Poll: How long will you let your diesel idle? - Page 4 - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

#46 10-27-2006, 11:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jwhughes3

I don't believe carbon monoxide is a byproduct of diesel combustion, is it?

It's not, but carbon dioxide is.

babymog · #47 10-27-2006, 11:24 PM

Extended idling (more than a few minutes) is not recommended by Caterpillar, Cummins, or DD. Mercedes probably doesn't either.

The engines don't burn enough fuel at idle to completely burn the fuel, causing carbon. Carbon in the ring grooves cause excess wear of the rings and cylinder walls, this is what my Caterpillar manual cites as the reason for not idling an engine.

I shut mine down when not driving, double-plug it if necessary on a cold day (Michigan). Plugged in at night, fortunate to have that option I guess. If you have no 120v to plug into and it's going to get arctic at night, I guess that leaving it running is your best bet to keep the fuel warm and engine warm but it seems that a periodic high-idle timer would be a good idea (like some heavy-trucks run) or a diesel-fired heater like Espar, Pro-Heat, Webasto et al.

#48 10-28-2006, 12:32 AM

I heard idling wears out your injectors. and your wallet. I'd use a block heater. I'm planning to connect the block heater to a 2nd battery and a timer. with a voltage correction unit obviously. so I can use it anywhere

probear · #49 10-28-2006, 01:36 AM

As I learned from my PSD, it is not advisable to let any diesel idle at normal idle speed for any length of time. Diesels at idle do not produce much heat and other than keeping the engine running, barely have enough extra heat to keep the car/truck warm. As with running WVO, the lack of heat leads to coking the injectors, among other things. With the Ford PSD, this is somewhat taken care of when using an Idle Controller which bumps the idle speed up to at least 1200 RPM.
The best solution, as mentioned before, would be to add an aux battery, run straight synthetic oil and use a plug in block heater. It will be cheaper in the long run also.

BenzDieselTuner · #50 10-28-2006, 01:37 AM

24/7........AMSOIL IS BEST ! :fork_off:

DieselCJ · #51 10-28-2006, 02:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by henrydupont

I heard idling wears out your injectors. and your wallet. I'd use a block heater. I'm planning to connect the block heater to a 2nd battery and a timer. with a voltage correction unit obviously. so I can use it anywhere

Power inverters draw quite a bit from batteries. To figure out DC draw take AC watts divided by 12 x 1.1

Lets say you have a 1,000 watt block heater:
1,000/12X1.1 = 91.6 Amps.

When it comes to battery capacity: If a battery has a rating of 40 amp hours, this implies that it will supply a current of 2 amperes for 20-hours, or 40 amps for one hour.

Reserve capacity (measured in minutes) is how long the battery will maintain a voltage of 10.5 or greater under a 25 amp load.

A group 49 battery has a reserve capacity of about 180 minutes (at 80*F) (75AH). Ideally, that battery should be able to power a 1,000 watt block heater for about 43 minutes.

Any battery cycled in an application like this should be a 'deep cycle' or AGM (Ex. Odyssey).

#52 10-28-2006, 04:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DieselCJ

Power inverters draw quite a bit from batteries. To figure out DC draw take AC watts divided by 12 x 1.1

Lets say you have a 1,000 watt block heater:
1,000/12X1.1 = 91.6 Amps.

When it comes to battery capacity: If a battery has a rating of 40 amp hours, this implies that it will supply a current of 2 amperes for 20-hours, or 40 amps for one hour.

Reserve capacity (measured in minutes) is how long the battery will maintain a voltage of 10.5 or greater under a 25 amp load.

A group 49 battery has a reserve capacity of about 180 minutes (at 80*F) (75AH). Ideally, that battery should be able to power a 1,000 watt block heater for about 43 minutes.

Any battery cycled in an application like this should be a 'deep cycle' or AGM (Ex. Odyssey).

eh... so is it possible? seems a neat idea to me. an hour of blockheating should be enough i figured. how big a battery would one need for that? would a NiCd or Lithium battery be better for this goal? or is there a 12 volts block heater on the market maybe?

#53 10-28-2006, 04:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by henrydupont

would a NiCd or Lithium battery be better for this goal?

When you get into $$$ like that, you might just be better off finding a diesel fired coolant heater.
http://www.espar.com/htm/Specs/water/wterheat.htm

#54 10-28-2006, 04:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ForcedInduction

When you get into $$$ like that, you might just be better off finding a diesel fired coolant heater.
http://www.espar.com/htm/Specs/water/wterheat.htm

well... I thought a second regular battery would do the trick? like a normal lead battery, a big one perhaps, in the trunk? not really wanting to go into spending my beer-money

Shorebilly · #55 10-28-2006, 05:27 AM

G'mornin' Folks,

Block heaters running off batteries in the trunk?? What's next??? Solar panels on the roof and trunk lid to charge the batteries??

Personally, I am one of those that believes in maintenance...maintain those glow plugs....there is an upgrade glow plug controller, Bosch, supposedly it allows for the glow plug to remain energized/hot during starting and for a few seconds after.....I would try this before I spent the money on batteries and inverters (not to mention solar panels).....also before I leave my Benz run all night, or all winter....

http://www.**************.com/ item # DSL-COMGR5

.....looks like that source is "out of stock"......however there should be others...

I will be replacing all of my glow plugs in a week or so...as soon as they and my reamer arrive....part of my "get ready for winter" program....

Very interesting thread tho.....

SB

DieselCJ · #56 10-28-2006, 10:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by henrydupont

well... I thought a second regular battery would do the trick? like a normal lead battery, a big one perhaps, in the trunk? not really wanting to go into spending my beer-money

A normal "starting" led acid is only good for a few (15) discharge/charge cycles before severely losing charging ability and output. You will need a "deep cycle", which is designed for discharge/recharge.
http://www.batterymart.com/battery.mv?p=SLA-LS-3100

This is the one I have in my diesel Jeep (I believe it is the same size as the Benz diesel batts too), which I have (accidentally) completely discharged a number of times (easily charged with 15 amp charger), I suggest staying away from Optima batteries (they can be tricky to charge correctly).
http://www.batterymart.com/battery.mv?p=ODY-PC1700MJT

Then you need some way to recharge the battery; 110V home charger, or cooking your alternator?

I am curious as to how warm the block will really get using a standard block heater (will the heat be distributed?)? Perhaps one of those coolant-circulating ones that install inline with the radiator hose would work better since warming time will be limited.

I agree with SB, get your glow system in top-notch shape first.

whunter · #57 10-28-2006, 11:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shorebilly

G'mornin' Folks,

Block heaters running off batteries in the trunk?? What's next??? Solar panels on the roof and trunk lid to charge the batteries??

Personally, I am one of those that believes in maintenance...maintain those glow plugs....there is an upgrade glow plug controller, Bosch, supposedly it allows for the glow plug to remain energized/hot during starting and for a few seconds after.....I would try this before I spent the money on batteries and inverters (not to mention solar panels).....also before I leave my Benz run all night, or all winter....

http://www.**************.com/ item # DSL-COMGR5

.....looks like that source is "out of stock"......however there should be others...

I will be replacing all of my glow plugs in a week or so...as soon as they and my reamer arrive....part of my "get ready for winter" program....

Very interesting thread tho.....

SB

Correct diagnosis and repair will save more money than upgrades.

Here is all the data that should be needed.
Engine Electrical:
Engine Electrical:

I replace all of my glow plugs at the first sign of failure.

pjc · #58 10-28-2006, 02:28 PM

A response to earlier posts on this page:

Carbon monoxide VERY DEFINITELY IS a product of diesel combustion. Indeed, it is a product of any process that oxidizes (burns) hydrocarbon fuels without 100.00000000000% efficiency. (Perfect efficiency, assuming an adequate supply of oxygen, would result in the oxidation of all carbon atoms to CO2.)

Diesel engines are more efficient than gas engines, but they're not perfect. DO NOT run a diesel engine in a non-ventilated space under the mistaken belief that it does not produce carbon monoxide. It could be a fatal error.

Paul

#59 10-28-2006, 02:38 PM

The block heating thing to me is not so much for starting, my benzes all have good compression and plugs so they start fine. even when freezing. just turn the key 3 times so you have a longer cycle. and use 10w40. it's more that my GF drives 10 minutes to work and back each day, and I want to protect the engine from excessive wear when running it cold all the time. she's always late and floors that poor SD. even though she says she never does that

an inline heater near the radiator seems no option, considering the thermostat is closed so the hot water won't circulate into the block?

300SD81 · #60 10-28-2006, 02:40 PM

I plan on installing a block heater as soon as I get some extra cash. (Want to do a few jobs in that area at the same time...). For now, my remote start alarm heas the engine and cab in the morning before school, and I plan to use the timer function to auto start and run for 10 mins every 2 hours during school to keep the engine warm on really cold days. The one time I tried it, when I got out, the engine temp was sitting a little under the 80C mark after sitting for over an hour since the last auto start.