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View Full Version : Cold Snap - Thermometer in Engine Compartment



MrsDigger
02-05-2006, 01:34 PM
Since we didn't winterize the boat this year, Digger put an engine compartment heater in the boat. Every couple of days when it was cold (we're soft Southerners now--living in Virginia has thinned our Yankee blood), he'd trudge out and listen to make sure the engine heater was working. Last cold snap, we couldn't hear the heater...so ffter taking the cover off, hooking up the shore power, raising the engine hatch, and waiting for the heater to kick on to make sure it was working, we came up with a better solution!

We bought one of those digital remote thermometers--available at Wal-Mart for $13.84 plus tax--and put the remote sensor in the engine compartment, and the receiver in the house, so we can check the engine compartment temperature without having to go outside. Works like a champ!

Marlin275
02-05-2006, 02:24 PM
One 75 watt light bulb is all the engine heater you need.
Put two in case one burns out.
At night it tells you if its still on.

MOP
02-05-2006, 02:36 PM
Problem with both is if the "Lights go OUT! You just can't depend on electricty.

Phil

lee
02-05-2006, 02:49 PM
how much is a new engine winterizing is what $20 in parts and 1hr labor

MrsDigger
02-06-2006, 10:22 AM
erm...besides the $20 in parts and the hour in labor, winterizing the boat could cost us a day--or many days--of boating, since it gets up to 70 here even in the the winter.

Thank Heaven the cold snaps don't seem to last long, and that SPRING is almost here. I'm tired of winter...

MOP
02-06-2006, 09:10 PM
Buy a cheap generator! Use it for the house and boat, up here I get to use mine a few time a year. But I do a full winterization on the Beast.

Phil

Cuda
02-06-2006, 09:20 PM
erm...besides the $20 in parts and the hour in labor, winterizing the boat could cost us a day--or many days--of boating, since it gets up to 70 here even in the the winter.
...
or it could cost you two new engines. :(

MrsDigger
02-07-2006, 05:22 AM
Well, we live in a really temperate zone. I can understand the concerns of those who live in the great white north, but we are in southern Virginia. From what Digger (and everyone else around here I've asked) says, other than Hurricane Isabel, the longest they've ever been without power has been a few hours. We don't get the long, hard freezes you all get up North (thank God!), and so for us, this is a great solution.

Furthermore, I can tell you that at 6:19 a.m., it is 66.7 degrees inside, 41.8 degrees outside, and 53.8 degrees in the engine compartment of the boat. :biggrin:

Now where I grew up, back in the day, when it got down to 45 degrees below zero, and I had to walk 3 miles to school with no shoes, uphill both ways....

Dr. Dan
02-07-2006, 05:43 AM
:smash: Darcy, one of the methods Brad and Dwight use in Virginia and Raleigh when it does dip down into the seriously chilly, they run and electric blanket over the engine, cover with a wool military blanket. They set a timer, and because its designed to cover a person, its pretty safe. They set it on a timer and adjust as needed...really pretty slick...and no risk of the normal concerns.

Doc of Kinetic Suggestions :cool:

Formula Jr
02-07-2006, 09:37 AM
Now that is spiffy. A remote temp sensor for a Donzi!
Like a crib remote.

To continue this theme, there are those plug-in thingys for engine blocks you see on cars with North Dakota tags. I wonder what they really are and how they work. And if thats something people do to their boats also.
I've only spent one winter in Minnesota. One was enough.
I had no idea that car tires could weld to pavement and pull the tread right off.
Or that anti-freeze can freeze or that pouring warm water on an icey windshield is a really, really bad idea.

joel3078
02-07-2006, 10:11 AM
Hey all you lucky people that don't have to winterize.
Buy a little portable gas generator. If the power goes out, no problem. They cost 300-1000 bucks for the little ones. We see them all the time during fishing tournements. The guys run them all night long to recharge the batteries in the boats for those huge Minkota electric trolling motors when there is no power at the mooring docks. These same little gas powered generators can run warming blankets, space heaters, freeze plug heaters, etc. www.northerntool.com is a popular place up here to get them. The Honda brands are more expensive but they run flawless for years.

By the way, everything you hear about North Dakota, Minnesota, etc. winters is true. Except this year. Twin Cities, MN and surrounding area had THE warmest January ever on record. We are jonesing on this global warming stuff!

MrsDigger
02-07-2006, 11:05 AM
Block heaters are actually a really good idea, especially for diesel engines. We use one on Digger's pickup anytime it gets down around 40 degrees. It makes it easier to start and there is no wait for the engine to warm up. In colder climes, it is a necessity for diesels, because extremely cold temps can cause the diesel to gel up.

For gas autos, I imagine the block heater would be used to keep the block from cracking due to the sudden temperature change when you start the auto. I imagine they also serve to reduce the warm-up time for the car.

Sometimes I think I miss winter, but then I talk to Digger's folks in NH or my mom in eastern Oregon, and the feeling goes away.