Engine block heater

Well, I didn't expect that.

Every block heater I've ever seen has fit inside a frost plug, so it heats the coolant in addition to the block. I've never seen a "block" heater that clamps to the side of the block. I suppose it's better than nothing.

I still think the best block heater is a thermo circulation coolant heater. It plumbs into the heater hose and as the coolant heats inside the little chamber, it expands then is forced past a spring-loaded valve. Cold coolant is drawn in and the cycle begins anew.

 

BTW if you want to learn more about coolant circulation heaters for LD and HD applications, you will find pdf datasheets at:

http://www.zerostart.com/pub_DataSheets.asp

 

03 or < or 04-5? You could get an electric blanket and open the hood and drape it over the engine and do better, and for a lot less I would guess. Is that really it?

 

Electric blankets don't put out a whole lot of heat, they don't need to for their intended purpose.
Not to mention the inconvenience of having to remove it and re-install it every day. With a block heater you usually have a plug sticking out of the grill. All you need do is connect it to an extension cord. Nothing else to remove.

 

Dan:

Oh boy, have you ever seen what happens when you *forget* to unplug the extension cord and attempt to drive off??

A million years ago when I was a teenaged boy, I saw a frail little granny-looking woman with a Dodge Dart driving down Portage Avenue here with the extension cord still hooked up.

The cord was whipping around behind her like an angry snake. Despite passing motorists using frantic hand gestures and honking horns to get her attention, she seemed oblivious to it

 

But imagine if you forget to remove the electric blanket! Especially if it is draped over the engine.

 

Dan:

The scary thing is, that happens around here too. You even see folks who put an indoor-rated baseboard electric heater under their oil pan to help with cold starting. I guess we as a society really are getting dumbed down.

I'm not sure a regular electric blanket would do any good though. You can purchase industrial blankets for specific applications, such as barrel heaters for 55 gal drums. Some process fluids and oils are like taffy at room temp, so you really have to heat them up to get them out of the drum.

OTOH A blanket heater for the battery is a great idea. Even a new battery, fully charged, can freeze at -40 or colder.

 

how much heat transfer do you get?
over night plugged in full time 53-57C approx 130F,
2 1/2 hours on a timer 35-41C approx. 100F it totally depends on OAT, the numbers stated are approx. 0C OAT 2 1/2 hours at 400 watts
cost me 6.1 cents a day to have heat at start up worth every penny.

 

I'm surprised to hear that someone would want to install a block heater.

Has anyone EVER had a "cold starting" problem with a Prius?

 

"has anyone ever had a cold starting problem with a Prius?" yes me, I don't start well cold and the sooner that the heater blows warm air the better I like the Prius. I ues it for the better gas mileage factor about 3MPG better day in and day out. 4 warm starts out of 8 per week give me 3 mpg better milage. ymmv. That costs me 6.1 cents a day to use, and gas is 93.2 cents a liter. My electricity bill goes up 97.6 cents a month. On average I doubt that I'd notice the increase in the Hydro Bill. Oh Hydro, our electricity is generated by HydroElectric dams.

 

Gary:

I think you're missing the point. Many cars will now reliably start even at -40, thanks to HV ignition and fuel injection. Many drivers figure since the car seems to start fine, they can forget about plugging in.

In many cases, especially below -20 C, you get cabin heat much faster and minimize the MPG drop in cold weather. At the very least, if you break even (Cost of power to plug in vs fuel savings) at least you're getting heat much faster while minimizing cold start wear.

I even see it around here. Manitoba has about the cheapest power in North America, with a service charge of around $7 a month and rates of around 5.4 cents a KW. So it is *very* inexpensive to run a block heater here, yet folks still try to get away with not plugging in.

I'm like Frank, my cranky 'ole bones don't like the cold either.

 

The temps are taken with a MiniScanner that reads the temp of the engine via the temp sensor in the block. The temp for the 53-57 readings were taken at about 0 -3C before I put in the timer. Our winter over night temps usually hover around freezing or slightly above. I've been using it (timed heater) since November and that has supplied the data for the MPG's. The one thing that I wanted to try was a sheet of cardboard in front of the rad to see if the ICE over heats but we didn't get cold enough to try it this winter. The MiniScanner gives a constant temp readout so it's easy to watch and see if it would over heat. Unfortunately the scanner isn't available for the 2k4-5 Prius.

 

I live in a fairly moderate climate, but if I lived further north, I would seriously consider purchasing a oil pan heater instead of the Toyota block heater. This is a less expensive and IMO more effective solution. There are many vendors selling this type of product, but I have included a link for your convenience: http://www.etipinc.com/universal.asp?cat=maint

 

There is continuing debate up here about the oil pan vs coolant heater. IMHO both are right.

Oil pan heater: proven to dramatically reduce start-up wear, especially in temps -40. Allows you to run a cheaper mineral oil instead of a synthetic. For HD trucking applications, allows the operator to use a 15W-40 year round. Provides little if any benefit to faster warmup, faster heater performance, or initial starting ease.

Coolant heater: especially a circulating coolant heater will provide much quicker heat from the heater. The spark plugs, fuel injectors, cylinder heads are at least partially warmed, so cold starts especially at -40 are much easier. Provides only partial if any benefit to warming the oil for reduced cold start wear.

Since most mineral 5W-30 oils only have to be "good" at -30 C / -22 F, it's important to use either a synthetic oil below that temperature or to use an oil pan heater.

Immersion oil pan heaters don't have to be huge. Most HD truck pan heaters are 150 watts or less, and that will easily heat +30 litres of oil. Stick-on external heaters are much less efficient.

 

it would be interesting to see what the 125HWD unit would do on a Prius. 3" diamater by 1/2" thick shouldn't stick down too much lower than the oil pan on a Prius already is. Draws 92 watts so it and a block heater would be best of both worlds. Perfect for you jayman!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Frank Hudon\";p=\"67146)</div>

I've stuck an indoor-outdoor carpet mat from Home Depot in my 2005. Had to cut out
two pieces and stick one in each side. One side is harder, so that piece is smaller.
Overall I blocked 3/4 of the radiator.

Unfortunately it imeediately warmed up here so don't know if it helps much but I drove it
for an hour or so at various speeds and stopped to check and the radiator still felt
cold. Engine was warm but not too hot to hold my hand on. Air temp was maybe 20 F.
My Radio Shack infrared thermonmeter also showed everything pretty amazingly cold.

If it gets over 50 I will start watching it closely or remove it for the summer. Be nice when
we can read the temps with a scanner. Then I might dare block a bit more.