Block Heater! Sign Me Up!

[aalb1]

So today's high is going to be 26*F. When I left my house it was 14*F. Now to some this may not be cold. To some this may even be a heatwave.

Now I'm not complaining about the cold b/c I'm cold myself. Piling up the layers and its not that bad. Rather I'm complaining about the cold b/c my car didn't even get to full operating temps when hypermiling to work today. And I have seen my gas guage drop dramatically during this cold front.

The biggest issue with this is the location of my apartment to where I park my car. But I think I can make it work.

So this is the one I will be buying for my Honda! With Amazon's SuperSaver Shipping the price you see will be the price it will be to get to my door. $26.54!!!!

http://www.amazon.com/Kats-11419-Wat.../dp/B000I8TPGO



It will be about 2-3 weeks before I can install it but I'll keep everyone updated with how this goes.

[GasSavers_BEEF]

don't you have to run a block heater for 1-2 hours for it to work? I admitadly don't know much about block heaters. I was thinking of a block heater but I am usually leaving my house within 40 minutes of my alarm clock going off in the morning which doesn't leave much room for plugging it in and doing much.

maybe I am wrong on that one. how long should you leave it plugged up and how much heat are you really going to get from it? I am curious for myself too.

[aalb1]

Someone did a study and it showed that @ 90 minutes you seem to get the best bang for your buck...

And to answer your question on if I'm going to wake up early to plug it in... HELLZZZ NO!

Put it on a timer.

[GasSavers_BEEF]

that makes much more sense. (the timer thing I mean)

[dkjones96]

Where do you install that thing?

Why not get a small propane portable stove and light it under the engine? Just an idea...

[Lug_Nut]

Be sure the timer can handle the load. Check the timer for max watts or max amperes and compare that to the heater consumption.
I've had some overheat to the point of plastic distortion when the timer was used with high load devices. I have a dehumidifier in my cellar that I'd run at night when the rate dropped from $0.08 to $0.02 per kWh. I had to go up to a higher capacity timer when the first one began melting. The melting was at the timer outlet, where the dehumidifier plugged in, not at the actual switched contacts, but still... The timer said 10 amp. At 120V that's 1200 watts and should have been plenty, but wasn't. Now I have a 15 amp timer for 1800 watts.
My car heater is 1 kW. I don't trust the timer to handle this much. I plug the extension cord into the car when I get home (if the forecast is for 15F or lower) and plug into the wall outlet when I wake up. An hour pre-heat has been enough so far.

[theholycow]

I did a little googling/reading, and there could be an issue; some block heaters have a thermostat and won't operate if the temperature isn't low enough. That should be easy enough to defeat. I want a block heater for any time it's colder than 40 degrees F...

[aalb1]

^^^Lug Nut^^^ Thanks for looking out... I have two timers from when I used to put Christmas lights up outside of my old apartment. I know for a fact that they won't handle the output.... plus they are two prong instead of three prong.

Since I also have to run an extension cord I need to do some figuring out of how to route it as well as making sure it's specs are up to par. I assume that the installation instructions will include the required specs.

[dkjones96]

1kw is only 1000 watts, why don't you trust an 1800 watt timer to handle that?

[aalb1]

Originally Posted by theholycow

I did a little googling/reading, and there could be an issue; some block heaters have a thermostat and won't operate if the temperature isn't low enough. That should be easy enough to defeat. I want a block heater for any time it's colder than 40 degrees F...

Good thing I didn't order it yet. Have you figured out which ones these are?