Circulation heater

[bucholzi]

Hi,
I live at 69 deg north and I'm looking for a circulation heater (like zerostart) for those really cold days when the temperature starts to drop below -25 deg C / -13 deg F. We often get -30 deg C / -22 deg F and occasionally -40 deg C / -40 deg F, and allegedly there was below - 50 deg C / - 58 deg F a few years ago (I moved here less than two years ago, so I cannot be sure that it's true or not..). I got my standard block heater, but.. well, there are stories about people lighting fires under chevy trucks to get them started. The truck hasn't been used for the last 3 years, but I was always anxious before cold morning starts even in the warmer coast climate I used to live in.

So I thought a circulation heater would do the trick (along with fresh batteries with high CCA, hi-torque hi-speed starter, fresh plugs, reman injectors and reman IP), but I'm having trouble finding a 220-240 volt model online, but now I found this:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Gas-....c0.m245&_trkparms=72:543|65:12|39:1|240:1318

Question is: is this suitable for a 7.3, or is it overkill with 2500 watt? Alternatively: any recommendations on watts to match my climate? Anyone know where I can get 240 volt models?

Thanks,
Simen

 

[tractorman86]

have you checked the truck shops/stops around you. you might find something like that there. off topic, is that a husky/wolf hybrid on your avatar? i had one 85% wolf passed away july4th and i have his son 42.5% now he is 9 months old now and 75lbs!(looks alot like the one in your avatar) they are the coolest "dogs"!

 

[RLDSL]

Why don't you just get an Eberspacher ( Espar ) diesel fired block heater so you don't have to worry about looking around for a place to plug in? First diesel I got that had one of those things on it originally was sold in Finland. It had the Eberspacher and a 220 volt block heater on it, but you just can't beat those fuel fired jobs and now you can get them with a remote control so you can fire them up from inside if you forget to set the timer so in about 15 minutes the engine is all warmed up and if you wire it up to the defrost fan it will have your windows all cleared up and the cab warmed up as well when you step in

 

[bucholzi]

have you checked the truck shops/stops around you. you might find something like that there. off topic, is that a husky/wolf hybrid on your avatar? i had one 85% wolf passed away july4th and i have his son 42.5% now he is 9 months old now and 75lbs!(looks alot like the one in your avatar) they are the coolest "dogs"!

All I can find local is standard block heaters to install in a freeze plug. Already got one of these. But it's not sufficient (it helps, but only to a certain degree) when it get really cold.

The dog is an alaskan husky (mixed breed sled dog), but the mother was a sibirian, which is where she got her good looks from. And her mentality, which was a bit too rock hard for our liking. A ***** that loves to fight ;p when we are trying to maintain a pack of 6-7-8 dogs as a family sled dog team with small kids crawling all over and in between the dogs is not a good match. She now enjoys life with a pack of greenland huskies, which are one of the toughest and hardest breeds of dogs, and she fits right in. But nonetheless, she is the most beautiful dog we have ever had. Perfect built, perfect fur, even her claws are good-looking.

Why don't you just get an Eberspacher ( Espar ) diesel fired block heater so you don't have to worry about looking around for a place to plug in? First diesel I got that had one of those things on it originally was sold in Finland. It had the Eberspacher and a 220 volt block heater on it, but you just can't beat those fuel fired jobs and now you can get them with a remote control so you can fire them up from inside if you forget to set the timer so in about 15 minutes the engine is all warmed up and if you wire it up to the defrost fan it will have your windows all cleared up and the cab warmed up as well when you step in

Ebersprächer and webasto are bloody expensive and a pain to install, so I have ruled them out. Also they strain the battery when in use, and I reckon I need all the power I can get to get that engine spinning. The truck is almost alway parked by an power outlet (not a daily driver, and can be left parked for weeks), and for a third of the price of a webasto I can actually get a good petrol or diesel fueled power station which I can in an emergency hook up to the truck to power the heater, and which obviously has a lot of other useful areas of applications throughout the rest of the year That's the svalbard way, when the Hilux trucks have been left out in the cold a wee bit to long.

 

[RLDSL]

Ebersprächer and webasto are bloody expensive and a pain to install, so I have ruled them out. Also they strain the battery when in use, and I reckon I need all the power I can get to get that engine spinning. The truck is almost alway parked by an power outlet (not a daily driver, and can be left parked for weeks), and for a third of the price of a webasto I can actually get a good petrol or diesel fueled power station which I can in an emergency hook up to the truck to power the heater, and which obviously has a lot of other useful areas of applications throughout the rest of the year That's the svalbard way, when the Hilux trucks have been left out in the cold a wee bit to long.

Those things come stock as factory equipment on most new diesel cars sold in that area. Might want to check the boneyards and see if you can find a complete unit. I see them on the Ebays in northern Europe and Scandanavia going dirt cheap for used units and even if theres a leak from sitting dry, they're super simple to fix. The battery draw isn't bad considering that once they warm the engine up it takes that mmuch less to crank the thing to get it to fire

 

[bucholzi]

Those things come stock as factory equipment on most new diesel cars sold in that area. Might want to check the boneyards and see if you can find a complete unit. I see them on the Ebays in northern Europe and Scandanavia going dirt cheap for used units and even if theres a leak from sitting dry, they're super simple to fix. The battery draw isn't bad considering that once they warm the engine up it takes that mmuch less to crank the thing to get it to fire

The ones that come stock on newer diesels are "driving heaters" and you need additional parts to make it work as a parking heater, also they are a lot cheaper than new but nevertheless it will run complete with everything probably 4-5x more than the zerostart circulation heater. And it will not match with a big part of my driving pattern (local short trips): A rule of thumb (from dealers and from tow truck drivers, which is not unfamiliar with stranded trucks due to power consumption of these heaters) is at least the same driving time as the operating time to compensate for power used, in addition to the power used when starting the engine. So if the heater runs in 30 min and I need maybe 20 min (?) to recharge batteries after starting, then it's a 50 min drive to get the batteries ready to the next startup. There are very few times I haven't got a power outlet available when I need to park for a longer time. Obviously a diesel heater would be great to cover all eventualities, but If I am to park in the woods or any other places without power, the preferred car of choice is the family car, the subaru. Also, these heaters aren't without issues, after all they are far more complex than an electrical powered circulation heater.

So the diesel heaters are nice to have but doesn't fit my needs. If I had a never truck that were used more like a DD, then it would be great, but still then I think I would combine it with a defa or similar with a battery charger, like the system in the subaru: As long at is is plugged in (the entire time at home) the batteries are recharged and maintained. Engine and cab heater is controlled by a timer. And use the webasto/eber whenever a power outlet is not available, which is quite often for the DD. But thanx for the input anyway I'll keep an eye on the used marked/scrap yards and see if I can find a good deal, as they are nice to have. No doubt.

Back to the original question: are a circulation heater on 2500 watts an ok match for a 7.3?

 

[RLDSL]

2500 watt ought to be plenty stout,and pretty much the biggest available around here but you may have different options available there considering the line voltage difference. If you don't already have a hood insulation pad, that would be a good idea.