What concerns for idleing overnight

[zzman]

This winter I have had to sleep in my truck 5 or 6 times with the engine idleing all night. I have heard that this extended idleing will cause harm to the engine. I haven't noticed any changes yet but was wondering if I am sitting on a time bomb.

Do you guys know what I should expect or what can be done to help clean out the engine or is there really a concern here?

If I had a gasoline engine, I'd dump some Barryman in the tank and change the plugs. What to do with a diesel ?

Thanks

 

[HBarlow]

Diesel engine manufacturers generally advise that it can be harmful to idle their engines for long periods of time over the life of the engine but most of us have done it occasionally. Commercial drivers around the nation routinely idle the engines of OTR trucks overnight in hot or cold weather unless al gore and the tree hugger police are nearby writing tickets.

When I was transporting RVs I was forced to sleep in my '01 and later, '06 Ram and idle them overnight a few times. I saw no harm as a result. If you have to do it either activate the exhaust brake or activate the fast idle to keep the cylinder temperature as high as you can in order to create better combustion and avoid cylinder wall washdown with unburned fuel as much as possible.

It is not a practice that is recommended by the manufacturer but you could do it every night for years with your truck and see no harm if you activate the exhaust brake or fast idle mode.

Don't worry about it. You'll never see any damage.

 

[ENafziger]

I read about a guy a while ago that never shut his dodge cummins off for 5 or 6 months. He was hauling in Alaska, and temps were so cold that he didn't want to risk it not starting, as he couldn't plug in. He reported no damage.

--Eric

 

[icman95]

Just like HBarlow said, the damage is over time-as in years-not immediate. The cylinder washdown he mentions happens because at a low idle the combustion temp isn't high enough to completely burn all the fuel. The leftover fuel dilutes the oil on the cylinder walls and washes into the bottom of th engine. This happens in extremely small quantities and is why you won't see damage right now, if at all. It degrades the oil's ability to lube the engine. Higher idle speeds takes care of this problem, but an idling engine still suffers from normal wear and tear without moving the truck. In other words, you're increasing your maintanance costs without getting anything for you dollar. This is more of a problem with big rigs than our trucks as they idle almost every day. In the short term, nothing to worry about, but I wouldn't do it all the time over the life of the truck.

 

[hwebster]

There are some great diesel fuel heaters out there that will not only heat the the engine block but the cab as well... Pricey tho!!

 

[zzman]

That all sounds good. Thanks.

I re-call someone said that the fuel will varnish the injectors. I think that it what I heard. I guess that means it will create a coat of something or plug the holes in the injectors. Is that possible? Not real sure I remember it correctly but that is what I was concerned about. Clogging up the injectors can't be good.

So is that varnish stuff a myth or what?

It does smoke pretty good on level 2 (smarty jr).

Thanks again

 

[HBarlow]

Long idle periods may create a fine layer of varnish on injector tips idling overnight (I don't know) at low idle but if you're a commercial hauler pulling a heavily loaded trailer 600 miles the following day I wouldn't give it much thought. If you do varnish your injectors you'll burn it off the following day.

 

[zzman]

Thanks, that sounds good to me.

thank you Harvey

 

[AH64ID]

If you are going to have to idle overnight there are some things you can do to increase the load and keep cylinder temps up.

1. With your Smarty Jr the fast idle is enabled, have you grounded ECM pin #22?

2. Idle the truck at 1100 rpms with the pacbrake engaged, this will increase the load and keep the engine at operating temp. I also suggest leaving the defrost on so the a/c compressor also increases load.

3. Get a MOPAR winter front, and when you idle all night close all 4 flaps. This will keep the underhood temps up, and increase the intake air temp, which will increase combustion temp.

Between those things you will be fine to idle all night occasionally. While its still not the ideal situation it will suffice.

 

[cArNiVaLwOrKeR]

Idleing all night...

With the noise of the Motor, Could anyone possibly sleep comfortably?



JoeLee...

 

[icman95]

Of course!! The vibration and rattle of a diesel engine is most comforting and very easy to sleep to. My wife says anyone with a young child who won't sleep much should put them in our truck with the engine running for a few minutes. They'll fall right asleep.

 

[HBarlow]

It's great sleeping music to most of us. I miss the sound of my real Cummins engine in my first one, an '01. The new truck sounds like a damned hemi gasser. No manly diesel clatter and rattle.

 

[Moe]

I run my tour bus to keep me and my passengers comfortable. I have slept plenty of nights in my bus and slept like a baby, wont hurt a thing. My bus has an automatic idle up and idle down system. Moe

 

[icman95]

I used to have an older International at work where the idle control was a manual linkage in the cab much like a manual choke on an old car. The driver can pull the knob to get the engine to rev up and then lock it in place. When it came to nap time in the winter and I needed to keep the heat running, I would sit sideways in my seat, leaning my back and head against the side of the truck. I would adjust the idler to just the right speed so that the vibration felt exactly right on my back. Almost like a massage. Provides for some great naps. Just have to be careful to not oversleep and miss the receiver re-opening the dock after returning from lunch!

 

[Bob Cochran]

I use the Adrenaline and I have a dog with me a lot and In Phoenix in the summer have to keep AC running. Idle up to 1200 rpm with AC and Dog comfortable. Does not overheat either doing this and I try to also find a shady spot as well.

 

[cArNiVaLwOrKeR]

If you're idling for 8 hours at 1200rpms, about how much fuel would you be burning?

 

[HBarlow]

Enough to allow you to sleep in your truck when the ambient temp is down in the teens or near zero or when the ambient temp is 100* at midnight and you have no motel nearby to sleep in. Or enough to allow a driver to get a good night's sleep and survive when he can't afford a motel.

Or, in my case when I was transporting, when I was in a remote area iwth no motels available or in a city without a Motel 6 and no local motels would allow my companion, a female German Shepherd to stay overnight.

 

[cArNiVaLwOrKeR]

Im gonna have to try it one of these NIGHTS...



JoeLee

 

[HBarlow]

Seriously, I think a Cummins ISB5. 9 might burn a 1/2 gallon to maybe a gallon of fuel per hour running against an exhaust brake and with a/c on. Not a big deal if it allows a tired driver to rest and it is certainly cheaper than a motel. When the RV industry was booming and several thousand transporters were running the highways of the US and Canada hundreds of them had mattresses and sleeping gear in the back seats of their diesel pickups and slept in them every night taking showers in truck stops. The shorter guys had it better because they could stretch out in the back seat. I was too tall to stetch out in the back seat and my companion, Gertrude, owned the back seat. She stretched out on half of the backseat while I squeezed into the front seat around the steering wheel and floor shifter. What we do for our dogs!

 

[icman95]

The bigger engines are said to burn about 1 gallon per hour idling (at least that's what they tell us at work), so I would belive that 1/2 gph sounds reasonable.