Preheating schemes?

I'd be interested in any schemes you may have developed for
pre-heating your engine.

One idea I heard was to use flex ducting to direct car exhaust into
the cowling; that does present CO concerns, but on could leave the a/c
doors open. - Mike

I'm not anywhere near needing a preheater for my Sonerai project, but I have
thought about it. When the day (or decade!)comes, I might try using a
propane bottle, the kind you can buy in the hardware store for a couple of
bucks. It would be below the cowling, far enough away to ensure that the
flame doesn't get too close. Then there would be a duct of lightweight
insulating material to guide the warm air through a door in the bottom of
the cowling into the engine compartment. The torch nozzle might have to be
customized to get the best heat transfer to the rising column of air.

The advantages of this would be a) it's cheap, b) it doesn't require
electricity, and c) it's portable, so I could take it with me on
overnighters in cold weather.

As I said, I'm nowhere near testing this idea. Try it at your own risk.

Ed


"Michael Horowitz" wrote in message
...
I'd be interested in any schemes you may have developed for
pre-heating your engine.

One idea I heard was to use flex ducting to direct car exhaust into
the cowling; that does present CO concerns, but on could leave the a/c
doors open. - Mike

"Michael Horowitz" wrote in message
...
I'd be interested in any schemes you may have developed for
pre-heating your engine.

One idea I heard was to use flex ducting to direct car exhaust into
the cowling; that does present CO concerns, but on could leave the
a/c
doors open. - Mike

Bad idea, there would be lots and lots of condensation from the
exhaust. Everything would be wet, including the inside of your
starter and magneto. I'm sure you could even get water buildup inside
the carb if your engine had one:-)
--

..
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Cheers,
Jonathan Lowe
whatever at antispam dot net
No email address given because of spam.
Antispam trap in place

Michael Horowitz wrote:
: I'd be interested in any schemes you may have developed for
: pre-heating your engine.

: One idea I heard was to use flex ducting to direct car exhaust into
: the cowling; that does present CO concerns, but on could leave the a/c
: doors open. - Mike

This doesn't sound like a very good idea to me. A car's exhaust
has a tremendous amount of water in it, and not very much heat idling on a
cold day. You'll put lots of condensation on whatever you're trying to
preheat.

If you can deal with long-term (a couple of hours), try to put an
electric heater on it. If you want quicker (20 minutes or less), get a
kerosene-fired flame-thrower and duct that up.

These recommendations are worth exactly what you paid for them..


-Cory

--
************************************************** ***********************
* The prime directive of Linux: *
* - learn what you don't know, *
* - teach what you do. *
* (Just my 20 USm$) *
************************************************** ***********************

"Michael Horowitz" wrote in message
...
I'd be interested in any schemes you may have developed for
pre-heating your engine.

One idea I heard was to use flex ducting to direct car exhaust into
the cowling; that does present CO concerns, but on could leave the a/c
doors open. - Mike

Gackkkkkk!, Michael. Build an aluminum plenum around an inexpensive
ceramic electric heater --- you know, the little cube-shaped things about 8
inches wide and 8 inches high and 8 inches deep. These little heaters have
a spark-less blower and are not hot enough to flash gasoline fumes. Round
out the business end of the plenum to fit dryer hose and run the hose into
your cowl. Blanket your cowl to hold in the heat. Go with it until your
oil temp cracks 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

wrote:



This doesn't sound like a very good idea to me. A car's exhaust
has a tremendous amount of water in it, and not very much heat idling on a
cold day. You'll put lots of condensation on whatever you're trying to
preheat.

-Cory


Cory - thanks for pointing that out; - Mike

On Tue, 11 Nov 2003 04:44:14 -0500
Michael Horowitz wrote:

I'd be interested in any schemes you may have developed for
pre-heating your engine.

One idea I heard was to use flex ducting to direct car exhaust into
the cowling; that does present CO concerns, but on could leave the a/c
doors open. - Mike



Fly it out to the California coast? No pre-heating needed here!


R. Hubbell

Michael

Lots of suggestions. Here are more.

1. If I had to RON in cold country, paid for a hanger.

2. If parked outside, pulled engine through a dozen or so times. Then
gave the intake a shot or two of ether and cranked. When ether fired
engine would start running and you could then warm up normally prior
to take off.

Still have one or two of the little cans of ether on my msc. shelf in
shop. Can be bought at any auto parts store.

Small and light weight so can be thrown in baggage compartment and
forgotten until needed.

Big John


On Tue, 11 Nov 2003 04:44:14 -0500, Michael Horowitz
wrote:

I'd be interested in any schemes you may have developed for
pre-heating your engine.

One idea I heard was to use flex ducting to direct car exhaust into
the cowling; that does present CO concerns, but on could leave the a/c
doors open. - Mike

I'm not anywhere near needing a preheater for my Sonerai project, but I have
thought about it. When the day (or decade!)comes, I might try using a
propane bottle, the kind you can buy in the hardware store for a couple of
bucks. It would be below the cowling, far enough away to ensure that the
flame doesn't get too close. Then there would be a duct of lightweight
insulating material to guide the warm air through a door in the bottom of
the cowling into the engine compartment. The torch nozzle might have to be
customized to get the best heat transfer to the rising column of air.

The advantages of this would be a) it's cheap, b) it doesn't require
electricity, and c) it's portable, so I could take it with me on
overnighters in cold weather.

As I said, I'm nowhere near testing this idea. Try it at your own risk.

Ed

October 2001 'Kitplanes' article. Tells you how to do just that for under $50.

Jim

BJ - Here is an article you may find interesting concerning cold
starts:
http://www.reiffpreheat.com/Article-Busch.htm

- Mike


Big John wrote:

Michael

Lots of suggestions. Here are more.

1. If I had to RON in cold country, paid for a hanger.

2. If parked outside, pulled engine through a dozen or so times. Then
gave the intake a shot or two of ether and cranked. When ether fired
engine would start running and you could then warm up normally prior
to take off.

Still have one or two of the little cans of ether on my msc. shelf in
shop. Can be bought at any auto parts store.

Small and light weight so can be thrown in baggage compartment and
forgotten until needed.

Big John


On Tue, 11 Nov 2003 04:44:14 -0500, Michael Horowitz
wrote:

I'd be interested in any schemes you may have developed for
pre-heating your engine.

One idea I heard was to use flex ducting to direct car exhaust into
the cowling; that does present CO concerns, but on could leave the a/c
doors open. - Mike