Hydrostat warm up for winter

[funwithahoe]

This will be my first winter with a HSD B3200. How long do I really need to let it warm up without damaging anything? All summer I have been firing it up to run the trash out but not really willing to let it idle for 10 minutes for a 3 minute job.

Thanks

 

[TripleR]

I believe there should be a table in your manual. I run mine until the engine is warm which is usually five to ten minutes, but our winters here are not all that cold.

 

[funwithahoe]

I believe there should be a table in your manual. I run mine until the engine is warm which is usually five to ten minutes, but our winters here are not all that cold.

Thanks - The manual has some pretty long times and was wondering if I could cheat a little. I don't really understand how the hydrostat would warm up with the engine running - Does it heat the hydrostat oil up with the engine heat as well?

 

[EE_Bota]

Thanks - The manual has some pretty long times and was wondering if I could cheat a little. I don't really understand how the hydrostat would warm up with the engine running - Does it heat the hydrostat oil up with the engine heat as well?

I do not know your tractor. But most hydraulic units build heat naturally and reasonably quickly simply by being in movement, and moving oil.

On my tractor, there is no clutch, so if the engine rotates at all, so does the input shaft into the hydro. This means that the charge pump is pumping, and the main hydro pump is rotating. But the pistons in the hydro pump are not reciprocating, because the foot treadle is in neutral.

So I suppose if I were in some hurry, I might get some marginal increase in heat build up if I started those pistons to moving. I could do this by a)shift the transmission not to rabbit or turtle, but to neutral so the output of the hydro motor has no gear engaged that would move the tractor, and b) push the treadle to max so the pistons in both the hydro pump and the hydro motor will reciprocate fully.

I have never tried the above, because my tractor is parked nose first in a fully enclosed building not much bigger than the tractor itself. So, as soon as I start the tractor, I immediately increase the rpm to the point that the loader will raise, put it in turtle gear, and start backing out of the building.

Once I am out of the building, I start to increase the engine speeds in proportion to how the engine is heating, until I think it is warm enough to go most of the way to full throttle. I creep around in turtle gear toward where I want to go, and the transmission is warming up very nicely.

A HP is roughly 750 watts. I would guess that even when the tractor is not moving in any way, the transmission is drawing something close to 2HP. That is 1500 watts, so that would be like putting a bathroom heater into my little BX transmission. It doesn't take long to get warm.

You know, if you get your hands on an infra-red thermometer, you could find out exactly what is the state of warming. When I adjusted my main pump pressure recently, I scanned it from start-up to the prescribed temperature for the test, and I found that an informative exercise.

 

[bp fick]

The manual says 10 minutes if 32 degrees and 15 minutes if colder. It doesn't define "warm up". Idling alone hasn't worked much for me. The manual says not to engage it in hard work until operating temp has been achieved, that's sensible.

To me, warm up means 5 minutes of idling and then easing out of the shop and slowly driving a bit, and flexing the FEL to get the pump going and fluid flowing. I find this to be superior to mere idling, which I don't care to do.

 

[TripleR]

Thanks - The manual has some pretty long times and was wondering if I could cheat a little. I don't really understand how the hydrostat would warm up with the engine running - Does it heat the hydrostat oil up with the engine heat as well?

Oh, I am sure you can. Read some threads on here and you will find all manner of responses/experience. I prefer to let my equipment warm up thoroughly at about 1200-1500 RPM's, but I know there are a lot who don't and a couple are even in my family.

 

[TWD]

At 1200-1500rpm idling (warming up) my M59 reaches temps within 3-4 minutes usually and will hold the same temp for hours working. Only time I see it move up another notch is if I have to push the rpms high to lift something or move something heavy for a few minutes. :thumbsup:

 

[SPYDERLK]

I dont warm my tractors appreciably before I get them moving ... but I keep rpm below around 1500 and build up to making them actually work. The 5W-XX engine oils flow to where theyre needed quickly. I would change your HST fluid to SUDT. Then you can just start it, let it run a few seconds til its smooth, and then just putt away to the worksite. By the time youre there its ready for a real load, but do keep the revs down til it gets some warmth.
larry

 

[easygo]

You don't mention where you are and how cold it gets there in the winter. It gets quite cold here (20-30 below 0) in the winter. When getting close to freezing I plug in the block heater for 30-40 minutes and when it is close to 0F or colder I leave it plugged in for at least one hour. Then start tractor and get rpm up to about 1500 or so. Pull the tractor out of the garage and let it run there for about 10 minutes.

For a 3 minute job I would consider using some other tool before starting the tractor or try to put it of until something else comes up, so it makes more sense to run the machine. I think it is better on the long run to let the engine warm up considerably before working the tractor.

 

[leonz]

About your tractor and working tempuratures:

The more you let the tracotr warm up the better of you will be.
Theres nothing wrong with letting it idle for 20 minutes prior
to its being used, but-


I use my salamander on everything, trucks, tractor, firewood processor,
snow blowers, chainsaws, etc.


The more you heat it anything up the warmer the entire tractor becomes and the warmer the components become and the less resistance to work results which is a good thing.

Parking a kerosene fueled salamander a few feet away from the side of the tractor and firing it up for and hour or less is not a waste of money, it saves wear and tear on your engine and transmission all the time.

The Isuzu pick up I have lasted as along as it has because I plugged it in every day the year round to keep it warm-gas engine Pick Up Truck.

The act of preheating warms everything up and reduces the wear on the engine and transmission to the amounts where a machine would be working in the tropics with regard to temperatures and I am able to leave 30 weight oil in the crankcases with no issues.


I am not wasting anything believe me, The salamander I have is 110,000 BTU,
and 17 years old and it sounds like 747 taking off but 15 minutes later the tractor is warm and I can plow or haul wood with my wheel horse with no issues, my firewood processor is warm to operating temperature and I can run it with no warm up issues.

The act of engaging an engine at start up is the greatest and hardest point of engine wear in its duty cycle as the engine has no oil circulating until the oil pump is cranked with the bull gear/worm gear with the crankshaft.

Many folks use a second oil pump to force feed the crankcase oil to the galleries to help in lubrication at start up and then it is shut off after start up.


Your better off using a salamander for 30 minutes to heat it before using it for the first time as you are prolonging the engine and transmissions life span with no issues other than burning 10 gallons of kerosene or propane for the winter.

Your new mule err, beast of burden, err toy, Farm vehicle for picking up mail etc ,

Is a huge heat sink and the minute you shut down the engine the heat developed by the combustion process and the pumping of hydraulic oil becomes a magnet for the cold and it radiates the heat untill all the heat is expelled and cold takes its place; which is why the diesel as breed bang so much at start up no matter whether its a Mercedes or a Duetz air cooled engine or a Kubota.


leonz