Block Heater Install

Extremely cold temperatures can cause all kinds of problems with the engine in your car. Things like cracked engine blocks and a non-starting engine can be caused by extremely cold weather. One way to combat this, especially if your vehicle is not kept in a garage, is to install an engine block heater. An engine block heater is similar to the heating elements in your electric water heater. When you plug it into an extension cord the element heats up and it warms the engine, so it can start safely and easily. Engine block heaters are usually inexpensive, and are not very hard to install, if you have easy access to a freeze plug in the engine block. When choosing the correct engine block heater, you need to pay attention to the size of the freeze plug, and get the heater that same size.

Now that you have accessed the engine block, and chose the correct size heater for it, it is time to put that sucker in there. So the first thing you do is get access to a freeze plug that is located in the center of the engine block. It might be easier to do it from under the car, so jacking up and safely supporting the vehicle might be necessary. It is not uncommon to have to take some engine mounts loose, so the engine can be moved around to gain better access. Once you are certain that you have good access to the freeze plug, it is time to drain the coolant, from the petcock at the bottom of the radiator. Drain it into a clean container, so you can pour the antifreeze back in the engine, unless it is in need of replacement. Just be sure to recycle old coolants, you can do it for free at most gas stations, and any Wal-Mart store that has an automotive section.

So, you got good access to the plug and the coolant is drained. Now it is time to get that freeze plug out of the engine block. There is no fancy way of doing this, and you will need a bug hammer and a drift rod. By drift rod, I mean something that can be used like a punch to knock the freeze plug sideways in the hole with the hammer. It should have a flat surface, so it does not punch a hole in the freeze plug, too. Once you get it ‘broke loose’, you can reach in there and grab it with vise grip pliers, and pull it out of there, do not expect any of this to be very easy, but once it is out of there, you are almost done with the project! Once the freeze plug is out of the engine, throw it away, and grab your engine block heating element, and stick it in there. Make sure to position it where the element is not touching anything inside the engine, like a cylinder cooling wall, as it can cause electrolysis with 2 unlike metals touching each other. Once it is in there and you are comfortable with how it is positioned, tighten it up from the nut that is in the center of the block heater assembly. It will smash the washer on the inside of the engine, and create a seal with the rubber gasket where the freeze plug was sealed to. Once it is done, you route the cord to an easy to access spot for the extension cord that you will plug into to use the block heater, and secure it into place. The only thing to make sure of is that the cord is not allowed to touch anything that gets hot on the engine, especially the exhaust system!

Once you get this far, I’m sure you can figure out the next steps of putting everything back together, and refilling the cooling system. Just be sure to run the heater on high when refilling the coolant so the entire system gets filled up. Also pay attention to the locations of any cooling system bleeder screws on the top of the engine, so you can let the air out of the engine while filling it up. That’s it! Now you do not have to worry about not being able to get to work because of cold weather.
 

If your engine is running hot, then you will want to read how to diagnose an overheating engine. The first thing to look for is air in the cooling system, so here is how to bleed the engine cooling system. If air keeps getting into the cooling system for no reason then you might have to diagnose a cracked head. Other causes of head problems would let themselves be known by white smoke from the exhaust. Of course, water in the oil does not have to mean head problems, so make sure to read about different causes of water in engine oil. If you do not use Anti-freeze, or engine coolant then you should know what to do when water freezes in your engine. If you live up north then you will definitely want to know how to install a block heater in your vehicle, for all those cold mornings, too. Remember, if the Radiator comes out to have different temperatures, it could be dirty, or it might be time to change the radiator.