Vehicle Concerns In Ultra Cold Weather

Good morning our Cold Weather contingent; Arctic Bill, our Alaska group, ...

Using a little literary license and expanding "Arctic" to encompass other ultra cold weather,

Can some tips / comments be made on how the cold weather folks handle vehicle tile pressure ?

Is there a basic rule on keeping juice in car battery ?

Any quality pubs that discuss this and related ?

Thanks in advance.

......

An Arctic blast is arriving tonight and am already freezing - from remnants of Yellow Fever, Kalar Azar and Malaria.

Maybe those Caribbean islands do have some value for evac plans !

 

I don’t have a heated garage, but I do have access to electricity. Temps in my AO can get down to -35 below Fahrenheit. I simply plug in the block heater and I am good to go. I can go for weeks without the need to leave home, so I might start the truck about once a week and let it idle for a few minutes or simply put on a trickle charger for a few hours. I have 5-6 trickle chargers, but those are primarily used to keep my UTV/ATV batteries fresh. Those batteries seam to be more susceptible to the cold. Some folks will also wrap their car/truck batteries in insulation, but I haven’t done this.

I’ve parked my truck on the side of the road when we take our snow machines to some remote locations and left the truck where it was exposed to -45 below for days. When you come back they typically won’t start. You start them by taking a portable heater and place it under the engine block and cover the hood with tarps to keep the wind down and the heat in. You can typically get the oil warm enough where you can start the engine in about 20-30 minutes.

Metal does appear to be more brittle at extreme cold temps, so I typically try to be very careful not to overly stress possible breaking points. Obviously, tire chains, shovels, chain saws (downed trees), survival gear are must to be in every vehicle.

Tire pressure gauges work wonky in winter. Keep your eye on your tires. Once you drive a few miles the pressure gauge alarms will clear. Once the air in the tires warm up, it will be at normal pressure.

 

Good morning Alaska John,

Thank you. This is exactly what I was looking for.

Am guessing when buying a vehicle up your way the vehicle comes with a block heater for this market.

What are tarps for hood made of ? any special kind ?

Last question; "pressure gauge alarms"; are these fittings attached to each tire valve or something inside vehicle? I've worked in northern Russia a little and their aircraft had mechanism to change TP on landing gear tires. The aviators could work this while flying, I believe.

Again, merci.

Tonight here it's forecast for 20 above F. Had noticed some news names on forum. Hope they are Preppers ready for the chilly weather.

 

Prag, perhaps about half of the new vehicles sold have the block heaters installed. It’s a few hundred dollar option typically if it doesn’t already have them. My first truck did not have a block heater and I needed to keep the trickle charger on it during prolonged periods below about -20 or the battery might not have enough juice to crank the frozen engine. With a block heater, the vehicle will start like normal even at very cold temps.

On the tarp, we used the classic blue plastic tarp. It can be windy, so the tarp helps keep the heat from the heater from simply blowing away.

Don’t “quote” me on the tire gauge thingy, but I do think they are the sensors in the tire that sends signals to your instrument panel where you get that yellow alert to check the tires. A vehicle that sits outside at below zero for a period of time will typically alarm you to check the tires. In about 5 minutes of driving the alarm clears as the tires heat up and the pressure is correct. Simple eyeball your tires before you get in, as sometimes the alarm might actually be correct!

 

Good morning Alaska John,

Thank you again.

All my questions answered !

 

I guess i should write something about cars in cold weather. so here it goes .
1) always Carrey jumper cables . I remember a party many years ago when everyone came to the party wearing cables around their neck. if it is real cold you will need them also they freeze up and will not bend , so you carry them around your neck.
2) always park so that the hood of the car is exposed.
3) install a block heater. If it is really cold even if the battery the car will not start. some people install two one block and one oil.
4) carry starter fluid for the really cold days .
5) when it is really cold the tires freeze square .
6) carry candles in the car, you can light them and keep a car somewhat warm .
7) never inflate a soft tire in the real cold , the shredder valve can freeze open and then you are f=k .
8) use synthetic oil in the car . regular oil will be like molasses and your car will not turn over at all .
9) carry extra warm clothing in the back seat.
many years ago the car would not start -44 f
i had to heat the oil pan with a plumber torch to get it to turn over . I had no choice
so i heated up the oil for 10-15 minutes then it did turn over .
10) when you are near the end of your trip turn off all none essential items to fully have a charge battery. also leave all windows open about and inch , you do not want condensation on the inside of your windows .

 

Good afternoon Arctic Bill,

Real good info; will be put to use even if "only" briefing some folks.

Re 10; I understand the theory in re alternators running the vehicle system after fired up - and the drainage of stuff like a heater fan motor. Is there any "rule of thumb" on minimizing "overload" to the electrical system ?

Again, good info I will be using and a Thank You.

 

prag
you should know that even a fully charged battery will only deliver a small portion of its charge when very cold. so every thing counts

 

Good afternoon Arctic Bill,

Understand.

I guess I'm actually asking if the industry change-over from generator to alternator helped with the charge.