Fleet Engine Heaters

Whether you call them block heaters, water jacket heaters, or engine preheaters, they’re essential to getting diesel-fueled gen-sets up and running at full power in the 10 seconds that are standard for emergency power applications. The 10-second window specified in NFPA standard 110 and Canadian CSA 282 requires maintaining engine temperature between 100†F to 120†F. In addition to easier starts, fleet block engine heaters save engine warm-up time and help reduce fuel, plus engine wear—90% of which is attributed to low water jacket temperature. On large fleet engine heaters, where the pistons may be 6 inches across, starting dry and cold makes for wear. Starting at 100†F to 120†F you’ll have oil pressure, which means less metal to metal. Fleet block engine heaters don’t get much attention because they’re standard. In the generator business, one wouldn’t dream of having a generator set without a block heater and without proper maintenance to assure that the engine starts when you need it to. Some people use heaters that are meant for automotive applications. These are designed to be plugged in when it’s cold and then unplugged, and when they’re operated in automatic position on a stationary engine, they don’t have the life of an industrial-grade heater. The fact is that any fleet engine heater that is sized properly will keep the block warm. A diesel engine is a cold-blooded animal when the outside temperature is extremely cold. Not only is the diesel fuel cold, but so is the air coming in from outside. The idea is to heat the block to allow combustion to take place at a faster rate on initial start up. You can’t do a whole lot about the air unless you have air heaters, but you can do something to keep the area around your cylinders warm, which allows your combustion to happen much more reliably.