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How to heat truck up faster in winter??
- Thread starter bad_bo_ti
- Start date
ntaj*ep
1/2 ton status
Get a block heater, it takes the place of one of your freeze plugs.....
RustBuket
1/2 ton status
Cover the radiator with a section of cardboard but make sure you watch the temp gauge as the season gets warmer. The block heater won't really help too much with the warming up faster. It will give the block an initial temp so as to crank over easier.
akbound
1/2 ton status
When I lived in Alaska I had 3 plugs hanging out of my grill: block heater, lower radiator hose heater, and a stick-on heat element for the oil pan.
bigyellowjimmy
1/2 ton status
Replace the thermostat with a new "premium" 195 deg stat from Napa or Carquest.
Unless you can increase the heat output from the cylinders, or warm up the coolant before hand, you can't speed up the process. Without the engine being up to the temp of the thermostat, the coolant in the block isn't getting cooled!
There is SOME conduction of heat through the lower hose, but I doubt it's anywhere near enough to worry about.
Oh yeah, and leave the heater off too. It DOES circulate coolant, and it serves as a small radiator that ISN'T governed by the thermostat, the longer you wait to turn it on, theres that much more that ISN'T getting cooled.
There is SOME conduction of heat through the lower hose, but I doubt it's anywhere near enough to worry about.
Oh yeah, and leave the heater off too. It DOES circulate coolant, and it serves as a small radiator that ISN'T governed by the thermostat, the longer you wait to turn it on, theres that much more that ISN'T getting cooled.
akbound
1/2 ton status
When I retire from the AF in three years I will be moving back to Anchorage, so I will not have to put up with almost 80 degree days in Jan anymore. 
Two word answers...
Two ways to faster heat--
1.Heated Garage!
2.Block Heater
I have a tank type heater in the heater hose of my diesel,if I leave it plugged in for easier starts in the extreme cold,it not only starts faster,it has at least lukewarm heat right away,and is toasty in 5-10 minites--unplugged,it takes a good 15 minites before ice stop blowing out of the dash vents....if the truck has been in the garage with the heat going,it is easier to warm up than from a stone cold outdoor start,since the sheet metal and interior is already room temparature....
I use the carboard in front of the radiator trick too,but once in a while the temps shoot up to 50 degrees or so,and I had to pull over and yank it out,so it wont boil over!--not exactly safe on the expressway...I just keep a 195 degree thermostat in my trucks,and it doesnt take that long to get good heat,assuming the heater core and cooling system is in good shape...
Also you might try insulating the heater hoses with pipe insulation you can get at Home Depot or Lowe's,it makes a huge difference,the more heat that GETS to he heater and not lost to the air thru the hoses,the better--my friend thought of that a few years ago,made a big improvement in his heat--you can hardly keep your hand in front of his heater outlet,its that hot!.
Two ways to faster heat--
1.Heated Garage!
2.Block Heater
I have a tank type heater in the heater hose of my diesel,if I leave it plugged in for easier starts in the extreme cold,it not only starts faster,it has at least lukewarm heat right away,and is toasty in 5-10 minites--unplugged,it takes a good 15 minites before ice stop blowing out of the dash vents....if the truck has been in the garage with the heat going,it is easier to warm up than from a stone cold outdoor start,since the sheet metal and interior is already room temparature....
I use the carboard in front of the radiator trick too,but once in a while the temps shoot up to 50 degrees or so,and I had to pull over and yank it out,so it wont boil over!--not exactly safe on the expressway...I just keep a 195 degree thermostat in my trucks,and it doesnt take that long to get good heat,assuming the heater core and cooling system is in good shape...
Also you might try insulating the heater hoses with pipe insulation you can get at Home Depot or Lowe's,it makes a huge difference,the more heat that GETS to he heater and not lost to the air thru the hoses,the better--my friend thought of that a few years ago,made a big improvement in his heat--you can hardly keep your hand in front of his heater outlet,its that hot!.
bigyellowjimmy
1/2 ton status
Are you positive the thermostat is working properly? Even if its slightly lazy from wear it will take your engine forever to warm up when its bitter cold (or it wont warm up at all). As routine maintenance in cold climates they should be replaced every fall with a premium quality one. The cheap ones often dont work properly right from the box.
wow, i would kill for some 80 degree weather here in mich, i hate the cold.
actually i have been wondering that myself, it dont even get close to 195 or even over 150 while it is running, looks like i got a project ahead of me. is there an easy way to replace one without draining all the coolant? thanks, chris
bigyellowjimmy
1/2 ton status
bad_bo_ti said:
Depends on how you like to do things, the *proper* way is to drain the radiator so you dont make a mess removing the thermostat housing. Of course what we usually do is remove the housing and wash off the spilled antifreeze. Remember to use a premium stat from Napa or Carquest and to use 50/50 antifreeze mix when refilling.
darkshadow
1 ton status
i had a 65-35 min turn to slush on me a back in december, when it was just bitterly cold.
I thought od a idea i want to do for my truck, wire it all up for one plug, to run a
block heater,
oilpan/dip stick heater,
coolent warmer/pump
a, space heater under the dash
and a small trickel charger to the batt. have it all on a timer for a few hours befor i have to go to work and i am laughing
i was thinking of getting one of thoughs lamps with the retractable cord and canobalizing it and useing it for the cord. So it does itsself up!!!
I thought od a idea i want to do for my truck, wire it all up for one plug, to run a
block heater,
oilpan/dip stick heater,
coolent warmer/pump
a, space heater under the dash
and a small trickel charger to the batt. have it all on a timer for a few hours befor i have to go to work and i am laughing
i was thinking of getting one of thoughs lamps with the retractable cord and canobalizing it and useing it for the cord. So it does itsself up!!!
beater_k20
Banned
and will also preheat your engine coolant, which will make it warm up faster.RustBuket said:
beater_k20
Banned
bad_bo_ti said:
you need a stat. my 91 was doing the same exact thing for almost a year. wasnt bad when the weather was nice, weather got cold, so i changed it. problem solved.
