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I'm wondering if another experiment might be needed...
When we start the car every 15 minutes to check temperature, we're likely lowering the coolant temperature in the vicinity of the heater. This will improve the thermal transfer by increasing the temperature difference between the heater and the coolant surrounding it.
How much does convection/conduction mitigate this? I have no clue.
In actual usage, I turn on my block heater and only crank the engine after 1-2 hours (when I'm ready to go to work.) In theory, would less heat have been transferred to my coolant than if I had cranked the engine every 15 minutes?
As someone mentioned earlier, the intermittent idling will also contribute some amount to heating the coolant.
To redo this experiment would require several nights with consistent outdoor temperature:
Day 1: run heater for 15 minutes, crank engine to mix coolant, check temp.
Day 2: run heater for 30 minutes, crank engine to mix coolant, check temp.
Day 3: run heater for 45 minutes, crank engine to mix coolant, check temp.
...
...
Day X: run heater for 15*X minutes, minutes, crank engine to mix coolant, check temp.
Maybe This is something I can try soon! =)
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