First off, will pluging in my block heater over night make my S10 Blazer heat up any faster in the morning to get the heater to warm up the interior faster? and is it bad to put cardboard or soemthing else in my grill to block the cold air from keeping my motor cold so long? Right now i start my blazer and let it warm up for 10 min before I leave for work and its still 4 -5 miles before my blazer is really crankin out the heat
CK5
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Block Heater and Air Flow Restrictions
- Thread starter Drey
- Start date
Smitty
1/2 ton status
Not to sure about the S-10's. Do you have an electric cooling fan? If so, the cardboard won't really impact the warm-up time while your truck is sitting in the driveway. If not and the fan is engine driven, then it might help.
The block heater will help it warm up a little faster. I would put it on a timer since they suck so much electricity. I had a block heater, tank heater, lower radiator hose heater, and an interior heater in a car while stationed in North Dakota. The car was warm in the morning, but I didn't pay for the electricity.
The block heater will help it warm up a little faster. I would put it on a timer since they suck so much electricity. I had a block heater, tank heater, lower radiator hose heater, and an interior heater in a car while stationed in North Dakota. The car was warm in the morning, but I didn't pay for the electricity.
guido666
1/2 ton status
The block heater will help, especially since it will warm up everything in the engine a few degrees. Part of the reason it takes a cold engine so long to heat up is that even though the combustion is heating the cylinders and coolant, all that cold metal is just cooling it back down the the whole time. It may work even better on an S10 because they have little (relatively) engines.
Like they said, cardboard only helps if you have a mechanical fan (my '89 S10 Blazer did) with no fan-clutch, or a stuck fan clutch. Otherwise (if you have a electric fan, or a mechanical one with working fan clutch) the fan is "smart" enough to know when it is needed, and doesn't do much when it is cold. So if it's mechanical, check your fan clutch for proper operation, or use cardboard if you don't have one. If it's electric check and make sure it only comes on when the engine is hot, probably like 190-220 degree range. Just let it idle for a while until it gets hot and see if it comes on. If you grab the radiator hose (top one), the thermostat should have opened and it should get hot BEFORE either the mechanical fan clutch or electric fan come on.
Oh, and my buddy has a '99 S10 pickup with a 4 cylinder, and he says he has replaced 3 fan clutches, so maybe they go bad often?!?
Like they said, cardboard only helps if you have a mechanical fan (my '89 S10 Blazer did) with no fan-clutch, or a stuck fan clutch. Otherwise (if you have a electric fan, or a mechanical one with working fan clutch) the fan is "smart" enough to know when it is needed, and doesn't do much when it is cold. So if it's mechanical, check your fan clutch for proper operation, or use cardboard if you don't have one. If it's electric check and make sure it only comes on when the engine is hot, probably like 190-220 degree range. Just let it idle for a while until it gets hot and see if it comes on. If you grab the radiator hose (top one), the thermostat should have opened and it should get hot BEFORE either the mechanical fan clutch or electric fan come on.
Oh, and my buddy has a '99 S10 pickup with a 4 cylinder, and he says he has replaced 3 fan clutches, so maybe they go bad often?!?
backcountry
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I have also heard of people placing an electric blanket on top of their motors to not only help warm the entire engine compartment, but also to protect from the wind chill factor. 
Just make sure you remember to remove it!
Just make sure you remember to remove it!
Wind chill is a fake measurement, doesn't really apply to anything other than humans, unless you count everything that starts out warmer than ambient temp.
Talking about a heating blanket here: wind would suck heat away from an engine faster if the engine is above ambient temp, but if outside temp is 32*, a stopped engine will never get colder than that no matter how hard the wind blows.
Talking about a heating blanket here: wind would suck heat away from an engine faster if the engine is above ambient temp, but if outside temp is 32*, a stopped engine will never get colder than that no matter how hard the wind blows.
guido666
1/2 ton status
No, wind chill is a relationship. It's saying that if it's 50 degrees with the wind blowing it will lose heat energy as fast as if it were say 40 degrees. The only difference is that even with the wind blowing any speed nothing will drop below ambient temp (50 degrees in my example). But if after 5 minutes 90 degree water had dropped 10 degrees in the 50 degree air with wind, the same water would have dropped 10 degrees if the temperature was colder, say 40 degrees, but with less or no wind.dyeager535 said:
It's like those awesome little gizmos that will cool a single can of beer with ice water in like 2 minutes, because it swirls the water around to make the beer lose its heat energy faster. (Examples are always better when they involve beer!)
195* Thermostat??
I'd put in a new 195 degree thermostat first,rather than a block heater--someone may have put a 180 degree in it at one time,or it might just be stuck open slightly--it makes a huge difference having a good 195 degree thermostat as to how quickly it heats up--it will save fuel too!..
..If the fan clutch is locked up, it will take a long time to heat up too,if it has one..if its an electric fan,make sure its not running as soon as its started (I see lots of them "hot wired" to a power wire that turns it on when the key is "on",because they had overheating issues due to faulty relays or wiring)..you dont want the fan running until it needs to be..
Also,see if it has a hot water valve that blocks hot water from the heater core--it could be sticking in the "off" position partially..feel both heater hoses,see if one is hotter than the other--if there is a big difference,the core might be plugged up somewhat,or that valve might be defective (if it has one)..
If its still cold after that,then you can add a block heater..I'd use a timer too,but get a good one rated more watts than the heater draws--I used a dime store timer on my 6.2,and it melted,and its a good thing the breaker tripped,or I'd no longer have my garage,or my truck!..
I'd put in a new 195 degree thermostat first,rather than a block heater--someone may have put a 180 degree in it at one time,or it might just be stuck open slightly--it makes a huge difference having a good 195 degree thermostat as to how quickly it heats up--it will save fuel too!..
..If the fan clutch is locked up, it will take a long time to heat up too,if it has one..if its an electric fan,make sure its not running as soon as its started (I see lots of them "hot wired" to a power wire that turns it on when the key is "on",because they had overheating issues due to faulty relays or wiring)..you dont want the fan running until it needs to be..
Also,see if it has a hot water valve that blocks hot water from the heater core--it could be sticking in the "off" position partially..feel both heater hoses,see if one is hotter than the other--if there is a big difference,the core might be plugged up somewhat,or that valve might be defective (if it has one)..
If its still cold after that,then you can add a block heater..I'd use a timer too,but get a good one rated more watts than the heater draws--I used a dime store timer on my 6.2,and it melted,and its a good thing the breaker tripped,or I'd no longer have my garage,or my truck!..
