diesel tricks

[beipers]

Originally Posted by MillerTime

Huh. I did on my semi, maybe we have more humidity or something.
Maybe these coaches have aluminum tanks or they have better inside coatings....who knows.

MillerTime- Future Sabre Handler!!

Does your semi have an air dryer on it? That could be a major difference.

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[boowho]

Originally Posted by MillerTime

Huh. I did on my semi, maybe we have more humidity or something.
Maybe these coaches have aluminum tanks or they have better inside coatings....who knows.

MillerTime- Future Sabre Handler!!

Also, as I was taught the biggest problem with water in the brake system is freezing and causing the brakes to fail completely. If not below 32, not nearly as important to drain.

Good to drain, sure. But not critical if above 32. Again, YMMV.

Boowho??

[boowho]

Originally Posted by Brother Les

People that only drive your units around 2,000 miles per year are not doing your rig any favors if they just sit the rest of the time. Water pump seals dry out and fail, o-rings contract and fail, hoses and belts dry out and get brittle, fuel lines and pump slowly drain out and takes more time and pressure to build up and start unit, oil slowly drains from metal and causes some friction when starting, batteries drain down from non use, battery and electrical connections corrode and loose contact, animals invade and build nests in dark dry places.

When not is use, start your unit every once in a while to lubricate everything and charge up your batts.

Or better yet, take it out for a 50 mile (or so) run every month or so. That is what I do..... Especially when parked long term (like for the winter in AZ).

As you state (VERY correctly) long periods of non-use are extremely detrimental to a coach (people in the industry refer to it as "lot rot").

As a full timer, my coach is rarely off my mind. I don't have a job to worry about, kids to get to soccer practice or any other issues that might make me forget to get over to the storage location and "exercise" the machine every few weeks.

Boowho??

[tmmar]

Even though my mileage is usually way below 15000 miles, I change my oil and filters once every year just before I cover it for the winter. This is so there is clean oil in the engine while it sits, usually for about 4 months.

[kz08h5]

Make sure it always diesel you putting the tank. It's easy to fill from the wrong pump at some stations if you're not paying close attention. I have some experience in that area. The guy who pumped out my tank for me on I80 just outside Omaha told me averages about 2 service calls a month to pump gas out of diesel tanks.

I still blame my wife for distracting me.

[NV245]

I have not seen anyone talk about shutdown. Turbocharged engines create a lot of heat, it is what makes the turbocharger operate. When shutting down any engine, there is always a temperature rise, and in turbocharged engines even more so. A simmer down no load idle is very recommended to lower temperatures before shutdown, normally aspirated engines also benefit. However, the Cummins B series engine is a "working", not an idle engine. When the 6.7 was introduced, it was soon found that extended idle would clog egr, bind turbocharger vanes, and cause particulate filter problems. That is why if you let a 6.7 idle long enough, the idle speed increases. Also the reason that engine idle can be increased with the cruise function. Also gotta watch for manifold heaters working when starting cold, and knowing that manifold heater cycling will make the voltmeter fluctuate on cold startup until manifold heat is no longer requested by the engine controller.

[boowho]

Originally Posted by NV245

I have not seen anyone talk about shutdown. Turbocharged engines create a lot of heat, it is what makes the turbocharger operate. When shutting down any engine, there is always a temperature rise, and in turbocharged engines even more so. A simmer down no load idle is very recommended to lower temperatures before shutdown, normally aspirated engines also benefit. However, the Cummins B series engine is a "working", not an idle engine. When the 6.7 was introduced, it was soon found that extended idle would clog egr, bind turbocharger vanes, and cause particulate filter problems. That is why if you let a 6.7 idle long enough, the idle speed increases. Also the reason that engine idle can be increased with the cruise function. Also gotta watch for manifold heaters working when starting cold, and knowing that manifold heater cycling will make the voltmeter fluctuate on cold startup until manifold heat is no longer requested by the engine controller.

Excellent points, sir!!!

I'm in the habit of letting mine idle for at least 5 minutes before shutting down.

Again, going back to my semi days, I was taught to never idle the truck for an extended period (like an hour or two or more) unless at least 1000 RPM. In fact, you it idled it without going to "high idle", after 5 minutes it just shut itself down.

Boowho??

[Frank-VA]

About shutting down a hot engine. I operated several types of Heavy Equipment and trucks for 35 years. Equipment companies would offer Tech Classes about operating and maintained the equipment. One class was about Turbochargers. The techs stressed about shutting down a hot turbocharged engine. Shutting down hot causes the oil flow to stop. Thus leaving oil on the turbo shaft to cook causing a buildup. Then over time this causes the turbo bushing to wear out. Then the turbo will start to flop around and letting the turbo fins to rub the turbo housing. Then the turbo will self distruck causing turbo fins going into the engine which will destroy the engine.
When a turbo blows up and the engine is shut down right then. It is a possible chance the engine can be saved by pulling the intake and heads to remove turbo debris.
I have seen this happen and the mechanics did NOT pull the top of the engine down and installed a new turbo. Less than two days later the engine Blew up so bad it could not be rebuilt. Replace it with a new engine. $$$$$$$$$$