Where to buy pad type engine block heaters?
 

I found some last winter (about the time it started getting warm again), but can't seem to find them any where now. They looked kind of like heating for your back or something, but were attached with a high temp silicone and came in wattages around 500w. Does any body know where I can get one and maybe a few smaller wattage ones? Part of my problem is that I don't even know what they're called, so it's difficult to search for them. If you even know what to call it, that would help me out a bunch. I did a search on here because I thought I remembered seeing them mentioned, but the first two or three pages of results only turned up bolt on block types, inline water types and oil plug types. Is there some reason nobody uses these?

My ultimate goal is to have one on the oil, water, trans, and front and rear diffs. All that should stay under 1000w.

eBay item 300182760768 Hot-Pad Universal Engine Heater

The only pad type heaters I've seen were battery warmers/battery blankets. Search on that and you might get some results.

I bought some made by Katz to stick on the bottom of my WVO tank. I think they were 200 watts each. There don't seem to be much info about them online, but I bought mine from Fleet Farm. I checked their site and there is a store in your state. The store by me tends to only stock them around this time of the year though.

I wish public places had the option for plug-in connectivity.

My car is often parked at the airport lot, which in the Winter, gets cold and very inefficient on cold starts (plus delayed TC engagement, ugh). I'd pay extra for a plug-in spot (even if it's a mile away from the terminal -- and have to walk it and freeze my arse).

I seriously recommend an OEM engine-block heater. I'm fairly inept when it comes to repairs, but I was able to manage an EBH install. It works incredibly in the Winter when AC access is obtained. Look to the dealer for a part. The extra cost may be worth it.

RH77

Serendipity! I was just about to start a similar thread.

I realized today two things. First, that my transmission felt like someone filled the shifter boot with oatmeal this morning, and it wasn't even below freezing yet. Second, that my normal commute once the new job starts up is only going to be about 9 miles.

Even if I wasn't thinking about FE, all those cold miles are going to be hard on my old Metro.

I'm going to try to swap out for Synchromesh in the trans as soon as I can, but I was thinking of trying to do some electric heating for it and the engine oil as well. Couple hours in the morning on a timer, I was hoping would do the trick.

How effective are the pad type?

Pad heaters
 

Site with lots of info but they are not very online-purchase friendly.

Flexible Heater Pads. The best car heater, diesel engine heater, replaces block heater, magnetic heater, ideal for volkswagen beetle,

This next one looks better. Just scroll down a bit. They seem to have every kind of heater

Kats automotive heater list for car, trucks, RV, trailers & home use.

Jeg's online, made by Moroso
Moroso Self-Adhesive Heating Pads - JEGS
5" x 7" 400 watt

Thanks everybody for the info. I sent an email off to the guys in the first link here for pricing and more info. They seem like a distributor or something, so if group buy is required or encouraged, I'll make sure to post it here.

I'm really interested in the 12V model they have. I was looking at a 55AH AGM that is a drop in replacement for my current battery. If I had a timer that worker for 12V/20A like the one I have for 120V/15A then I could set it to warm just the engine oil for an hour off the battery, then shut off and still have enough to start the truck (if I need it, when I get the right parking spot I can roll start it). Then I've got a 50A charger at home. Plugging it in would allow 20A for the warmer and 30A to recharge the battery. Another hour should be fine for that in the morning. Would it hurt an AGM to sit half dead for 10-12 hours?

The less time the better discharged but 12 hours is not too bad. More important is whether it's deep cycle. A starting battery will not tolerate that kind of cycling for very long.

You would want something like a yellow top if you like the AGM. Or a deep cycle flooded. Don't bother with dual purpose starting / deep cycle, a deep cycle should start just about anything.

If money is not an issue then a battery warmer would help too. You get much better output and amp hours from a warm battery. And if you are running all those pads then you will need the capacity.

The only caveat I would give you is that charging a deep cycle with your alternator would hurt your FE a bit. An ideal system would be a regular starting battery and a deep cycle you charge at home for all your heaters.

I was looking at those 12v pads too. Good for people who can't plug in.

A few years ago I bought one at auto zone that was magnetic for temporary use or it also had a hole where you could remove an oil pan bolt and fasten it permanently.

I found this forum from 5 years ago, where there's some info on heating pads. Someone wrote to www.padheaters.com and got an answer in which there was info on pricing:
Group buy, anyone?
If this is still on, and others would also like a pad or two, then I'm interested in a 100-150 watt pad for 240 volts.

They are on fleabay too and prices seem ok:http://stores.ebay.ie/LGS-Wiring-MWM...d=p4634.c0.m14
I'd definitely consider one. Count me in!

Can these be mounted on a transmission pan easily? Even if it's not flat? (checkered design) Would it be worth it on an automatic? I notice with the block heater now even with the engine warmed up the transmission still doesn't like to shift for a few miles.

I think an outfit called Wolverine makes/sells some also. There are smaller wattage heaters & a sizing chart.

Brucey,
They say you can mount them on a single curve (non-compound). I suppose it depends on the ratio of contact area to void area as to how well it sticks & transfers heat to your diamond pattern.

We'll have to see how many pads we will need, then see what we can negotiate. It may be cheaper to have one member buy them, then send them to everyone else, or give them at some ecomodder meet (ala HybridFest). Or maybe a second batch directly to Europe. I don't know about customs, it may be cheaper to receive them individually?

For the 240 volt batch, maybe it'll be cheaper without a plug, just the cable and bare wires? I'd have to cut the North American plug off anyway.

And I'll check if my transmission has a flat wall.

I'll see if get more info next week when I get back.

In a week or two I'll send some e-mails, for now I'd like to know more or less how many (and what kind) pads we'd like to order. If anyone is interested, then please say so, hopefully the more pads the easier it will be to get a rebate.

Hi,

Here you can find anything you migth need for warm up your car and charge up your battery everything at the same time ;)

This is what we use here in cold Finland + eberbärsher or webasto...

DEFA Warmup

Pricey maybe, but I think best stuff on the market...

They have heaters at least almost any european car, but you can look if your car is covered also...

Br

Vesa

napa, carquesta, shucks?

I absolute have no idea, how this pads works. On the web sites i can't search description how it exactly works. Can you explain ? Thanx

You glue the heating pad to your engine's oil pan (bottom of the engine). The pad can then be plugged into the electrical grid (230-250 volts in Europe), warming the engine oil. The heat may then rise to the rest of the engine, but the important thing is that your oil is not so cold and thick, so your engine gets less wear after start-up. Also, the more you pre-heat the engine, the less fuel it will consume and the faster it will get to its optimal operating temperature. These heating pads are usually 50-200 watts, which isn't enough to get your engine really hot, but should make a difference after 1-2 hours of use.

Similarly, warming up your transmission makes it work better after starting the engine.

OK, I sent an e-mail to Kat's, Titan, and Wolverine, asking for pricing to Europe. I asked for 230-250V, cable without plug, for oil pans (100-150W) and transmissions (60-80W), and maybe battery pads. I asked about batch orders (4-5 oil pan heaters and 3-4 trans heaters). I also asked if they know anything about customs fees.

If all goes well, maybe we'll have pad heaters for by winter's end;)

I didn't write to Moroso, since their e-mail seems to be well-hidden.

Vekke sent me a link to a company that makes oil pan heaters (Phillips & Temro - oil pan heaters). These are heating elements that you mount inside your oil pan - more efficient than heating pads, it would seem, but they advise:

I read on Wolverine's sight about the diamond pattern. They say to use a steel filled epoxy to smooth out the spot where the heater will go.

Don

I've got two answers already:) The first is from Titan:
The second from Wolverine:
Hmm, if we can order directly from Wolverine's UK branch, then maybe that would take care of customs, etc. But then, why did they give prices in USD?

I'll add that today's exchange rates put
1 CAD = 0.74 EUR = 0.63 GBP = 0.99 USD

I'm in! let me know when you are going to buy.

I'm definitely interested. As I'm in the good ol' USA I expect I'll purchase directly from one of the suppliers already noted.

Thank you for digging up the information!

Hey - I found this on Amazon. Just search on "oil pan heater".
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dautomotive&field-keywords=Oil+Pan+Heater&x=11&y=16
These prices look real good.

Yeah, there are some good deals on Amazon, but it's not much of an option outside of North America. I checked shipping to Europe and you pay "per shipment" plus "per item". For books/CDs it's $3.99 plus $3.99/$2.49 (resp.), but for automotive it's $6.99 plus $1.99/lb. Geez, a pad heater is the size and weight of a book:mad: On the other hand, in certain cases it may be an option if you can find just what you want, in the right quantity, and at a good price.

I was reading metrompg's thread on coolant-heating block heaters.
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...-warm-817.html

Even with an 800 watt heater it took an hour to warm the 1 liter (approx) engine from 30 deg. F to 123-146 deg. F, depending on whether or not he idled the engine briefly every 15 minutes during the heatup.

So - while I'm still planning on getting a 125W stick-on oil pan heater, and maybe a 50-75 watt additional one to put on a second flat spot on the oil pan, I'm beginning to wonder how much help these little heaters can give us. OK, if your engine is bigger you can use a 250-350W oil pan heater but that's still nowhere near the output of the 800W one he used in the Metro.

I still want to try it. Next step, to tell the good wife that I'm going to spend about $75 on my FE obsession...

Brucepick - pad heaters won't get your engine hot by themselves, they are meant to work in tandem with a block/coolant heater, not to replace it. But with or without high power heaters, a pad will make your oil less viscous, reducing the wear on a cold start.

So, has anyone used the Kats pad heaters that they sell on Amazon and Ebay long enough to know if they work well. The Price is definitely better than the Wolverine ones.

yes they work. Make sure you get the mating surface clean.

OK, I've started a new thread for the European group buy
Pad Heaters - Group Buy (Europe)!

As mentioned there, I've asked Wolverine if a discount for EcoModder members is possible (a la ScanGauge), but no response over the holidays.