(semi-ot) RE: subzero temps, block heaters, etc

[scirocco210 at hotmail.com (Parker Wulf)]

Hi toby,
Go with a block heater! then you should not have to worry about the extra 
battery thing.
If i know its going to be a very cold night, i allways plug it in before i 
go to bed. as long as you have a good battery with the block heater plugged 
in, it should start every time(as long as you don't leave your lights on or 
something). Another good thing is that your motor, starter, and battery wont 
get as much stress starting when its very cold out, you will get heat inside 
quicker too!

I keep my car pluged in all night, when im at work, and when/where ever i 
can when its really cold out, but i know some people that use a timer that 
they have set to turn on like one or two hours before they start there car.

hth,
parker

>Also I'm a bit confused over this whole block heater thing. Apparently
>some folks leave them running 24/7? There's no way I can do that since I
>don't even have an outlet outside (it would have to be run via an
>extension cord snaked out my apt window or door). I was thinking a block
>heater might help things warm up a little in order to enable the engine
>to start at low low temps. So.. I'd maybe let it warm the block for maybe
>20 minutes on really cold days before starting. Am I misunderstanding the
>usage/purpose of these things?
>-Toby

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