Questions on Freeze Plug Engine Block Heater

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ok, now we're cooking with gas!

The only block heaters I know of are the freeze plug and rad hose ones... And VERY little about a Webasto...

I'm telling ya Crazy... I think that's WAYYY overkill... Those Webasto's and the one you linked are for Diesels and SEVERE cold...

I really think it's overkill for a gas engine and North American temps...

Check out my last post... I found a link about that type of heater...
 
naaa thats the one I want. Its cheap,small, circulates the coolant through the whole system. Hot enough to open the thermostat,and damn easy to install. Hell it will fit in the area of the heater hoses on the firewall.....isnside the engine bay of course.
 
cruiser88 said:
daaa ta

FrostHeater.com - Welcome
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Tank heaters circulate by convection and are all crap in my experience. A lower rad hose heater is just as effective and has less chance of trapping air.

I have a Webasto in my BJ74 and they kick ass but cost $1500. They burn fuel (they have diesel as well as petrol versions) and use a small electric waterpump to circulate heated coolant. If you wire the interior fan to come on with them you can keep the cab nice and toasty in the coldest weather. I'm told that the sound of one running at night on a winter run really pisses off the folks who sleep in tents. Espar makes the same kind of thing.

Some remote starter companies supply a Neutral safety switch for manual transmission rigs. I don't know what it looks like.
 
Tank? No this one is just a pump and a 1000 watt heater. Or am I mis-understanding?
lowenbrau said:
Tank heaters circulate by convection and are all crap in my experience. A lower rad hose heater is just as effective and has less chance of trapping air.

I have a Webasto in my BJ74 and they kick ass but cost $1500. They burn fuel (they have diesel as well as petrol versions) and use a small electric waterpump to circulate heated coolant. If you wire the interior fan to come on with them you can keep the cab nice and toasty in the coldest weather. I'm told that the sound of one running at night on a winter run really pisses off the folks who sleep in tents. Espar makes the same kind of thing.

Some remote starter companies supply a Neutral safety switch for manual transmission rigs. I don't know what it looks like.
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cruiser88 said:
Tank? No this one is just a pump and a 1000 watt heater. Or am I mis-understanding?
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There's no pump. Its just an aluminum tank with a heating element. Made by the same outfit in Winnipeg. DBA Zerostart that I linked to earlier in the thread. The dorks in the link you posted are mounting them on their sides which make them even less effective at moving the coolant I think. The crappy install of one of those on an LJ73 I once owned ended up costing two heads. LJ heads are pretty fragile anyway.

It might work for your purposes though if you can find a place to get cold coolant low on the engine and release hot coolant up high so you can get a convection path. I've had far better success with the lower rad hose heater from the same company and the install takes 12 minutes including draining and topping the coolant.
 
lowenbrau said:
If it is cold enough to need a block heater, your battery or batteries are at a reduced capacity so anything that is going to draw current from them before cranking is going to be a hindrance to getting the rig started.

My HDJ81 has a 120V oil pan heater as well as a lower rad hose coolant heater but I don't use either above -30C.

Crazy, you should just put in a remote start and let the rig run while you're getting ready to go.
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that is funny i worked with a guy from Alaska who said that they turned their headlights on before starting their cars up there.
 
My special thanks to Mr Lowenbrau thank you for the info sir. I hope that is the right company. My mechanic told me that they supply OEM quality plug in heater for Toyota. More expensive than the NAPA or O'reilly ones but that's okay. However, I will check the plug in cord first or replace it with a new one. I hope that will resolve the issue.


And cruiser88 come on man you don't need 4 block heaters for a 4 banger engine what kind of comment is that? What are you, drunk? :flipoff2:

A couple more q's:

1. Does plug in the heater right away after commuting drive, when the coolant is still hot, is this a no no? Can the heater burn out from doing this?

2. The reason my mechanic charges 2 hours labor is because he said they need to run compression test again after installing the new heater. Does this sound right? A compression test? Hmm :hhmm: that's what got me so reluctant in doing it myself. I just don't want to mess up and doing more harm than good. I've been that road before it's not fun. Trying to save a few $$ but end up costing more $$$. :bang: Some things are better left done at the shop.

Gracie gracie senoras senores.
 
arndog123 said:
Check the plug. I had to replace and wire in a new "head" on both my 85 and 86 trucks. Got both plugs from Lowes.
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Hmm...I am beginning to think wire is the culprit here. Is leaving the rig plugged in 2 or 3 days in a row okay? One time I forgot to unplug the heater and it was freezing rain and the cord where it plugged to the heater "head" was wet. Could the water have caused a short and burned the coil?
 
Toyota Kijang said:
My special thanks to Mr Lowenbrau thank you for the info sir. I hope that is the right company. My mechanic told me that they supply OEM quality plug in heater for Toyota. More expensive than the NAPA or O'reilly ones but that's okay. However, I will check the plug in cord first or replace it with a new one. I hope that will resolve the issue.


And cruiser88 come on man you don't need 4 block heaters for a 4 banger engine what kind of comment is that? What are you, drunk? :flipoff2:

A couple more q's:

1. Does plug in the heater right away after commuting drive, when the coolant is still hot, is this a no no? Can the heater burn out from doing this?

2. The reason my mechanic charges 2 hours labor is because he said they need to run compression test again after installing the new heater. Does this sound right? A compression test? Hmm :hhmm: that's what got me so reluctant in doing it myself. I just don't want to mess up and doing more harm than good. I've been that road before it's not fun. Trying to save a few $$ but end up costing more $$$. :bang: Some things are better left done at the shop.

Gracie gracie senoras senores.
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why do you ask us then let the shop do it. serously if you by in to they have to do a compression test after putting in a new block heater, well i will be glad to replace your block heater for half price but you know that your summer air needs to be replaced with winter air you know the air in your tires. and also if your block heater went bad well that most likely cause your modulator valve to go up in smoke too. and your total, after finding that your brake fluid froze because of that malfunctioning blockheater caused the seals in your calipers and wheelseals to blow out so we have to replace them, and all your brake linings and your rotors and drums cause they got brake fluid all over them and would cause your lining to go bad oh and by the way your antifreeze that we just put in for you could have frozen so we will have to replace your water pump head gasket and all hoses and seals related to your cooling system. your total will be 10,599.97. have a wonderful day sir.:cheers:
 
gotcha..thanks. I did notice they are not showing all the parts
lowenbrau said:
There's no pump. Its just an aluminum tank with a heating element. Made by the same outfit in Winnipeg. DBA Zerostart that I linked to earlier in the thread. The dorks in the link you posted are mounting them on their sides which make them even less effective at moving the coolant I think. The crappy install of one of those on an LJ73 I once owned ended up costing two heads. LJ heads are pretty fragile anyway.

It might work for your purposes though if you can find a place to get cold coolant low on the engine and release hot coolant up high so you can get a convection path. I've had far better success with the lower rad hose heater from the same company and the install takes 12 minutes including draining and topping the coolant.
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i am sure things have changed from 1985, but i was in South Dakota in 1985 and every one had block heaters and they were installed in the heater hoses, and were called i think tank heaters, they also circulated the the antifreeze. from what i was told. so are they not available or what am i missing here.
 
I use a timer on my trucks and set it to come on for about 2 hours before I leave. I find that it actually makes the trucks harder to start if they're plugged in too long. The computer probably gets confused and doesn't give enough fuel to start because it thinks the truck is already warmed up. Just my guess though.
 
toy4xfun said:
why do you ask us then let the shop do it.
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Why? I tell you why.

This is what makes a forum website like IH8MUD so great.

We, the consumers, have a chance to exchange thoughts and experiences with other fellow members on the same matter before spending the $$.

Sure the shops can tell me anything they want but I don't take them at face value. That is why I came here first and post my questions. So far all the answers have been great.

Thanks for all the answers guys.

Sincerely, TK. :cheers:
 
The mechanic probably wants to do a coolant pressure test rather than a compression test. I'd do the same thing to make sure there are no leaks and because I have a tester available. If you don't you'll just have to check for leaks once the rig is up to operating temp..
 
I'll just toss this out there...

I had a Toyota OEM block heater in my 3VZ-E. It was a huge nerve-wracking PITA to install. Actually, the installation wasn't as bad as removing the freeze plug. Very difficult to reach and I came very close to dropping it down inside the engine.

I only used it on really cold days, I had it on a timer in my detached garage that would kick it on about 3-4 hours prior to me leaving in the morning.

Honestly, I really couldn't tell that much of a difference. It maybe saved a minute or 2 of warmup time, but it didn't make any difference in starting. Don't expect it to keep your engine at operating temp, that's never gonna happen. It might make a 20 deg difference.

My opinion FWIW... don't waste your time or money. Block heaters are a good idea on diesels, we had them on all our trucks when I worked for Halliburton, and they made the difference beteween starting and not. But for a gasoline engine with a decent battery, it's not gonna help. My truck sits outside now, it's never had any trouble starting and I really doubt a block heater will get it warmer much faster.
 
I have been looking online at some electric heaters that replace the heater core. Just seems like it would be a real strain on my charging system however its a nice clean sometimes direct replacement for my really worn out,cracked s***ty heating system.

Now that I removed all my ac crap it might be feasable....I dont know. Anybody see any other downfalls of doing this other than the huge drain ?
 
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