Use Of Block Heater and Cummins Engine Health

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Goose55

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Though SW Arizona has mild winters, with our thin atmosphere and almost always clear nights, it still can get quite chilly. This month (November) I have resumed using my block heater so that I can start the rig right up, without engaging the pre-ignition warming system. First thing I do when I awake, is go out in the driveway and plug it in. In just an hour it sufficiently heated. It gives a good, reassuring feeling knowing I am not drawing down the the batteries, and also not running the engine unnecessarily cold.
 

Wild one

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Though SW Arizona has mild winters, with our thin atmosphere and almost always clear nights, it still can get quite chilly. This month (November) I have resumed using my block heater so that I can start the rig right up, without engaging the pre-ignition warming system. First thing I do when I awake, is go out in the driveway and plug it in. In just an hour it sufficiently heated. It gives a good, reassuring feeling knowing I am not drawing down the the batteries, and also not running the engine unnecessarily cold.
I have my outdoor plugs on switches inside the house,plug it when i get home,then flip the switch in the house,beats having to go outside and plug it in the morning
 

JayLeonard

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When I lived in CT I had the block heater on my 91 set on a heavy duty timer. It would run for approx 1 hour before I left for work. It would get the engine warm enough so the grid heater wouldn't turn on
 

crash68

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Though SW Arizona has mild winters, with our thin atmosphere and almost always clear nights, it still can get quite chilly. This month (November) I have resumed using my block heater so that I can start the rig right up, without engaging the pre-ignition warming system. First thing I do when I awake, is go out in the driveway and plug it in. In just an hour it sufficiently heated. It gives a good, reassuring feeling knowing I am not drawing down the the batteries, and also not running the engine unnecessarily cold.
Unless the temperature is going below freezing, it's more of a feel good for yourself than doing anything for the engine. Cummins also uses a grid heater so it's going to drawn down on those batteries anyways, the charging system is designed to handle the load so there's no concerns. The grid heater operates even after start up. Only till it's practically below zero(0°F) is cause for concern that the engine is "running cold".

If you want to save yourself some grief of going outside in the cold(in Arizona...hahaha), buy a smart plug and then you can program the block heater to turn on a few hours before your going to leave or you can turn it on remotely.
 

odinjunior

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Although not as cold as some of you folks Az can get chilly. I have taken to plugging the truck in so it gets up to operating temp quicker so it can be used as a grocery getter.
 

06 Dodge

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Although not as cold as some of you folks Az can get chilly. I have taken to plugging the truck in so it gets up to operating temp quicker so it can be used as a grocery getter.

Many time's I use my 06 as a grocery getter when I lived in the Midwest without any problems, but then it was 22 miles one way to the store :)
 
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Goose55

Goose55

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Unless the temperature is going below freezing, it's more of a feel good for yourself than doing anything for the engine. Cummins also uses a grid heater so it's going to drawn down on those batteries anyways, the charging system is designed to handle the load so there's no concerns. The grid heater operates even after start up. Only till it's practically below zero(0°F) is cause for concern that the engine is "running cold".

If you want to save yourself some grief of going outside in the cold(in Arizona...hahaha), buy a smart plug and then you can program the block heater to turn on a few hours before your going to leave or you can turn it on remotely.
The smart plug would be nifty but plugging it in manually isn't a big deal for me.
 
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