Intake Heater useless?

[jwinnie]

Hello all,

This is my first post on the greatest site on the net!!

Question: Started up my truck the other morning after work, overhead computer showing 23 degrees. wait to start light goes out after about 10 seconds, start the truck and the intake heater doesn't cycle... . fills the parking lot with smoke After 35 miles on the highway, I get home, shut it off then start it again just to see... then it cycles on and off like normal, on a warm engine!!! What gives?

 

[Whitmore]

Jwinnie, Welcome my friend and yes this is the greatest site on the net , good bunch of folks and a ton of info.



The inlet grid heater will do that on even a warm engine, its looking at the temp of the air that is comming into the airhorn and if it is not warm enough than the grid heater will cycle until it is. As far as it not cycling at 23 degreese on a cold start . I would think it should have, 23 is still quite warm but it shoulda cycled... ... ... . did you have it plugged in? That would have made a big diff... ... ... . Kevin

 

[GGades]

Mine won't always cycle after being plugged in all night, but will smoke kinda bad. If it keeps up the IAT sender is only around $20.

 

[jwinnie]

Thanks for the info guys,



There is no place to plug it in at work, "23 is still quite warm"?? I'M IN GEORGIA!! THAT'S COLD!! :{ .

It always cycles below 50 degrees or so, that was the first time I've had to start it in temps that low. I'm guessing it is not needed 99% of the time down here in the south, I think it's restricting my intake

 

[lschultz]

Maybe them high tech Dodge boys need to hook up there fancy computer to it and see if it tells them anything.

 

[SOOT]

I agree with Whitmore,



23 is nice & warm

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

Originally posted by jwinnie

Thanks for the info guys,



"23 is still quite warm"?? I'M IN GEORGIA!! THAT'S COLD!! :{ .

Ah you wussies down there in Georgia, 23F isn't going to kill you! LOL. In fact you should be kinda used to it. I went to weather.com a dug up a little dirt on Marietta GA. I found on average in March you guys aren't much warmer than in this part of the north. Just for fun let's compare Marietta with Richland Washington:



Avg. High early March

Marietta = 58F

Richland = 53F OK OK Marietta has us beat by 5F here



Avg. Low early March

Marietta = 33F

Richland = 30F



Record Lows March 1-10

Marietta ranges from +6F to +20 See, it does get cold sometimes

Richland ranges from +3F to +22F



Record Highs March 1-10

Marietta range = a nice warm 77-83F

Richland is a lot chillier at only 66-71F



The Hottest It Has Ever Been: we really have Marietta beat on this one. . .

Marietta: 102F on July 22, 1986

Richland: toasty 115F on Aug 4, 1961



Vaughn

 

[illflem]

Vaughn, surprised to see that my part of Montana isn't much different than Richland.

1st week March

Ave high - 50F

Ave low - 26F

Record high - 74

Record low - minus 14

All time high - 103

All time low - minus 39

 

[monkfarm]

Yeah, somethings not right there. I rarely plug mine in for 23 degrees, and if I wait untill the start light goes out, it doesn't smoke for that long (maybe a second or 2)

 

[Snow man]

My grid heaters work all the time when its cold,my truck never smokes cold,after the initial puff when it fires. I havent had the 24V unplugged colder than 10 degrees,though. The grid heaters are defintely not useless when they are working. The thing I hated is when i was plowing,truck running for hours,it wouls stall due to big injectors/tight TC,and when I restarted it,the grid heaters would cycle or like 10 minutes,here i am plowing with a 5 mph speed limit,no way im going to be able to get up to 20 mph anywhere to kick it off,as if i didnt have enough load on my alternator as it was,the voltmeter would dip down to 11 volts,and even less. between the 200 amp draw from the plow pump,and the huge draw from the heaters, ihad to shut everythign off,and aboutthetime they would finally kick off,the truck would stall again,and we'd go thru it again. I got my truck flashed and now it doesnt stall,but i lost 2-4 mpg fuel economy in the process.

 

[Happy Camper]

When ever I start my baby up I never look back so do not know it it smokes or not. I will leave that up to the people I pass to determine. Oo.



Have never had any problem with the grid heater in cold weather. Single digit but have never started in minus.

 

[amsoilman]

jwinnie,

Were you moving after you got the engine started? If you were, the grid heaters will turn off. at least that is the way mine work... ... ... But then I have a 12 V.



Wayne

amsoilman

 

[dpope]

Last January my family and I went to Keystone, Colorado to ski. When it was time to come home, the truck wouldn't start. It was only 23 degrees at the time. However, the altitude was around 12 to 14 thousand feet. (Pretty thin). Down here in Texas, I've never had a problem starting at this temp. Anyway, I had to find a plug in and wait about an hour before it would start...

 

[monkfarm]

dpope

it might have started to gel, (maybe for a while it was colder than 20 deg) and that's why it wouldn't start if it didn't have any additive, and fuel filter was a little old

 

[dpope]

Thanks monkfarm.



Next time I'm up that way, I'll make sure I take some additives...

along with an extension cord...

 

[jjdiesel]

cold starts

Just returned from Winter Park Colo. Started my truck in -12 without plugging in. It was horrible!! I actually had it plugged in BUT, the outlet was dead! It was so hard in starting I could'nt understand it, it was plugged in all night. Got suspicious of the outlet, went to grab my electric shaver to test it... sure enough, dead as... ..... Anyway, it finally started but I felt terrible listening and feeling the thing struggle, it just could'nt get going. Took about 6 or 7 attempts. Quite a testimony though to the Cummins... starting without any aid in -12, that's COLD! It helps to cycle the heater grid a couple of times before actually cranking the engine.

 

[WestTN]

intake heater

I'll go out on a limb here and say I MIGHT know what is wrong. Does your truck not start on the first crank of the starter? I'm not sure about my new one, but on my 1989, crankig a second time without cycling the key off first cancelled the post heat cycling. If you watch your volt meter and it isn't down around 8-10 volts or so, it isn't cycling. Switch the key off, then restart and watch it.

 

[PRout]

1. ) Maybe the fuel was gelled.



2. ) Maybe the Relay that powers the grid heater wasnt working in the cold weather?



3. ) Air temp sensor acting screwy.



You said the heater didnt cycle. Is because you didnt see the lights dim & the volt meter drop?



If you didnt see those things, but did see them later after you stopped, then Id guess the relay is marginal, or the air temp sensor is intermittant.



If you did see the lights dim & volt meter drop, then the fuel may have gelled.



But, You did say the wait to start light went out after about 10 seconds, which makes it look like a temp sensor wasnt sensing that the air was cold.

 

[jwinnie]

Intake Heater is very inconsistent. I guess I'll have to try a new sensor... ... ... ... . After the South Bend Clutch, DDIII's, Banjo Bolts and Boost pump



And how would gelled fuel affect the cycling of the intake heater??(truck fired off instantly anyway)

 

[PRout]

Yea, just mentioned the fuel gelling as a possibility.



Said that before I realized you mentioned that the "wait to start" light went off after about 10 seconds. It sounds like it didnt know the air was cold, meaning a flaky sensor may be the culprit.