Cold start cure

[LouNY]

I keep telling myself to buy a second temperature sender for the manifold heater and mount it where it would read the ambient temperature with a switch to select engine or ambient. Instead of flicking the switch on and off several times. My battery box is too tight for a blanket I have considered a pad for it.

 

[falfrenzy]

Original battery , only 680 cca. A batt tender won't address the loss due to cold, had the charger on overnight. The cost of running the blanket with current rates is about 0.6 cents per hr=14.4 cents for 24 hrs. Four bucks in a month is cheap insurance. I agree on the Odyssey agm, have a small one that I rotate between my track sled and riding mower, never an issue, lots of crank power. When the time comes, will look at them for sure.

Well, a charger actually does prevent battery deaths in cold weather. When the charge drops down below 10.5 volts, the electrolyte begins to freeze. Keep it at 12.6+ volts it doesn't freeze nearly as easily.

 

[metalbender]

Correct on keeping the battery charged. The voltage is right but the available cranking amperage goes down the flusher when it gets very cold. A batt with 1100 cca would prob have enough reserve to handle the job when cold, as it would still have almost the same capacity in the cold state as my 680cca has while warm. Have been a mechanic all my life, seen lots of frozen batteries. While at a Lincoln , Mercury dealership, did quite a few on warranty claims. Never had to buy a new battery in the 14 years I was there, just waited for a frozen one, slow thaw, slow charge, some came back. Some had distorted plates from freezing, didn't make it.