Don't block the radiator


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Posted by Don in Missouri [69.179.181.16] on Tuesday, October 21, 2014 at 15:47:16 :

In Reply to: OT anybody use a radiator blanket on your cummins? posted by John in Utah [166.70.201.2] on Tuesday, October 21, 2014 at 14:01:25 :

It will hold the thermostat open and you will get less heat in the cab.

I have tried it. I used a hard sheet of plastic slid between the radiator and the AC condenser on my First Gen Dodge. I cut a round hole in the middle, so that cold air would continue to flow to the fan clutch, or else the fan would engage all the time. This would have worked pretty good if the truck had a malfunctioning thermostat, but I was actually fighting the design of the truck.

The last time I tried this was in North Dakota at 15 below. I took the plastic sheet out and ended up with more heat in the cab. By making the radiator less effective, it required the thermostat to hang open longer. In a first gen, you get the optimum heat in the cab when the thermostat is closed and all the bypass coolant goes through the cab heater.

The plastic sheet did make the engine run warmer, but it had no problem maintaining the proper temp with the radiator open. There simply was no need to block the radiator, and if anything, it made the engine run too warm-even at 15 below.

Plugging in an electric block heater is great. When you get in the truck, much of the hard work needed to heat up 1,000 pounds of cast iron, 3 gallons of oil, and 4 gallons of coolant has already been done for you.

An 06 should be more comfy than my old first gen, but Another thing you can do is add a second heater in the cab. A second heater under the rear seat turned my old crew cab into a great winter vehicle. An under-seat heater is more effective than the stock heater, because it can recirculate cab air. The stock heater on a first gen only heats incoming cold air.

Before I added the second heater, I rerouted the vacuum lines on my stock heater to recirculate cab air (like it does on MAX AC). The problem with that is getting rid of moisture. It would warm up on a long trip, but you would fog up the windows. Plus, some cold air would still sneak in around the flapper.

I was so serious about making my first gen comfortable in any kind of winter weather, I even installed a Webasto, diesel-fueled heater in line just before my second heater core. It works for pre-heating and keeping it warm, but probably wasn't worth the expense.



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