LS6427

iTrader: (2)

A curiousity question:
Seeing all these cold weather thread issues..............I remember I had a friend in college that was from Minneapolis......very very cold there. I'm curious why more people don't do this.......................

He had a small Mercedes like a 280 or 300, or something like that. He had to keep it outside, no garage.

He ran an extension cord out to the car and he had this special type of outdoor heat bulb thats mounted between the radiator and the block. Its in front of the block down about half way. He runs the cord out there and plugs it in, the plug is on his car all the time, zip-tied to it and wired to the bulb. He bends down near the front bumper, plugs it in and walks away. I guess its wired to the car permanently so he could use it anywhere.

This bulb stays on all night during REAL COLD nights.........it keeps everything warm all night long. Nothing can freeze.

I asked my stepfather today about it because he was in the Air Force for a long time in cold *** places like Mountain Home and Alaska....he said that a lot of people did that and still do all over the place.

Anyone else do this?

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RARON455

iTrader: (35)

Alot of diesel engines have oil and block heaters in them to prevent cold start problems. I have not heard of a bulb to hang in to stop freezing. I know some antifreezes when properly mixed have a freezing point of -50 to -65 degrees. If you live somewhere that gets that cold regularly, Then You definately need some kind of heater in your ride, but if you regularly have that temp, YOUR RIDE probably has tracks on it not wheels...

camaro981289

iTrader: (25)

My Z28 has a cord in the engine bay that you plug into an electrical outlet like on a wall...i been told its a block heater, It was like that when i bought it its a B4C used to be a colorado highway patrol car so im wondering if thats what it is.

stimpy

iTrader: (1)

yes it works as when I was in college I used to do that to my sunbird as it was a finiky thing in cold weather , we just used a regular 75 wat lightbulb and put it near the block or the radiator , mine wasn't permanate it was a clip on type , the only draw back was you had to look carefull under the hood in the moning because I often had wild cats curl up under the hood trying to stay warm .. and believe me one of them in a belt makes a mess , now my pick up truck was from montana had a factory block heater , it was standard equipment for it and the towns have plugs next to the meters on the street to plug in .

camaro981289

iTrader: (25)

hmmm i think im gonna plug my car in see what happens...maybe if i do that my stupid hood struts wont explode anymore

Jay-P

iTrader: (16)

Most if not all vehicles in the colder climates usually have a block heater. That bulb is a unique idea, but i dont know how well it would do heating the entire block at -30 degrees.

tim99ws6

iTrader: (31)

That's a pretty standard deal on people with drag cars. A simple drop light laying under the car will keep it warm enough not to pop a freeze plug.

jam01

a block heater was and still is an option from gm and im sure other makes.

LS6427

iTrader: (2)

I know about block heaters......the heat bulb does alot more than that. It keeps the belts, hoses, wires, radiator, pulleys, power steering rack, fluids, etc...etc...etc.... WARM.

This is where people keep posting about troubles with....because of this damn cold weather. I haven't seen anyone post about problems with their blocks....lol......And this heat bulb is badass, it will warm the entire engine bay and all of its components.
I suppose it will have trouble keeping EVERYTHING warm if the winds are very high. My stepfather said he always had a truck in his Air Force days, which is high off the ground.....it worked always, even in Alaska where -30 is routine.......he said the block heaters did just that....only warmed the block........proper anti-freeze is all you need for that.

Its the other components that fail or struggle in VERY cold weather that the heat bulb is designed for.

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BBYZED

My dad used to just use a trouble light on really cold nights here. A 100W bulb in a trouble light gets surprisingly hot.

$750 L98

iTrader: (7)

We had a little mercedes diesel we did that with. It was a pre block warmer year, so we hung a work light in the engine bay every night, worked like a charm.

camaro981289

iTrader: (25)

The bulb thing sounds like agood idea...but knowing with my luck i would wake up and find my car burnt to the ground..i could see it catching on fire in the middle of the night when im asleep....

LS6427

iTrader: (2)

Hahahahaha.....no way. Just gotta mount it or hang it in the right place. Worst thing is you could melt a belt........don;t see how anything could catch on fire. Unless you laid it on top of the fuel lines.... lol


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eseibel67

iTrader: (10)

Modern FI engines will start in -20*F weather, no problem. If they don't, something is wrong.

The biggest advantage of a block heater is that it will help reduce engine wear by getting the engine up to temp quicker. Side benefit is the heat will come quicker.

And the light bulb trick will work, but it's rather inefficient since most of the heat is lost into the air.

stimpy

iTrader: (1)

but if you have hood insulation it helps keep that warm air under it , I though t my grandfather was kidding but , he did it backin the 1930's with his model a on the farm , And I was suprised myself what a few degrees of heat will do . but now that I am older I now where to get magnetic heaters and use glue on pad heaters for my toys and the diesels well they have factory block heaters .

LS6427

iTrader: (2)

Listen people.......some of you..........

The whole idea of the heat bulb is not just to keep the block from freezing, which will freeze the coolant and make the oil thick as all hell, and possibly crack certain things from expansion. It keeps everything under the hood "pliable"....that means it keeps it from going through the huge range of temperature change...or in a range where its not briddle and can move or bend or expand some.....when it cannot live in its optimal temp range this is what kills parts....all kinds of parts. Cold to Hot to Cold is a KILLER on everything from rubber hoses to seals to metal hinges to pins, etc, etc,......

If you can lessen the range of temperature change you lenghthen the life of everything....and you won't have cheesy failures of things like hood shocks.

I fly to Russia often, as well as other ridiculously cold *** places on the planet, when we put the plane away in the winter time if hangar space is not available...instead of leaving it out in -15*F weather + wind for 2-3 nights....we use giant heaters that blow hot air throughout the aircraft and keep the interior warm as well as the instruments and electrical bays. If we don't, the plane can take hours to actually thaw out before we can use it and alot of its movable parts. Interior drawers, cabinets and other items get stuck and won't move, things will get briddle and break. **The plane won't break, but you know what I mean. Planes also have a limiting cold and hot temp or you cannot attempt to fly it.**

The heat bulb keeps everything from wearing prematurely. Just like keeping it in a garage, it always starts right up with no issues now doesn't it..............

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Jay-P

iTrader: (16)

This is a pretty neat idea. I wonder what it would cost in electricity to use something like this through out my winters.

slt200mph

iTrader: (42)

I have been doing the same thing for my two dogs in the winter for years. I have a 100 watt bulb in their house and it keeps it nice and warm for them. We used to do the same thing to my dads Austin Healy back in the 60s. Put it in the barn and put a 100 watt bulb under the hood and it would fire right up. Those cars had Lucas non-electrics in them and were real finikey about starting when it was cold and damp.

LS6427

iTrader: (2)

lol....so does my cousin up in Ocala. He uses one of those bathroom heat lamps. He has it mounted on top of their dog house inside. Then he put some chicken wire over it about 6 inches from the light so the dogs couldn't come into contact with the bulb itself somehow. Two big *** Rotty's share this one dog house. It keeps the whole thing warm even if its 20*F outside. Has a flap door so the heat stays in and the cold stays out. They love it. In the winter if you can't find the dogs, their in the dog house.....lol

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LS6427

iTrader: (2)

A 100 watt bulb would probably do a pretty good job if somehow you had the front end enclosed, maybe with plastic gardening siding from the front of the doors all the way around. You could cut it to fit perfectly, it would take a minute to put it around the car, then you lay the bulb right under the crank pulley.

The siding will keep the wind out. But I would still use a powerful heat bulb.

100 watt bulb would cost you next to nothing all winter. Heat bulb a little more. But well worth it.

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