Warming up your car (Fairbanks, Kenai: live, cars, electric)

[Rance]

I don't care where my electricity comes from. I pay cash for mine and by gosh I'm using it. I plug in all night when it's below 20° and I warm my vehicle for a good 20 min before driving off. My bearings, gears and lubes thank me for it. And I've been driving the one truck (68 chev) 18 years now, year round.

[User 2]

Originally Posted by Xa'at

That is a generalization. Many areas in Alaska get their electricity from hydroelectric dams.

Many areas?

Alaska produces less than 1000 kwhours from hydro-electric dams.

Some very few areas have hydro-electric, the majority of electricity is generated by the direct burning of fossil fuels.


With over 7 billion kwh sold yearly in Alaska, less than one sevenhundredthousandth of the total isn't much of an argument to support your post.
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[warptman]

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[User 2]

Originally Posted by Rance

I don't care where my electricity comes from. I pay cash for mine and by gosh I'm using it. I plug in all night when it's below 20° and I warm my vehicle for a good 20 min before driving off. My bearings, gears and lubes thank me for it. And I've been driving the one truck (68 chev) 18 years now, year round.

Idling Myths & Facts (broken link)

If you truly value that vehicle, you might read the link.

People not caring about the environmental consequences of their actions used to not bother me too much,

....but it's come to the point where I don't think these folks have the right to endanger others by their willful neglect.

You have rights,

....those rights stop where your actions endanger others.
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[Rance]

I only own one vehicle new enough to be called modern or electronic type engine. And like I said I give it 20 minutes to warm up before driving off. Ain't no way I'm jumping into a vehicle at 20 below, starting it and driving off. For one the windsheild will fog up and then you can't see. Not to mention plastic parts like blinker assemblies etc have a much higher risk of breaking while extremely cold. I don't do excessive idling...but I do enough to warm the engine and defrost the windsheild. It's gonna take more than some tree hugger website to change me and my ways I'm afraid. Also...no frogs or trees were harmed in the submission of this post.

[RayinAK]

Originally Posted by Rance

I only own one vehicle new enough to be called modern or electronic type engine. And like I said I give it 20 minutes to warm up before driving off. Ain't no way I'm jumping into a vehicle at 20 below, starting it and driving off. For one the windsheild will fog up and then you can't see. Not to mention plastic parts like blinker assemblies etc have a much higher risk of breaking while extremely cold. I don't do excessive idling...but I do enough to warm the engine and defrost the windsheild. It's gonna take more than some tree hugger website to change me and my ways I'm afraid. Also...no frogs or trees were harmed in the submission of this post.

I do the same each day, and so all of my coworkers. Not only that, but if you stop by any shopping center around Fairbanks when the temperature is -20 or colder, most vehicles in the parking lot will be running. There is a good reason for this: bring one's produce, that is already cold in the store, to a cold vehicle, and it will be frozen before one gets home.

Also, it has been decided that a cold motor takes so long to warm, and that this is the time when most of the pollutants are exhausted out the tail pipe. For that reason the Fairbanks Borough, City, etc. requires that all businesses with parking lots, must have electrical outlets for all their workers to plug their vehicles. The idea is to keep the warming time to a minimum. The minimum for me is about 15 minutes of idling when the temperature is around -20.

[User 2]

Originally Posted by RayinAK

it has been decided that a cold motor takes so long to warm, and that this is the time when most of the pollutants are exhausted out the tail pipe.

You're not reading the links, are you?

Idling cars emit twice the pollutants than that emitted from a cold start car.
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[warptman]

Who cares how much it emits? I like a warm vehicle in the morning.
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[Arcticthaw]

Well if everyone ELSE has an issue with the amount of fuel we are burning, then they can park their cars and walk. Think of it as part of the carbon exchange program. Your credits will offset our deffisets. Turn your heat down too, we need the natural gas!

[Arcticthaw]

Originally Posted by User 2

You're not reading the links, are you?

Idling cars emit twice the pollutants than that emitted from a cold start car.
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by the way when its really cold out and I am at the interesection I put it in nuetral and wind it up to about 2000 rpm! Pushes the fluid through the heating coil better and generates more heat.