sparc
Veteran Member
- Joined
- Oct 2, 2011
- Messages
- 1,078
- Location
- NJ
- Tractor
- JD 4410, NH TC-25, Bobcat M610, JD X534, Dig-It Model 158, JD Ztrak 737. 6X4 Gator
I lived in a very small town - Glenallen - half way between Anchorage and Fairbanks. Winters would go on forever - days would warm up to -25F and nights could drop to -45F. This would go on for weeks and then a break - up to +20F. The very best situation is to have a heated garage or building where the vehicle can be parked when not in use. Otherwise, we found that the in-line tank heaters - circulate the engine coolant - worked the very best. When a vehicle had to be parked outside the tank heater would be plugged in and remain on all the time. That is, IF you wanted the vehicle to start at a moments notice. The tank heaters we used would bypass the radiator and only heat & circulate the coolant in the engine. This is because the thermostat is between the tank heater and the radiator and the tank heater never got the coolant so hot that the thermostat opened and allowed passage into the radiator. They were very efficient and would raise engine coolant temps to +70F to +90F dependent on outside temps.
there used to be a heater for over the road trucks that burned diesel and was run when stopped to heat the sleeper and cab and could also heated the motor coolant. Don't remember the name of them but a friend put one in his Hummer H1 when he was making a trek up to Alaska a few years back.