macgyver block heater idea?
 

how about pouring boiling water on your engine in the mornings?

would that be an effective way of heating the engine quickly?

Unfortunately, it might be an effective way to crack something!

The most MacGyverish block heater methods I've heard of are:

- tuck a couple of 100w light bulbs in there

- drain & prewarm your engine oil (I've heard of people doing this in extreme cold - ie Arctic - conditions). Probably only useful if you've got a lot of oil volume.

- shove a propane fired catalytic type burner under the front of the car (I've heard of some towing companies doing this too)

Why not just use a block heater?

I would think depending on the temps it would have a tendency to freeze rather quickly and not really warm up the inside of the engine much. You would probably be better off figuring out a way to remove some of the coolant and bring it inside to warm it up. Just dump it back in when your ready to go.

a year or so back the Farm Show magazine had an artical about a product that was a propane powered block heater, basically a very small propane water heater that had two hoses on it with hydrolic quick connects (high pressure with valves that close when you pull the hoses apart), I have thought that a system like this that would hook in to a heat exchanger on your hot water heater in your house and a small pump that would pump hot water in to your engine would work well and with the heat exchanger you could keep your antifreeze without risking a spill.

Closest thing I can think of to warming up the engine without a block heater is just parking it in a heated garage or using an electric blanket (though this has disaster written all over it to me, without some waterproofing precautions) and I'm not even sure if the latter would really warm up the engine fast enough.

a block heater takes too long and you need a cord running to you car. pouring boiling water is instant :)

I think it would make a bigger mess than anything else.

Ice all over the ground.

The hot water would be heating the outside of the engine. We want the heat more on the inside.

Hi,

The stories about warming up the Model T's engine include removing the spark plugs, and putting them in the wood stove until they are cherry red, and then reinstalling them...

The Model T guys also did the "take the water and oil in the house and heat em up there" thing too.

Heating the oil was standard procedure for starting WW1 aircraft engines in cold weather, in particular, the Jenny.
A relative had an auto repair business in a coastal resort town many years ago. Mercedes, especially, would not start in foggy weather. He took an extension cord and a blanket, left the blanket on the engine a while, came back later to start the car.
He claimed he made good money that way.
Ray Mac.