At $8.27/gal. it's good to be eco

[Bearleener]

At home there's an outlet only about 1 m from the hood, so that's perfect. A block heater is probably the way I'll go. I get green power.
I just like the elegance of a thermos solution, and the facts that (a) it's on-demand; no need to predict when I'll be leaving and (b) it works when I drive home from work (no outlet).

One thing I actually considered and haven't dismissed the thought yet is to use the warm water drained from my morning shower -- comes at just the right time. Just need to figure out a way to pump it around the engine...

Heating the entire block etc. is best but requires lots of energy, but maybe as a compromise one could start by heating only the intake manifold; I'll start a thread on that.

-- Mike

[MetroMPG]

I've read that Germany is very big on renewably produced electricity - particularly photovoltaic solar via government incentives.

As for your shower water - you could put a plug in the drain and catch the water, then let it sit. Recover some of its heat back to the house. Of course then you'll also have nasty soap scum rings...

[cfg83]

Bearleener -

Originally Posted by Bearleener

At home there's an outlet only about 1 m from the hood, so that's perfect. A block heater is probably the way I'll go. I get green power.
I just like the elegance of a thermos solution, and the facts that (a) it's on-demand; no need to predict when I'll be leaving and (b) it works when I drive home from work (no outlet).

One thing I actually considered and haven't dismissed the thought yet is to use the warm water drained from my morning shower -- comes at just the right time. Just need to figure out a way to pump it around the engine...

Heating the entire block etc. is best but requires lots of energy, but maybe as a compromise one could start by heating only the intake manifold; I'll start a thread on that.

-- Mike

I don't this is viable, but I thought I would mention it anyway :

How about a "Solar hot water heater" concept to heat up the coolant. Coolant pipework would have to be modified to have logical "in" and "out" point that would be optimum for recirculation. Electric pump needed would also be external. Only works at home on a sunny day because the black piping would be installed on the roof of the house.

Postive :
- Solar heat based.
- Solar water heater tech already exists.
- Electric pump could run off solar panel also.

Negative :
- Complicated to implement
- Expensive to implement
- Cold sunless days
- Unknown corrosion issues in water heater pipes
- Need to make sure that ALL the coolant returns to the car before starting out. Maybe you need to have more coolant "in the system" than you need and refill mechanism that tops it when you are ready to go.

Hmmmmmmm, a block heater is sounding better and better every minute, .

CarloSW2

[Silveredwings]

Es freut mich...

Willkommen (Ich war ein Berlinner, aber mein Deutch ist jetzt sehr schlecht).

[Bearleener]

MetroMPG: yeah, about 14% of Germany's electric power is from renewables, about 5% wind and 1% solar. I get 100% renewables power and it's actually cheaper than the regular (mostly coal-fired) power!

cfg83: good idea! Block heater at home (overnight in the dark, but outlet nearby) and solar at work (daytime, no outlet). How about a mat with water-filled tubing that you roll down behind the windshield when parked (doubles as a sunblocker), or small collectors built into the sun visors? Even a little heat from diffuse light would help.

SilveredWings: im Gegenteil, Dein deutsch ist noch sehr gut! Gruesse aus Berlin! -- Mike

[8307c4]

After calculating the cost of electricity a block heater plugged in overnight is highly ineffective as well, this will only cost you more on the utility bill than gas money it saves. And unfortunately it has to be left on over night or it doesn't work.

[MetroMPG]

8307c4, have you seen this thread?

Mini experiment: 300w vs. 800w block heater warm up time

[DifferentPointofView]

After calculating the cost of electricity a block heater plugged in overnight is highly ineffective as well, this will only cost you more on the utility bill than gas money it saves. And unfortunately it has to be left on over night or it doesn't work.

yea.. that's wrong. even more so if you get a timer to have it start at 4-5am so you can leave at 7. electricity is much cheaper than gasoline. Most block heaters heat it all the way in 1-3 hours.

[RH77]

Originally Posted by DifferentPointofView

yea.. that's wrong. even more so if you get a timer to have it start at 4-5am so you can leave at 7. electricity is much cheaper than gasoline. Most block heaters heat it all the way in 1-3 hours.

I have to agree that the grid does a much better job of warming up my car than the engine does -- and more efficiently...

RH77

[DifferentPointofView]

it's more-so true with larger engines that suck up ALOT of gas while in open loop. getting it in closed loop fastest will get the best turn-out.