Starting Fluid?
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Senior User
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From: Otego NY
Starting Fluid?
I'm very new to diesels, I've been around gas engines all my life, but i just bought a 1989 Ford F-350 w/ what I was told was the 7.3. the previous owner always started this truck using starting fluid. I've been told its not a good idea, but what is actually happening when I use it, and how can I make it start without it agin?
Beersy50
Beersy50
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From: Virginia
The diesel engines do not use spark to light the fuel. It squeezes the air at the top of the piston, so the air gets very hot, and at the right moment, it injects the fuel into the hot air and the fuel burns. But the air has to be hot enough to make the fuel burn.
On a cold engine, the air is not hot enough. Your engine from the factory had glowplugs to heat the chamber up hot enough so the fuel will burn.
Take the wires off the glowplugs and using a testlight, put the clip on the + battery post, and touch the probe to each glowplug. If the testlight lights, the glow plug is good.
On a cold engine, the air is not hot enough. Your engine from the factory had glowplugs to heat the chamber up hot enough so the fuel will burn.
Take the wires off the glowplugs and using a testlight, put the clip on the + battery post, and touch the probe to each glowplug. If the testlight lights, the glow plug is good.
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Joined: Apr 2007
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From: Conway, AR
Make darn sure the glow plugs are disconnected if starting with ether. and use the stuff as little as possible until you can get the glow plug system functioning again.
Ether explodes rather unpredictably , especially if any of the glow plugs are functioning at all, and can cause some really bad things to happen in a worst case scenerio ( heads blown off, head gaskets blown, bent rods, cracked pistons, etc )
Yes, there are a lot of diesels designed with ether injection systems onboard that work fine with it, but these things aren't among them.
------------Robert
Ether explodes rather unpredictably , especially if any of the glow plugs are functioning at all, and can cause some really bad things to happen in a worst case scenerio ( heads blown off, head gaskets blown, bent rods, cracked pistons, etc )
Yes, there are a lot of diesels designed with ether injection systems onboard that work fine with it, but these things aren't among them.
------------Robert
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a resistance test on all of the glow plugs first they should be around 1 ohm cold and around 3 on a hot engine , if they are good and the controller is cycling them i would perform a compression test , could be the engine is tired and starting fluid is the only way it will start ,if it has good compression i would look at the fuel system next
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Senior User
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From: Otego NY
thanks for your info, new glow plugs are first on the repair list. someone told me once that WD-40 will work as good as starting fluid but also lube the cylinder walls...any thoughts?
