Auto cooling solutions has a heater that wraps around the fuel filter. Their website says it only uses 75 watts. I was thinking about using one of the upfitter switches and only using it during the cold months. Do you guys think it would be worth buying? I think it was $58

 

I went and looked at their stuff. Their fuel heater is for a different type filter. Not shure it would be useable on a 6.0. Which filter would you use it on top or bottom?
Also 75w constant dc draw on your truck system would be a lot. Not shure how it would hold up.

 

I don't think it would be enough heat to make a difference. The 7.3s and the original 6.0 hfcm had bowl/filter heaters and they have been done away with. Realistically you are trying to heat a whole tank of fuel and the lines. Fuel is constantly circulating moving the heat like hot water heat in a house.

 

A 75w "draw" is approx 5A on the batteries.

That would be like leaving the parking lamps on all night or maybe leaving all the interior lights on.

That would be a pretty good drain on the batteries......

Nothing like leaving the headlights on I guess, but with a vehicle that is already extremely sensitive to FICM supply voltage (during cranking).....I would be somewhat reluctant to use ANYTHING that drained the batteries all night in subfreezing temps.....

 

I don't think he was going to leave it on during off use, but rather something to help prevent gelling. I find good clean filters, a drained water separator, and quality treated fuel you will not have any problems. I use power service as directed and use a 30/70 diesel blend from our local filling station. The blend is a lot better deal than just treated fuel. The problem with stations that treat fuel is I would like to know what it is treated with. Can power service and Howes or stanydine be mixed? Do they have different methods of preventing gelling?

 

If it fits the HFCM well, and it's well insulated, I would opt for it.

I had a 7.3L and ran homebrewed biodiesel. I made a very rudimentary line heater with wire wrapped around the line leaving the rear tank, headed to the 6 port fuel selector switch. I measured temperatures of fuel at both the input end and output end of the fuel heater, as well as the fuel filter.

My setup was variable current, but I typically ran a 75 to 90 watt power draw. I warmed the fuel up about 10F during highway cruising (more heat at idle becuase the fuel pump was direct drive from the engine).

My intention was never to get fuel warmed at the filter, but rather to warm it up enough to flow to the filter. Biodiesel gets thick much more quickly than petrodiesel. Since the filter on the 7.3L was up in the engine valley, engine heat kep the fuel warm enough for me. The challenge was just getting fuel to flow to the filter.

This setup let me run my truck using 100% biodiesel at outside temperatures as low as about 20-25F. Otherwise it would have been around 32-35F.

With the 6.0L, the fist filter is at the HFCM, which is no where near the engine, so it's gonna stay cold. I see the challenge here to be getting cold (on it's way to gelled) fuel past that filter. My experience is that if fuel gets past the filter it won't have any problem getting to the second, through it, and to the engine.

So again, if you know it fits the HFCM and it's well insulated, I'd get it.

Rory Johnson

 

No need once the engine is running. The fuel circulates.

If one wanted to fab up a 110 ac heater to coincide with the block heater that wouldn't be too bad. But only if it's like -25f outside.

Josh

 

On their web site I did see they had a 110v tank heater may be a better option.
Their filter gismo was for a spin on type filter. If you would wrap it around the HFCM it would be a pain to remove every time you wanted to change filters.
But that is just me and I have no idea how cold it gets there but I would imagine really cold.

 

I I was planning on using it on bottom filter. Also using one of the upfitter switches that way it won't stay on all the time and just turn it on during the cold months and of course not be on when the pickup is off. It does get cold here in nebraska. I treaT my fuel with howes but the other day it got down to 8 below and I was gelled up some it idled fine and ran ok up to 2000rpm then nothing after that. Saw this heater and thought maybe it would be worth adding since it didn't draw much power and maybe put enough heat in the fuel to help it flow better.

 

They did have quite a few different types of 110v heaters to