Too cold to crank

CDsdad · Nov 16, 2007

I'm in the Gulf of Mexico and it was 39 F here this morning, so I know it was cold up yonder for some of ya'll. I'm asking because my grandfather fired my tractor up at 29 F this morning at home at 6 AM with no problems. That's the first time it's been cranked that cold, we just don't get that much cold. Anybody have trouble getting the tractor crunk up this morning? What'd you do if you did?

MrJimi · Nov 16, 2007

When we lived in Maine I made sure we had winter oil and a real good battery
if the oil is too thick it will turn slow and if the battery is weak it also will turn over slow
Jim

Rara Avis · Nov 16, 2007

Plug-in heaters were designed with this in mind...

TMcD_in_MI · Nov 17, 2007

CDsdad said:
I'm in the Gulf of Mexico

So how's the water? Just kiddin' ya.

...my grandfather fired my tractor up at 29 F this morning at home at 6 AM with no problems. That's the first time it's been cranked that cold,

Us northerners are all thinking "Cold? That ain't cold, mister."

Can't imagine you all down there ever having to worry about the weather being so cold the tractor won't start. Now -29F? That would be a different story.

Just being a wise guy.

Tom

jmfox · Nov 17, 2007

TMcD_in_MI said:
Can't imagine you all down there ever having to worry about the weather being so cold the tractor won't start. Now -29F? That would be a different story.

I remember here in Western New York having to start a bonfire under the taxcavator to get is started.

jmf

chipsndust · Nov 17, 2007

"my grandfather fired my tractor up at 29 F this morning at home at 6 AM with no problems."

So much for global warming

Really, 29F. would be a "warm day" in the winter here. There has been lots of discussion about heaters and cold starting on this site. I had a block heater installed on my tractor this fall. Not because I thought it wouldn't start, but to reduce wear and start easier.
I don't think you need to worry about it, (like someone else said) if you're having a cold spell just make sure you have a good battery. _ And put on a heavier coat!

Doc_Bob · Nov 17, 2007

29 ain't cold in Wisconsin. My New Holland TN70A starts fine all year round with no help other than synthetic oil and a nicely charged battery. The tractor is kept under cover in an unheated barn.
Bob

CDsdad · Nov 18, 2007

I know 29 F ain't cold for most af ya'll up yonder, but that's quite airish in MS. My tractor had never been started that cold, and I figured it was OK even though I don't have super duper slick um oil or a heater. My dad was with the old man so I felt better about it. Who wants their garden plowed under with frost on the ground, anyway. He'd of had to wait until after lunch if I'd been home, it was 65 or better by then.

And the water is salty, wet, and muddy. I can see land, just can't get there.

frank_f15 · Nov 18, 2007

i WOULD NOT WORRY ABOUT IT, 29 deg is really not that cold. and at 29 i don't think you really have frost in the ground

CDsdad · Nov 18, 2007

Frost was ON the ground. And I agree, 29s not cold enough for frost IN the ground.

zzvyb6 · Nov 18, 2007

I wouldn't dare run that fragile machinery in any temperatures under 60 degrees. My goodness, with just shorts on, your butt could get froze to the seat. The loader seals would probably blow, and the pto would turn the wrong way. All those folks who plow snow with their tractors are getting them all wet when they put them away. And Diesel fuel turns to naval jelly when its that cold. I might at least put it in the living room and warm it up before you take it outside. I've even heard of tires getting brittle below freezing. That voides the warranty, too, in case you didn't know it.

CDsdad · Nov 18, 2007

OK. After much contemplation and suggestive comments from my trusted fellow members of TBN, I have concluded that 29 F is not really that cold. My tractor has now been proven to operate at temperatures below freezing, and I have full and complete confidence that it will last me many years in the frigidly mild south MS winters.

But I'm NOT getting a snowblower.

California · Nov 18, 2007

What's a snowblower?

john_bud · Nov 18, 2007

Sure, our winters git cold and -35F might sound cold, but it's a "dry cold". Much like the "Dry Heat" in Arizona!

I'd bet a 29F "wet cold" like you had in Mississippi was real nasty! If you have glow plugs, cycle them 1 or 2 times and it will fire and run smooth faster. If it's a gas tractor, you may have to look in the book for the location of the choke.

jb

jmfox · Nov 18, 2007

john_bud said:
Sure, our winters git cold and -35F might sound cold, but it's a "dry cold". Much like the "Dry Heat" in Arizona!

I'd bet a 29F "wet cold" like you had in Mississippi was real nasty! If you have glow plugs, cycle them 1 or 2 times and it will fire and run smooth faster. If it's a gas tractor, you may have to look in the book for the location of the choke.

So true. I am fine here in Buffalo at -20, but 40 in Florida feels cool to me.

jmf

gabby · Nov 18, 2007

A new set of (rebuilt) fuel injectors is a good investment for aged diesel engines that are slow to start when it's cold.

daTeacha · Nov 19, 2007

California -- a snowblower is a pretty decent sized piece of weather that happens after a fresh snowfall. It bring no precipitation with it, just wind and all it does is move the snow around so you need to plow the drive, wait a bit, then plow it again because the snowblower just brought some over from the next county and dumped it at your place.

I've seen a thermometer reading -27F here in north central Ohio. The real problem is not the snow, which you can move around with the tractor, but ICE. As in an inch or two thick covering everything, causing trees to snap like matchstick under the weight, power lines to come down, streams to freeze into ice jams and then the resulting floodwaters to freeze over the roads and block state highways for several weeks. In '05 I had to drive an extra 10 miles or so each way to school because the state highway had been flooded and then froze, trapping a car and a pickup in the ice. The post office would not deliver mail to the town of Funk near me, and residents were seriously concerned about how fire emergencies might be handled since the access for the fire trucks was blocked and the distance was quite a bit longer than normal.

N80 · Nov 19, 2007

Its all relative folks. It was 24 degrees here in balmy SC the other night. And while most northerners think that's swimming weather, consider the fact that most of us southerners don't have much in the way of cold weather gear for ourselves or our tractors.

My two year old battery and tractor let you know it doesn't like to be cranked when its less than freezing....but it does crank right up. No winter oil. No block heater, etc.

And to keep things in perspective, I've been deer hunting here all my life and the only pair of boots with any insulation I've ever owned are the ones I have now. You's guys may think 24 degrees is warm but you try sitting still in a deer stand when the only thing on your feet is a pair of uninsulated boots and some $2 wool socks from K-Mart. As Larry the Cable Guy might say, I don't care who you are...that's cold!

(Of course now that I'm grown and paying for my own boots I've got a nice pair of heavily insulated $200 Browning boots and my feet are just toasty!)

Bottom line is, if you have a good battery and run the glowplug a few seconds, your tractor should fire up just fine just about anywhere in the deep south....although we do see single digits, its real rare.

firemanpat2910 · Nov 19, 2007

I agree its all relative. Me and my tractor do not like to play outside if its below 60 degrees. We also take plenty of breaks when it gets much over 100