I only drive my truck(diesel 6.0) but once a week if that in the winter and I am wondering if I should just leave the truck plugged into the block heater ALL the time? or just at night? I just didnt know whether or not leaving it plugged in all the time is a bad thing? And any other things I could do to keep it from a deep freezing. I live in Salt Lake City Utah.

 

The block heater will have the coolant as warm as it will get in 3-4hrs.Alot of people I know here in alberta plug the heater into a timer so it isnt drawing power the whole night. Set the timer to turn on 3 or so hours before starting the truck.As for leaving it plugged in it wont hurt anything but you may find that critters will make a home on your 6.0.

 

cool thanks. so is it ok to leave my truck frozen until I am ready to start it? then warm it up with the block heater? or should I plug it in once a day?

 

No problem leaving the truck unplugged while it sits. When you do plan to drive it, plug it in about 4 hours before you start it up and you'll be ready to roll

 

If it has been freezing all night, I like to plug into my truck's heater for two hours prior to start up. This alows the oil to warm up enough, which enables the oil to more freely coat the various internal parts of the engine at a quicker interval. This also provides easier starting with the diesel engine.

 

Leaving the block heater plugged in all the time will not hurt anything but your wallet. I tested mine and it draws just under 1000 watts constantly. There is no thermostat so they never shut off.

 

I also plug my heater into a timer that comes on about 3 to 4 hours before I plan on starting it. I did purchase an oil pan heater and tied both cords into one plug that I connect via an extension cord to the timer in my garage. Seems to work pretty good and the truck fires right up even on the coldest nights.

Just my .02 cents, and I might be a bit **** about my stuff...

 

A timer is a great idea.

 

I tend to plug mine in right before i go to bed at night. Then in the morning it is ready to roll. Love the way the heater comes on right away cause i hate the cold weather. Very glad for my block heater...

 

Not sure if this follows the thread truly or deserves it's own, but here goes. I just bought a power cord for my block heater and read it out like the paper said to do, I am getting 15.6 OHMs but after 3-4 hours when I start my truck my temp needles barely move. Am I expecting to much from the block heater or is there something wrong?

 

I noticed the same results after mine was plugged in all night. I used to own a '95 F250 PSD and it was actually warm in the morning when I first started the engine. I wish I had that block heater in my 2004.

 

I have an 03 6.0 PSD, if I dont plug mine in it barely wants to run when I start it in the morning, (20deg F. in the am) when it does get going it leaks coolant at the right rear of the engine. If however I do plug it in it starts right off and doesnt leak a drop of coolant. I cant make this make sense in my mind... Any ideas?

 

If it doesn't want to run at +20'F something is wrong with it. I plug in @ -10'F and my truck runs great. It will start at -30F but it will run rough for a few minutes.

 

Rough running is more than likely injector stiction issues. If you have not had the latest flash performed on your truck you may want to take it in and have it done. What weight engine oil are you running?

The coolant leak is more than likely the rubber hose on the EGR cooler, it shrinks and leaks when cold, then swells and seals when warm. There is an updated hose for this, have it changed and your leak should stop.

 

Thanks for the input, I will be taking it in in the next few days for the hose and the flash, (the most recent flash was done in 04 on this truck) Also, I am running 30wt rotela I believe.