Starting your tractor in the winter.

[FatTire]

The manual for my Kubota MX5100 says (pg. 15) warm up at approximately 50% of rated RPM for:

Approx 5 minutes at temps higher than 14F
5-10 minutes at 5 to 14F
10-20 minutes at -4 to 5F
>20 minutes at less than -4F

It also says do not operate "under full load" until sufficiently warmed up. So based on this I feel OK moving the tractor as soon as I see the temp gauge come up by about a needle's width. For this engine 50% is 1350rpm. And in any case I usually use a block heater for temps less than 15 or 20F.

 

[RalphVa]

One generator now is a 12.5 kw (approximately near 20 hp) diesel. It has to come on and immediately do some work, albeit at fairly low ("fast idle" according to JD for the speed it's run at) rpm. My lawnmowers are started at full rpm.

You're just wasting fuel letting it sit and idle. Work it. Gently at first and then more so as it warms up.

The HST is the main thing that can possibly build up high pressure if the oil is too viscous, but it has override safety valves built in. The fluid in it is fairly thin, for a reason.

Ralph

 

[TerryR]

No 1 Diesel is not something you will ever see or need down in NC. It is common in the winter months up here and in Canada.

Thanks, vtsnowedin,

That explains it. We think it's cold when it gets below the mid-20's, and we rarely get below zero. I use my tractor in cold weather only for plowing snow, and try to wait until the temps are up to above freezing (being retired has its advantages). The tractor is in an unheated barn, but if there is any sun out it's probably above freezing inside by the time I get to it. So even with a recommendation for 32 degrees and below, I don't really have a problem.

Terry

 

[bigbull338]

when we crank our tractors in winter or summer we let them idle for 5 to 10 mins before using them.

 

[TKSalty]

Thanks guys,

I read thru my manual a few months ago after buying my first tractor... First diesel, but I totally missed the part about warming the engine at a higher RPM. I'm going to go back and read the manual again. Again, thanks for the info.

 

[Egon]

( "What condensation do you speak of? In cold weather the dew point is usually below freezing." )

Warm tractor hits cold air, moisture in fuel tank, gear box etc. condenses.

 

[buickanddeere]

The advice from the other site was old wife's tales . Use a block heater and even transmission heaters .
Revving an unloaded engine for extended periods of time accomplishes little good.

 

[buickanddeere]

when we crank our tractors in winter or summer we let them idle for 5 to 10 mins before using them.

Waste of fuel and causes condensation.

 

[rsallen]

How so?

 

[DeereMann]

Mechanical Engineer for a "major diesel engine manufacturer" advice:

1. As sage TBN members point out, heed the engine manufacturer's recommendations first & foremost. There are sufficient differences in engine design, age, & type such that there is no specific one-size-fits-all cold start diesel engine recommendation.

2. Generalizations (i.e. - if you forget, don't have your manuals handy, lost them, etc.) - obviously, diesels are heat engines - they make their own heat without aid of a spark plug. In cold weather conditions (<40F) it is best to:
Use a block coolant heater several hours prior to start
Use blended fuel (No. 1 / No. 2 blend appropriate for temp), or at least treated No. 2
Use appropriate viscosity engine oil (synthetics always help)
Use enough battery ampacity
Cycle your glow plugs / grid heater several times prior to cranking.
Run at moderate speed unloaded for ~ 5 minutes
Run with moderate loads for another 5 minutes

It is never good to run a diesel engine at low speed idle more than a minute or two. The only exception to that is very large, very expensive engines that don't have access to pre-lubing (think: many cylinders). Low speed idle leads to wet stacking of piston rings, clogged injectors, etc.

 

[DarkBlack]

I haven't seen a single post here advocate prolonged low speed idling, so I don't why that grave warning keeps coming up?
There seems to be 2 camps: Run it at mid-high rpm as soon as it fires, and keep it that way for a while.
The other camp advocates, slow idle for a few seconds at start, followed by a brief low-mid rpm run, then remaining warm up doing some light work.
Obviously these machines can survive all the different styles people have-they are after all, tractors.

 

[Jesse masterson]

I don't have a block heater but if it's real cold I'll just turn my torpedo on for about 20 min before stating, letting it blow on it for 20 or so minutes makes the tractor gauge show warm a lot quicker.

 

[dave1949]

( "What condensation do you speak of? In cold weather the dew point is usually below freezing." )

Warm tractor hits cold air, moisture in fuel tank, gear box etc. condenses.

Well, yes, but isn't some condensation in those areas about unavoidable? That moisture will be cooked and vented out of anything air can enter or leave, with the exception of the fuel tank/system. If air can't enter, how much condensation could there be? Condensation can happen in the fuel tank any time of year--No?

I did once see a ring of ice crystals just beneath my fuel cap, sort of floating in the diesel. I dipped some out and the rest disappeared on its own, without an additive.

 

[buickanddeere]

I don't have a block heater but if it's real cold I'll just turn my torpedo on for about 20 min before stating, letting it blow on it for 20 or so minutes makes the tractor gauge show warm a lot quicker.

Takes a lot more energy $$$ to run a torpedo heater for 20 minutes instead of a block heater for 2 hrs.

 

[buickanddeere]

How so?

How so to who ?

 

[buickanddeere]

Once the engine has oil pressure. Lightly load it at 2/3 of rated rpms until the temp gauge rises 1/2 way towards normal.

 

[Jesse masterson]

If I did that much cold weather starting I would get a block heater but if it's that cold I'm not gettin out unless it's a emergency for my 3 or 4 times a winter energy isn't much os a concern, and those propane torpedoes are very good on energy usage

 

[buickanddeere]

If I did that much cold weather starting I would get a block heater but if it's that cold I'm not gettin out unless it's a emergency for my 3 or 4 times a winter energy isn't much os a concern, and those propane torpedoes are very good on energy usage

Never liked open flame or sparks in the shop and avoid them when possible . Hot exhaust form the torpedo can damage paint, decals and wiring.

 

[Jesse masterson]

.....

 

[check]

I plugged my Kubota BX25 in (Kubota block heater) the first winter, and then slacked off for the next 3 years, because it always started, even at 30 below. After reading all these posts, however, I am going to start plugging it in again, because my poor little 'Bota has to sit in an unheated garage all winter, 2.5 hours North of Toronto (45.24 degrees N. Longitude). I do, however, come and visit her and take her out to blow snow every couple of weeks or so.