CobyRupert
Super Member
You're adding heat to a large metal conductive object. It will radiate that energy to the surrounding air at a rate based on it's surface area, and the temperature of the surrounding air (and the specific heat of that air, but let's not complicate things).
Air is a good insulator as long as the warmed air is not being stripped away and replaced with other cold air (i.e. wind or a draft). The point being: Anything that gets tractor out of wind, even a tarp, will improve block and oil pan heating. Perhaps only by a couple degrees versus not having one, depending on wind. So maybe not a big difference when air temps can vary more than any improvement, but every degree can help.
I am strongly against anything that increases the number of heat/cool cycles. (Thermal expansion, then contraction, repeated again and again for days and weeks.) I try to start up and shut off my tractor as few times as possible. Even in the summer. IMHO, like an airplane: sometimes it's not the miles or hours flown, it the number of times its been cycled!
Same for thermal cycles when metal on metal (& usually a gasket is involved) is expanding and contracting. Sometimes at different rates. This causes wear!
Yes, actual wear is...uhm...actual wear (!), but so is multiple cycling with little actual wear.
Example: Would you rather by a car with 100,000 miles, but driven 1000 miles at a time, or a 50,000 mile car driven 5 miles at a time?
Unfortunately most equipment doesn't come with cycle meters (counters) so we'd buy the 50,000 mile one for a higher price.
Air is a good insulator as long as the warmed air is not being stripped away and replaced with other cold air (i.e. wind or a draft). The point being: Anything that gets tractor out of wind, even a tarp, will improve block and oil pan heating. Perhaps only by a couple degrees versus not having one, depending on wind. So maybe not a big difference when air temps can vary more than any improvement, but every degree can help.
I am strongly against anything that increases the number of heat/cool cycles. (Thermal expansion, then contraction, repeated again and again for days and weeks.) I try to start up and shut off my tractor as few times as possible. Even in the summer. IMHO, like an airplane: sometimes it's not the miles or hours flown, it the number of times its been cycled!
Same for thermal cycles when metal on metal (& usually a gasket is involved) is expanding and contracting. Sometimes at different rates. This causes wear!
Yes, actual wear is...uhm...actual wear (!), but so is multiple cycling with little actual wear.
Example: Would you rather by a car with 100,000 miles, but driven 1000 miles at a time, or a 50,000 mile car driven 5 miles at a time?
Unfortunately most equipment doesn't come with cycle meters (counters) so we'd buy the 50,000 mile one for a higher price.