Posted 2006-12-03 9:45 AM (#52137) Subject: fuel additives for cold weather
Member
Posts: 14
Location: Central Iowa
What does everyone use for fuel additives to prevent gelling up in cold weather? If any. And how cold before you use it.? I don't want to get "stuck" some where. I'm using a blended fuel now, or so they say. I'm driving an 06 Duramax in Iowa.
Posted 2006-12-03 11:46 AM (#52141 - in reply to #52137) Subject: RE: fuel additives for cold weather
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 304
I always use Power Service (Diesel Kleen) in WHITE Bottle for winter & GREY Bottle for summer. Get it at Walmart or local Farm & Home or most part stores or truck stops.
Posted 2006-12-03 9:31 PM (#52152 - in reply to #52141) Subject: RE: fuel additives for cold weather
Expert
Posts: 2453 Location: Northern Utah
Just how much do you leave your truck outside? And how cold does it get in Iowa?
I park my Ford Powerstroke in the Garage at night. Temps stay in the 40s. During the day I go about business and it runs fine. Most of our day time temps are in the 20-30s. I get nervous and add Power Service or other anti gel when I see temps staying in the single digits during the day time.
One of the places where I'm working was frequetly sub zero ( -11 to -13) last January and my truck worked just fine with the PowerService. My skid loader gelled up and I had to cover it with a Concrete Blanket and run a propane heater to thaw it out. The difference was my truck stayed in the garage at night and my skid loader did not.
Posted 2006-12-04 7:52 PM (#52189 - in reply to #52152) Subject: RE: fuel additives for cold weather
Member
Posts: 14
Location: Central Iowa
My truck stays in the garage at night, but sits outside all day while I'm at work. Day Temps here are usually in the 20's to 30's also. We always have that exceptional cold spell. Yesterday it was cold wind chill -4 or something like that. I bought some supplement from NAPA that is already mixed for 20 gallons of fuel. I don't plan on using it on every fill, unless the temps stay this way. I plow snow for the county, and when the phone rings at 4:00 a.m I have to go.
Posted 2006-12-05 5:14 AM (#52200 - in reply to #52137) Subject: RE: fuel additives for cold weather
Elite Veteran
Posts: 662 Location: Vanzant, Missouri
Howdy
I was reading this post and I have my first diesel. My truck stays outside. I have the block heater. When should that be plugged in and should I use the anti gel stuff also? Any other little secrets of owning a diesel is appreciated.
Posted 2006-12-05 7:50 AM (#52204 - in reply to #52137) Subject: RE: fuel additives for cold weather
Veteran
Posts: 246 Location: Northern IN.
The answer to that question, really dpends on your rig and how good the glowplug system is. Not to sound like a wise a$$ or nothing, but do whatever you need to do to be able to start YOUR rig. If all the glow plugs are working good they should be able to start your truck when it's 8 or 10 degrees out. Colder than that and you will probabaly need the heater. Keep in mind that the block heater is usually a 1500 watt heater, soooo expect to see the electric bill jump a bit next month! Personally I let my glow plugs do the work till it gets to 12-15 degrees, then I'll plug 'er in, -unless- I know that I won't have much time to let the rig warm up the next time I need to pull a trlr. right off the bat. As for additives, yes you will still need to use them even if you are using the block heater, they are not just to help your rig start, but help condition the fuel to keep it running! Most of your larger fuel co. are treating Diesel with winter blends now days so it's not as big of an issue as it used to be yrs. ago, but, gelling isn't the only thing that additives help with... they also help condition seals, and move WATER through the system without causing as much damage as could otherwise occur. Did you know that 2 tbl. spoons of water can destroy a diesel engine! It's a great weakness to them and just think of all the condensation that can build up in a fuel tank that is left at 1/4 tank for a long time. Any how, keep them water seperators drained good and some additives ran through every so often and try to save on the electric bill as much as ya can with the use of your glowplugs(you've already paid for them!) Keep on truckin! Talk to y'all later...
Posted 2006-12-18 7:29 AM (#52594 - in reply to #52137) Subject: RE: fuel additives for cold weather
Veteran
Posts: 246 Location: Northern IN.
Yup, I HATE that the PSD's are now under the valve covers, what a PITA!! The IDI's were better in that regard. Any how still a "shit-oh-dear" when whatever starting aid system ya have doesn't work like it's supposed to. Just a couple of weeks ago I was under the v. covers of mine replacing all that stuff, then a week later the controll relay started acting up, grrrrrrrr! She's workin' great now though. Talk to y'all later...
Posted 2006-12-18 8:42 AM (#52596 - in reply to #52137) Subject: RE: fuel additives for cold weather
Expert
Posts: 2689
This is largely a "first year of diesel ownership" thing.
Many/most will plug in the block heater and add anti-gelling stuff for the first winter, maybe half will do it the second year, after that it depends how "retentive" one is (-:
IF you're getting your fuel locally - don't bother, it has been "fixed in the mix" - otherwise known as an appropriate regional/seasonal blend.
IF your batteries are NOT in good shape, replace them. Block heaters only work as a temporary excuse for weak batteries and diesels DO need a decent turn-over speed to start.
Same with glow plug and air pre-heat systems, just fix 'em.
My conclusion is that the additives are just money out the exhaust pipe, a bit like the STP additives scam, the magic mileage stuff, the 100 MPG carb, etc.
IF you take a trip south and head back into the frozen north you COULD get a gelling issue, but the way to overcome that is to top up your tanks locally before shutting it off for the night. Fuel in the tank is HOT after only a few minutes, the excess fuel returned to the tank is VERY HOT, it is just about impossible to gell up a truck that is already running.
You can't make Florida to Minnesota on a single fill-up, so you'd be blending up on the trip anyway.
fuel additives for cold weather
