Need help from the COLD weather gurus !!!! When to plug her in??

[Bug Out]

My 2013 2500 has been running around Az in shorts and a tank top since birth, May 2013.... Now, I'm up north to a point in Colorado and the temp in the truck says 23 etc etc.. The pre-heat has never been used so much until this week..LOL ( I sure hope Larry Miller in Surprise was not pulling my chain when he-Steve- told me the rear fuel filter heater was ok/turned on)

Now it cranks a little slower, to be expected from the cold, but it goes into high idle by itself.

At what temp should I plug her in to pre heat the motor and how many amps does the heater draw?

This is all new to me. Thanks for the help in advance.

PS: I know cold here is nothing like COLD north(N.Dakota etc) of here. But I'm freezing my behind off for now...

 

[TFucili]

When I lived back east I never really considered plugging in my '05 until it was around or below zero. It will make the cab heater work quicker, though. I'm working from memory, so someone may correct me, but I think the block warmer is 1000 Watts.

 

[Joseph Donnelly]

Rams are male sheep. If you are calling yours "she" it must have had its @#$%$ frozen off already, lol. You are OK at 23; around zero I would begin plugging in. Mopar recommends it below 0 F and requires it below -20F as in the owner's manual. A winter front is suggested below -10C which is 14 F.

 

[JR]

We've had various Cummins engines in farm equipment over the years and in more than one operators manual they recommended plugging in below 0*F. That being said, we've started 'em colder than that before, and older tractors don't have grid heaters. My truck has also fired right off in sub zero weather but I try to avoid it, much below -15*F and no block heater and they start to clattering a little the first few minutes. It also depends on where I'm at, if single digits or colder are forecasted I'll plug em in on the timer set for 3-4 Hours prior. At work, I have my own parking space near an outlet with a cord and anything below 15 or 20 degrees she gets plugged in the moment I park so she stays warm all day. The company I work for uses enough juice to justify owning it's own electric plant, my measely heater is like p*$$ing in the Sahara

 

[mwilson]

Block heater is 750 watt. Much more pleasant warm up if plugged in at 20 degrees or below. I have always used a heavy duty timer set for 3 hours. Increase to four hours when below zero temps are expected.

I have started the 06 at close to -20 not plugged in. It will start but what a racket, only had to do it a few times in our time together.

 

[garrettg84]

Rams are male sheep. If you are calling yours "she" it must have had its @#$%$ frozen off already, lol. You are OK at 23; around zero I would begin plugging in. Mopar recommends it below 0 F and requires it below -20F as in the owner's manual. A winter front is suggested below -10C which is 14 F.

Where did you find the -10C for the winter front? I can't seem to find that documented anywhere. I'm also curious what max temp is considered safe to run the winter front. My truck seems to take 15 mins to actually warm up even after idling it for 10-15 mins to give me much heat when it is anywhere below 40F. I'm under the impression the winter front grill covers will improve the warm up rate but I don't want to risk overheating.

 

[jgillott]

99% of the time, I don't plug mine in. If I know that it is going to be well below 0 for an extended period of time I will, but even then I don't always have access to power. Last winter, they fired off for me just fine those mornings it was -18.

 

[JR]

Mike I thought you parked your truck during the winter?

 

[jgillott]

Notice how clean his '06 is under that snow? My guess is his 12-valve gets the winter grunt work.

 

[JR]

Yep, and that purty Inferno Red would be more like a "rock salt white" :{

 

[mwilson]

That is from 2011. I put the 06 up for the winter now. It was just a nuisance moving it around the yard every time it snowed that year. The 97 is still out for winter duty if needed.

 

[mwilson]

I ran the 06 full time for three years to really break it in. From then on only the royal treatment will do.

 

[jus2shy]

I may plug in whenever I'm below 25 degrees. I make sure to plug-in when I know I'll be in the teens or lower. It isn't required, but it sure helps defrost the glass faster. I figure 4 hours of electricity is cheaper than 10 minutes of high idle. With 3 or 4 hours of pre-heating, seems like my head temps are around 80 degrees depending on wind chill (If there's wind, it wicks away more of the underhood heat). Starts right up like nothing.

 

[GHarman]

Bug Out,
It depends on the fuel you are using. If You are in the Denver Area? They usually don't have winter mix fuel at the pump. You can bet Your fuel filters that driving from the Front Range, Colorado to Kremmling, Craig or Gunnison during our coldest times, and parking over night will cause startup problems unless you do, plug it in. Winter mix fuel is sold in those more remote places, but in this case, you just drove from a relatively warm climate, in Colorado to the coldest places in the state with warm weather fuel. A little more specific as to where in Colorado you are, might help.
I live at 9000' elevation and don't plug it in unless it is below zero. My truck is the old 1st gen, and I use a fuel additive with "Denver Fuel" (I prefer Conoco for best fuel mileage). I've never had a failure to start. A winter front is a necessity. If the weather changes? Which it does with wild swings in temperature? Open it up for more airflow during warmer days and close it down when it is cold or snowing. That keeps the intercooler from being caked with snow, ice and road spray(mag chloride and other salts used to deice the roads).
I Hope this helps?

GregH

 

[Sticks]

...Much more pleasant warm up if plugged in at 20 degrees or below. I have always used a heavy duty timer set for 3 hours...

This right here. That was my SOP anytime the temps started dropping into the 20's, and did it pretty much November through April. I have an outdoor timer hooked up to a retractable cord reel. Plug her in when I get home, and she's ready to go in the morning. Occasionally I forget and I have never had an issue with starting other than it's bothersome that it takes until the 4th or 5th engine revolution to fire instead of the second.

 

[mwilson]

I figure that the minute amount of electricity used far outweighs any early demise of starters, batteries, rod and main bearings, etc.

I believe that 100%.

Mike.

 

[Stab]

0 is a good number, but it all depends on convenience.

Just make sure it's not plugged in when you start it..or run it...I've learned the hard way!

 

[AH64ID]

I put my winter front on in November and leave it on, unless I am towing any distance and it's above 40°, until April/May or I start camping.

The winter front does a great job helping it warm up quicker, making the block heater more effective, and keeping the heat in the engine bay when parked for short periods of time (idling or off).

As for the block heater I rarely use mine anymore as I don't DD the pickup and the cost is too much to have it plugged in 24/7. At $0.08/KwH the block heater costs about $0.06/hr, which is $1.44/day, and $43.20/month.

A timer is a great way to save money. Using an OBDII reader I can see the coolant temps under 140° and have found that in 0-40° weather 90 minutes of operation will get 80-90% of the heat of overnight use. The variance is temp and wind. Below 0° 120 minutes is ideal, and the best compromise. A winter front really keeps the heat in. If you run the heater for 90 minutes it costs $0.09/day, vs plugging it in when you get home 12 hours prior which costs $0.72/day. The savings is $0.63/day, which means a $15 15A timer is paid for in 24 days. The timer I bought in 2007 still works.

When I was DDing the truck I plugged it in every night when it got below 40°, with a 90 minute timer, as I wanted heat much faster in the morning. My truck is a little more cold blooded than most with the cam/coolant filter/turbo so it would take up to 12 miles for the thermostat to open and 7-8 miles for decent heat without a block heater and no winter front with temps in the teens.

My personal warmth requirement comes long before the trucks need for a block heater. I have started cold soaked in temps near 0° without any issue, and temps in the teens without a grid heater without issue. I haven't started it much below 0° without a block heater as it's generally plugged in.

The block heater also warms the batteries, especially with a winter front, and that increases the CCA's as well.

Rams are male sheep. If you are calling yours "she" it must have had its @#$%$ frozen off already, lol.

All vehicles are women, male vehicles are just weird...

 

[Bug Out]

@ Joe D. I refer to the RAM as a "She" because the 68 RFE shifts like a teenage girl driving a clutch for the first time...Once the powers that be spend 5 minutes and write a better shift pattern/program, she will remain a "She"....

 

[SSchang]

I live just south of Buffalo NY, and spend a couple weeks each year on snowmobile trips way up in Quebec. This is my 3rd Cummins / Ram (2004, 2008, now 2011), and I've never plugged any of them in. Heck, I don't think any of them have had a block heater. Remote start is a great thing.

The coldest I've ever started one was after it sat for 4 days in Saint Michel des Saints, Quebec while the wife & I were on a snowmobile trip. Got to -34F a couple of the nights, & the morning we left it had warmed up to -21F.

A block heater would have been a moot point, because the parking lot was a long way from the nearest electric outlet, & a cord would have gone across a snowmobile trail.

Scott