Engine/Transmission (1998.5 - 2002) To plug or not to plug, that is the question?

[jwurtz]

Ive done searches through other threads and just couldnt find exactly what I was looking for. I live in Northern KY, and it has been in the 20-30's at night here recently. When is the best time to plug the truck in? How long would it take if the truck was cold, to plug it in and it be warm enough to start? If you plugged it in over night, and it heated the oil all night, wouldnt that break down the oil faster or am I just making stuff up? It sounds good though! lol

 

[Whitmore]

It takes 45 minutes to an hour to heat the truck cooling system once you plur her in, get a timer and set it for one hour before crank-up time, works goooood and then you dont have to jack your electric bill up for a 12 hour time.

Keeping it plugged in all night will not hurt your oil. I dont plug mine in till it gets below zero but this is Wyoming too.



cheers, Kevin

 

[Ncostello]

I've had block heaters before on trucks, this one being my first on a Dodge Cummins. But it all remains the same for me.



Generally, if its cold enough out to freeze water (32F) I'll plug it in over night. Sometimes, I'll plug it in when its warmer than that, just depends on my mood. Or sometimes I forget.



These trucks will start down to some pretty cold temps without the block heater. However, the block heater does not keep your oil warm. Its down in the bottom of the pan. This plug heater keeps the coolant warm in the block (and radiator a little). If you touch the block after its plugged in all night, it will feel like putting your hand on the surface of a car hood on a mildly warm summer day. The valve cover and throttle unit for instance will feel warm too because enough heat is produced to conduct through to these items. But in no way, in my opinion, will it get hot enough to cause oil breakdown, even if the oil was heated by this plug. It does not produce 180F temps... . maybe 80-90, but not anything close to operating temps.



I like using it cause it makes for faster warmups (cab heat) and the heater grid wont cycle on before starting. It will cycle a few times however when the truck begins running. Plus I think it will help the oil warm up faster when the oil begins flowing through warm engine passage ways. Just my opinion on block heaters.

 

[Ncostello]

Whitmore, I need to get me a timer. I'm wasting kilowatts!!! I might go three hours to get it good and warm and let it circulate a little to the radiator. Even overnight, the lower radiator hose will not feel anywhere near as warm as other things. I guess heat must rise after all.



Plus I'm thinking about putting an extention cord to the drivers side between the cab and bed gap. My plug in the garage is by my drivers door, so I wont forget to unplug if in a hurry. Ive done that on fire trucks before... :{ ... arrived to the scene with the charger cord still plugged in. Now we have auto-eject plugs when you turn the ignition on... . hmmm... that would be cool on my Dodge too!!

 

[PZicha]

Why don't you guys get an oilpan heater also , they only add 200 more watts to your electrical draw ( most block heaters draw 850 watts ) I have both wired into the same circuit . It definitely warms up faster since it gets a nice gulp of warm oil and its not warming up 12 quarts of cold oil in the process . You can see the oilpan heater clamped to the side of the oil pan

 

[Hemiville]

to plug???

Want to drive yourself crazy?? I have a diesel boat, volvo,supercharged,turbocharged, and it has NO preheaters of any kind. Ocean water gets pretty cold, and this puppy will start right up!! Also, being fresh water cooled, the water in the engine can get darn cold 32 and lower, so thats what the engine is dealing with on start up.

What is the problem with these things, 'pickups' ? I 've had the heater on my truck come on at about the same temps. as the winter Ocean water here on the No. Pacific coast, not counting the ambient air temp. Another one of those, I don't get its??

 

[jwurtz]

I was thinking I goto school on T/TH and figured when I get up I can just walk downstairs and plug it in. Run the cord into the garage. Takes about an hr or so before I leave, and I have plenty of time before I leave for work. Wasnt sure if there was a certain temp to def plug in or not. So I guess I wont be cooking eggs on the block then when this is plugged in. Thanks guys, this is my first winter with my diesel. I have a 98. 5 24V...

 

[Bigsaint]

I guess we all have our own views on this subject, here's what I do...



At or below 40F, plug in for 2 hours ( I use a timer)

At or below 30F, plug in for 3 hours

At or below 20F, plug in for 4 hours

At or below 10F, plug in all night.



I'm forced to take short trips intermixed with longer trips all week long. When I have to drive the kids to the bus stop and then go back only 3 hours later, I plug it right back in for the 3 hours, keeps the coolant nice and warm.



Scott W.

 

[Bigsaint]

Peter, do you have a oil temp. gauge on your truck ? I'm curious how warm the oil is at start up after using the heating pad. Sure sounds like a great idea !



Scott W.

 

[A. Brown]

if its in the fortys or below I plug it in.

 

[John Berger]

I plug mine in when it hits the low 40's or below. The truck sounds better at startup.

 

[curatchko]

Well it was 28 here this morning in Michigan, and I did not plug in, and the truck fires on the first crank, and has heat in it 5 miles down the road.



So, I'm not sure why anyone would waste the energy to plug a truck in unless we're sub teens or 0.

 

[BarryG]

Big Saint I am not who you were asking but I do have an oil temp gauge. The oil temp definitely depends on the outside air temp (duh). So far this winter it has got down into low teens here and my oil temp has not been below 28 deg (plugged in for 2 hours) but I do have warm (not hot) air within a mile from from the house and my oil temp is up to about 100-110 by the time I get to the freeway 2 1/2 miles. I get in the truck start it let it sit for about 1 minute drive off, speed is 30-35mph on the way to freeway. Water temp at freeway is usually just starting to come up maybe a needle width but heat is usually pretty warm by now. 1 mile down the freeway oil temp is 140+ and climbing. If the outside temp is in the 30s my oil temp may be in the low to mid 40s at startup and be 120 by the time I get to the freeway. I have noticed if there is wind the oil temp is lower than if there was no wind during the night (another duh).

 

[Ncostello]

I think a timer for the morning is smart to save a little energy. But I want at least 3 hours of warmup time.



I'm lucky, I got a plug in where I work. Its not the closest parking spot, but its got a 110V outlet on the building there. Work dont mind either. So at work, its on all day long when its really cold. Dont cost me a dime. Its my hidden benefit here.

 

[E7mack96]

I plug mine in at 45 or os degrees and colder. I use a timer that comes on 3 hours before my anticipated startup time.



Remember, While the truck will start in colder weather, The block heater help thing get to temp faster, and the oil flows better resulting in less engine wear at startup. Isn't that the best benefit of all??

 

[Lsfarm]

Cold starting

If we are trying to start our trucks at say -20F or colder, then plugging the block heater in may be needed. At more normal wintertime temps our trucks WILL start, but it is rough on the engine.



There is a lot of cylnder wall washing, delayed pressure lubrication, and virtually no splash lubrication with a cold start.



But since most of us care about our trucks [after all we paid for them], plugging in the block heater is nothing but another form of preventive maintainence for our trucks.



If you have electricity available where you park your truck, why put it through a torture-start if you can have it prewarmed?



I have to park my truck in an airport parking lot half the time, and cringe when I have to start it at less than 35F. But I have no choice. At home it is either plugged in or in a heated shop overnight.



Do a little math: last year someone calculated that to leave your truck plugged in cost about $10 per month!! I don't remember the # of hours per day or cost per kwh used. I'd pay double that to be able to plug my truck in when it is sitting at the airport.



The hardest miles you can put on your truck is the first couple of miles after a cold start. I do everything I can to reduce the damage/wear I'm doing to my engine, with synthetic oil, a low speed route to the freeway, and gentle driving untill I have indicated engine temps. But I can feel the engine is much happier when it is plugged in: it is quieter, smoother and revs much easier.



JMO/experinces



Greg L The Noise Nazi[[

 

[KMeek]

There are at least two benefits to plugging in when it is not bitter cold (and when it is, too). I know from experimentation and experience that I get better mileage from the freshly started engine if it was plugged in. I have a short 3 mile drive to work. When I plug the truck in before leaving for work the cumulative mpg computer will almost never go down in cumulative mpg. In other words if the computer says 17. 2 when I start it up it will almost always say 17. 2 when I get to work--even if it is bitter cold. If I don't plug in the computer will show a reduction anywhere from 1 to 3 tenths of a mpg reduction by the time I get to work. So, I am positive based on my experience that I get better mpg on the freshly started engine if it was plugged in before hand. I have to believe that better mpg also means that the plug in is better for the engine in the long run.



And, by the time I get to work on only a 3 mile drive the truck is warm. The heat gauge does not, however, get to 190 by the time I finish my 3 mile drive.



I attached a retractable extension cord to the ceiling of my unheated garage. The extension cord is hooked to a timer so the electricity turns on at 5 in the morning. I just plug it in at night and it is warm in the morning.



Those of you that are doubting me should try the plug in whenever the weather turns cold enough that the "wait to start" light starts staying on longer. I would be surprised if you don't see results similar to mine.



By the way--I live in Montana and we see below zero weather a lot in the winter.

 

[E7mack96]

cost to plug in

By my math, it cost me $5. 60 per month to plug in my truck



the breakdown is as follows



Cost of energy is $. 072904 per kwh



time ran per nite is 3 hours



wattage is 850 watts per hour



so:



850 x 3 = 2550 watts per day



2550 watts x 30 days = 76,500 watts per month



76,500 watts / 1,000 (to get kw) = 76. 5 kwh



76. 5 kwh x $ . 072904 = $ 5. 577 ($ 5. 60)



This is cheap in my book

 

[csevers]

get good timer

If you plug in early or late in the fall,winter get a good heavy duty timer the ordinary ones don't last, the one I am on is the 2nd timer the first one lasted about 1 year/ winter the one I have now has 2 setings and works good I don't plug in till at least 0 and the truck sits outside all the time I do however plug the old tractors in at 39F just to get them to start If they only had the mighty cummins in them.

 

[MGordon]

I’ve thought about installing a remote bulb thermostat in line with the heater (inside the engine compartment). I’d install the sensor in contact with the block, insulated from ambient air. If the stat is set correctly, this would keep the engine warm when needed without having the heater on all the time. Of course, I could also leave my time clock in the circuit so that the circuit is only energized at certain times of the day.



Has anyone else tried something like this?