter I now have on the engine keeps the coolant clear.
A bypass filter will eventually filter 100% of the oil, it just takes longer and it doesn't upset any of the existing oil flow.

A mechanical oil pressure gauge will be used to check the accuracy of the electric one.

There are a number of prelube products out there, but unless I can find one on ebay, they are out of reach budget wise at the moment.

Just thinking out loud......

 

[OPCOM]

How is your coolant heater installed on the truck as far as which ports are used for the water? I bet the 220V one will also do well on 120V if it is high enough wattage.

I have a water-type personnel heater installed already, would I just plumb it into that line?

I have some new respect for coolant heaters since it was below freezing here for last week. There was a huge difference in how my 40KW generator started. without the heater, it took alot of cranking and was pretty rough. Once the heater was turned on for a while and the block was at 60-70 degrees, it started immediately. The plumbing has to be right so that the hot water goes up from the heater to a port on the engine hear the top, and as it cools flowing back down through the block it returns to the heating unit.

About the oil pressure problem, it was mentioned about the 1/2" plug in the check valve thread, have you had a look there for pressure? I do not know how hard it is to reach and it's all to easy for me to sit here and suggest things. If you have good pressure there, I hope things might be better than worse.

 

[cranetruck]

Patrick, the coolant heater on the XM757 was installed in the hot water personnel heater line. I say "was", because it, along with the heater was removed as the heater was not standard. It was the red 1,000 W "Therm-o-Pump" shown below. After checking it, I found that the heater element is open and basically non-repairable. It has a check valve built in and can be mounted just about anywhere, I imagine.
I'll be using the Calix unit, which appears unused. I agree with you on running 120 VAC to it. It does not have a check valve and must be installed as shown in the diagram for proper flow of the heated coolant. It's rated 2,000 W and wired for 220VAC.

 

[Rattlehead]

I was going to install one of those "tank" style heaters on my deuce, but ended up going with a freeze plug block heater instead. The instructions for the tank style heaters usually advise they need to be installed as low as possible on the engine. I suppose its because the convection flow they use does not work as well with a high draw on the suction side. The also require to be mounted with the outlet facing upward if I remember correctly.

 

[cranetruck]

I was going to install one of those "tank" style heaters on my deuce, but ended up going with a freeze plug block heater instead.

Any further info on this? Where was it installed and any positive results from its use?
Thanks.

 

[Rattlehead]

Someone on the list inquired about the model number of the freeze plug heater, I will search for the paperwork and see if I still have it and post it here. It works fine, though.

 

[No.2Diesel]

Thank you Mr. Rattlehead that was I that was in need of the freeze plug heater Part #. I cheaped out and bought the magnetic ones for now. I will definitely be installing the freeze plug one though as the magnetic heaters only work well if your truck is sheltered or out of the wind.

 

[Rattlehead]

Zero Start block heater info

Ok I finally found the info on the block heater that I installed over a year ago.

Zero Start, part # 3500028
It is listed under an agricultural application (as some variation of the multifuel was used?). In the Zero Start catalog, the listing looks like this:

G/D4800 (7.8L 478 CID)
Part No. 3500025
Watt 1000
Volt 120
Diameter 2"
Type Freeze Plug
Installation Information - Replaces freeze plug on Right side - near rear.

When I installed it, I pulled off the air cleaner housing which gave me PLENTY of access to the rear freeze plug. Upon installing this, there was a small amount of rotation where the heating element was not contacting the block inside. After cleaning the freeze plug hole and applying a light coat of grease to keep the O-ring from tearing, I rotated the element one direction until it interfered with the block and took note of its position, then rotated the other way until the same, then put it somewhere in the middle and tightened it down. I cannot remember now, but I think you had to buy a cord separately and you can get different lengths. Here is a link to download their catalog.

http://www.fuelinjection.net/zerostart/zerostart.html

 

[cranetruck]

RE: Zero Start block heater info

Thank you for the info!

 

[Floridianson]

Cranetruck I think you are the one that brought temp's to my mind so I posted on another thread about oil pan heaters. I bought a magnetic pan heater and will do a block heater next. The oil pan heater has knocked off about four seconds on pump up time on the oil filters. Maybe with both heaters working I could shave a couple more seconds off.

 

[cranetruck]

What was the ambient temp during your tests? How long did you crank before start?
I understand a magnetic oil pan heater may not be so good if it's windy, right or wrong?

 

[Floridianson]

This one is only 200 watt but it gets hot to the touch. Yes you would think the wind could affect heating. I think I could put two on and it might help even more. In this line of thinking any help with pre heat on oil or water can only be better for the start up.
I will check air temps next time I start it up .
Funny though seems like she turns over really fast now that I change the ends on the battery cables. So it seems like it starts sooner even without the pan heater on.
I went to napa and got the kind you solider on . really cool they have the end and you drop the pellet in and heat it up with a good torch. When it flames up put the wire in and you have a great solider end.

 

[cranetruck]

Collected some info and came up with two questions;

1) What is the best method for removing a freeze plug?
2) How does the coolant heater effect the temperature of the oil?

 

[Floridianson]

The plugs I just tapped on one side with a large end punch. The side I tapped would go in and the outher side would rotate out and I would grap it with a pair of vise grips and wiggle till it came out. The water temp will be hard pressed to reach oil in the oil pan. Possible a few * but not as good as a oil heater. Block heater is good for cold weather start ups though. I have no problem with starting in Fl.

 

[OPCOM]

There is supposedly an adhesive stick-on rubberized 'sheet' type heater.. seen them here and there. Might be good to wrap around the sides and front of the main sump. Don't know where to find such things.

Another interesting alternative, if a large enough flat space could be found on a water manifold or block, is a metal-cased power resistor. It sinks its heat into the flat metal it is mounted on. Up to 250 watts, which would be about a 68 ohm value for 120VAC (211 watts) for a safety margin. It would not keep the huge iron beast hot, but could keep it in a reasonable temp. range. The second link is for the nice flat ones. up to 330 watts

http://www.ohmite.com/cgi-bin/showpage.cgi?product=hs_hsn_series

and
http://www.ohmite.com/cgi-bin/showpage.cgi?product=wfh_series

just a thought, sometimes unconventional things are handy, and with resistors, you can select the resistance value based on how many watts you want, unlike a conventional heater which always runs at max wattage, so these won't be easy to burn out..

 

[cranetruck]

..... The water temp will be hard pressed to reach oil in the oil pan. Possible a few * but not as good as a oil heater. Block heater is good for cold weather start ups though. I have no problem with starting in Fl.

Suspected so, that's why I posted the diagram of the coolant flow above (it shows the flushing procedure here) and how the oil pan is not well thermally coupled.

Heating from below makes more sense and the arctic kits should be studied.

Maybe there should be a skirt around the engine compartment from the ground up to contain the heat.

 

[Katch1]

a big cheap blue tarp will do wonders in my experience, as far as keeping heat inside the engine compartment. My truck is inside, so I have no wind issues, so something more may be needed if out of doors.
I have a 300 watt mag heater, and have had good luck so far. Have yet to do any scientific tests but has started very well down to 20f.
Takes a good 1-2 hrs to do any good at all.
Cranetruck I'm with you, the full artic kits insulation needs to be looked at for exteem conditions.
Will not even try the deuce this weekend, with highs -2 to -6, the old multi would take forever working hard to get to temp.