It's been kind of cold the last few days, and I have noticed that the truck doesn't seem to start up as quickly. It has a block heater, I found the plug a few weeks ago just so when it did get cold I would know where its at. I plugged the truck in last night, and this morning when I got in it...it did the same thing. Does the block heater make some kind of noise when it is working? If it isn't working how can I troubleshoot this problem?

 

Dont know but will watch and see what the guru's say on the subject.

 

the block heater don't make any noise but you should notice it warms up a lot quicker
you should notice a small arc when you plug it in

 

Mine warms up in about half the distance when I plug it in at night. Other than that I can't tell if it works or not.

You should be able to use an Ohm meter and check it. I don't know what the reading should be, but I would say that if there is any continuity(??) it is ok. Someone else will chime in with a better answer I'm sure,

BTW, I had to replace my cord last year. It was broke in a couple of places.

 

No noise... just measured the resistance.. around 40 ohms.. if working properly

 

I've never tried this but if it is working the heater should be warm. The heater is located on the driver side of the engine above the oil filter. Just follow the cord. Also, once you get it started turn heat up in the cab, it should blow slightly warmer than ambient air temperature.

 

If you're getting 40 Ohm then I would say its working. Its not an open circuit.

 

It should be about 14 ohms. That would draw a kilowatt at 120 volts. And it will make a faint sizzling sound if it has been on for a while.

Problem is, most cheap and midrange DMM's don't do a great job of measuring low-ohm values.

But if you are not sure, look at how fast your electric meter is spinning, and then plug the block heater in and have another look. There will be a notable difference.

 

One other thing that I have been meaning to add for a while now... If you are going to use your block heater, but not use a timer, consider going to the hardware store and getting a metal junction box, a 15-amp duplex outlet, a heavy-duty line cord, and a good 20 amp switch.

Rig up the box with the switch and outlet in it, and use that to turn your block heater on and off. The switch will handle the arcing better than your extension cord will, so turn off the switch before you unplug the cord from the truck, and likewise turn it on after you connect the cord to the truck.

Repeated arcing will deteriorate the plug on the end of the cord, and the male plug on the truck itself. This will result in carbon buildup and higher resistance at the end of your extension cord, and it could start to heat up. Most of us have probably seen a worn-out beat up plug on a space heater that has been plugged and unplugged from the wall with the heater on. And we've probably seen such plugs that get so bad they start to melt.

When you are running 8 amps through a plug, you want to keep it in good shape, especially if it is further degraded by exposure to the elements. I wouldn't want to hear about someone's truck being damaged or destroyed because of a fire started by a poor block heater connection.

 

you can put your ear under the drivers side fender well and listen and you should hear a hissing

 

Another thing to add to what i do, when i know its going to be cold when i come home i plug it in right away. I do this because instead of heating a cold block and using more electricity the block is already warm and uses less electricity on initial charge. Just my .2 cents.

 

Thanks for the help guys...It seems to be working just fine... I can hear the hissing, but I havn't ohmed it out yet.

 

This is strange, i never heard the hissing? Do you got to climb under there to hear it???

 

Nope, just listen by the driver side fender well.
But if you do crawl under and you touch the block by the heater it will be warm.
Of course you have to give it some time to warm up.

 

it wont be loud but it almost sounds like a little jet just a constanst little hiss