Thanks for the replies. I got it running, but I am wondering if there may be something I need to do in the future.
A little more info. It may not be related, but the battery will not hold a charge. I had it tested and it was fine, so I assumed it was a slow drain. I haven't had the time to try and trace the source, so I installed a screw type disconnect on the negative post. No lights will go on while it is unscrewed, so I assumed that the battery was fully disconnected. When I first came out, it it would not turn over. I say this, because throughout all of this, the tractor was being jumped by my truck. The first time it started pretty easily. I held the glow plugs for maybe five to ten seconds and it started right up. It idled for about five minutes and then died and would not start again.
How I got it running was, I plugged the block heater back in and left it for a little while (it had been plugged in over night the first time when it died). I came back after 30-45 min or so. This time I let the glow plugs go for about 30 seconds. It started up this time, but it started to cough and sputter if I raised the throttle, so I let it idle at a low RPM. It was fine. I slowly raised the RPMs and continued to let it idle. From there it was good to go. I ran it for about 45 minutes moving snow with no problem.
I am sure these are newbie questions, so thank you for your patience.
Yes, could be residual water But seeing how problem showed with onset of cold temperatures could it be untreated (summer) fuel still in it?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gel_point_(petroleum)
If this is the problem, what should I do if I do have fuel from the summer? Do I put in some additive? Is it now just bonfire starter? When I changed all of my fluids at the end of the summer, I did research to see what to do to winterize the tractor, and the consensus seemed to be not to put in fuel additive. All of the responses here seem to say that it is a necessity. I am a bit confused.
After it's been sitting you could disconnect the fuel line at the filter and drain a bit , dump out or change the filter bleed the air and then try starting again . All the water should be at the bottom of the tank.
Even though I fully drained it and changed the filters, I was wondering if there was a chance that there was water still in the tank. Is the fuel line to lowest point in the tank, or is it a bit higher to allow sediment to settle to the bottom. If so, I could see there still being a substantial amount of water at the bottom. Would draining the lines again help, or could there be quite a bit of water sitting at the bottom, slowly mixing in with the fuel?
Thank you so much for your replies. I wish I could be one to add to threads, but I am new to this.