DISASTER! Vanlife in the Arctic goes wrong!!
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- Опубликовано: 13 апр 2024
- I had a bit of a vanlife disaster on this Arctic winter trip in the freezing temperatures of Northern Finland winter hunting for -40c even the Arctic diesel couldn’t take it. My Chinese diesel heater carried on but my webasto engine preheater and it fuel froze / gelled. I was unable to start the engine. But its one of the reasons I love the Arctic winter is the challenges and the problem-solving, especially in self converted for transit campervan.
#livingthevanlife #ChineseDieselHeater #wintervanlife
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Some tips.
#1 Here in Finland, we normally insulate the engine heater fuel lines and pump. No bare lines exposed to outside temps.
#2 In massively extreme temps, leave your engine running!
#3 There are several types of Arctic diesel. Each is rated for lower temperatures. If you can't fill up with the lowest temp rated one, purchase a diesel additive to prevent gelling. Keep the diesel thinning additives as an emergency part in your spares.
#4 Consider an electric battery warming blanket for your starter battery. Wire it in switched, with your cabin power supply.
#5 once you warm the engine heater fuel line, you may need to prime it again, since it acts the same as being out of fuel.
#6 Consider allowing the cabin heater to run at lowest setting all night in extreme temps. This will keep your fuel moving enough to prevent gelling.
Really enjoying your adventure. Please remember, it's only fun until you freeze to death in your van.
Thanks for sharing
Julian @oh8stn @65°N (the other me)
Thank you for taking the time to offer advice!
1. This video is the first time people have ever mentioned insulated fuel line to me. It wasn’t something I was aware of definitely consideration for my next van.
2. I can definitely see the advantages not sure how much my DPF would like idling overnight! Future times I will probably leave the engine pre-heater on its thermostat though.
3. I was only aware of the -38 stuff. A few people have mentioned on this video that Neste have fuel below -40c which I’ll definitely take notice for next time I’m going after the extreme cold.
4. With my starter battery under the driver seat it does remain a little bit warmer than outside , but something like that would definitely not go a miss. I do the opposite where I use the 30A amp charger to charge it at high rate of amps to induced internal heat via current.
5. With the third-party controller I have for my engine pre heater priming isn’t a feature. I just have to do multiple failed starts which obviously isn’t ideal.
6. Could definitely see the bonus in doing this if I was leaving the engine running.
Freezing to death is definitely not on my plan agenda and also have spare heaters. I also have my 5 season Himalayan sleeping bag which is rated to colder than the conditions outside.
Hey, Alex love your adventures, I dove a Russian spec Scania for a while and I remember the engine heater I used to leave it on all the time it also heated the cab when the engine was switched off. All the fuel lines were insulated, plus heaters everywhere. Keep up the good work.
@@MispronouncedAdventures "5 season Himalayan sleeping bag" is that just to shelter in the van? I'd be interested in a video of your bailout bag, comms and other contingencies you have in place for a worst-case-scenario ie complete electrical failure and van damage. What would you do for heating? Like deep discharging, pushing 30A though your SLA will shorten its lifespan. It is interesting to see what people do in Siberia in much colder temps.
@LoremIpsum1970 high attitude sleeping bags can get called a 5 season, 4 season is a
winter sleeping bag, five season is the next step up into far more extreme colds. I could’ve comfortably slept outside in my tent in that sleeping bag
Heating wise, I additionally have an entire spare diesel heater and an entire spare engine pre-heater.
30A on a 80AH AGM starter battery is fine. It would be getting more than that from the alternator when the engines running.
@LoremIpsum1970 on top of that I also have my normal expedition work kit Emergency bag with me and satellite comma
3 things you could purchase as emergency kit. Diesel fuel additive anti-gel put in the tank at every fillup. Diesel fuel rescue additive when your tank and/or lines are gelled. Rescue additive is only used when you are gelled up. Other item is called a heat tape. A heat tape is a plug in flexible wire attached to a thermostat. They are used to keep water pipes unfrozen when the water lines transition between the ground to a heated space. They zip tie on to the line and they will not melt plastic. They are weather proof. Brand name easy heat.
I usually don’t need to add extra additive as all the winter diesel in the Nordics is treated at pump usually to -35 or -38C. below -35 is reasonably uncommon. I had three occasions of it this winter. Many of the commentators have put on this video one of the garage brands which is what I don’t usually go to stocks -40 diesel which is something I would probably look at using in future years on the night I’m looking for the extreme cold.
Heat tape is also one which has been mentioned a number of times before it’s not necessary for my water pipes as all my piping is now intern I am built in a way where it’s kept warm by the ambient heat for the diesel heater. On fuel line could be an option, although it’s now been mentioned that there is insulated fuel line in the use
Genuinely love how you simply went into problem solving mode Alex. No stress or drama, just figure out the issue and resolve.
Stress and drama doesn’t solve problems, although many use it to get views, although I find for my case calmly solving problems also gets views!
agreed very very impressed here
Going into the deep freeze and having to rely on all that tech, you are a brave man. I grew up where it gets colder than -40c. Id probably not venture out if I had to rely on batteries in that cold.
Diesel heaters are hardly to be considered as tech surely? They’re pretty dumb things in the grand scheme of things. sure, I use a lot of tech but everything has simpler backup options.
They are the normality for All over the world for cold places be that diesel powered engine preheaters or and diesel air heater ( of which I have spares of both )
I mean, most vehicles up here don’t even use diesel powered ones they use electric engine preheaters which they plug their vehicle in when they’re at a parking spot.
Even if everything else had failed, it still wouldn’t be a problem. I got plenty of cold weather kit and 5 season sleeping bag. My professional background is working in extreme environments.
@@MispronouncedAdventures You definitely seem very confident and capable enough to work things out.
I have been in more than enough cold weather problem solving situations for a life time. I now live in the desert western US. even at 1800 meters elevation the winters are much more tolerable.
What brought about my comment wasn't the diesel heater. it was the van. It not starting without pre heat, then the pre heat failing, then a battery generator and back up heat, then the starting battery.
That is far too much to much to rely on for my liking. Although You did make it work, so the redundancy paid off.
I own several diesel trucks and if they cant start on their own with glow plugs and treatment in the fuel, I consider that a problem. one rig has an ether cold start system and has never failed to start despite it being 40 years old(Cummins diesel for the win). I have standard plug in block heaters on the rest, but I cant always get electric access. So far its rarely been an issue.
Having nearly died in sub zero situations in very remote locations, I'm a bit wary on extreme cold weather boon-docking. Hypothermia is no joke.
I would have multi fuel, non electric heat sources on board if I had to rely on batteries in extreme cold. you cant cook with a sleeping bag.
But like I said, you are a brave man.
I have a bus conversion with a wood stove that can go 8 hours between stoking, that has been excellent. LPG stove as well. Also has ether start.
Any way, I really like your videos. keep it up. I found your channel researching diesel heaters.
If you come to the Americas I could give hundreds of suggestions of locations to visit. its cheap to travel here.
@railroadmike6843
That whole day was mostly a cock up at end with gellled fuel as I used the wrong grate on a cold night, the pre heater was working just no fuel was physically getting to it. . On the engine not starting with o pre-heat that’s mainly as there is a big different in North America and European engines. North American engines tend to be larger capacity and simpler overall whilst European engines focused on smaller capacity, higher efficiency which makes them quite a lot more complex and they don’t necessarily like being forced in cold weather starting.
I do also have a gas stove on board.
Wouldn’t mind shipping a van over to North America at some point for North America winter
@@MispronouncedAdventures You would be welcome on my end if you did decide to come to the Americas.
And don't bother to ship a van. vehicles are still really cheap here if you know what to look for.
A fella such as yourself could very well make some great video content finding a cheap used rig, and then outfit it American style and run from sea to sea. North to south. Then sell it and recoup most of your money when you are done.
Keep in mind all of the EU fits well inside North America so you could spend a year and never see it all.
Give it some thought and reach out if you want to do it.
When running convoys in the winter in Bosnia,up on the high level roads we discovered the temperatures dropping to -40 or so. The local drivers were driving beat up bog standard trucks with 1 special component added....
Slivovitz local brandy.
The drivers were in various stages of being completely drunk on this potent drink and as they informed us, they would also add a bottle or 2 to their diesel tank to stop the fuel waxing up.
Bosnia ❤️
to heat the engine switch key to ignition, set the ac to full heat and enable Cabin air circulation. This will use the warm cabine ear to heat the engine cooling loop.
I see the principal, but my engine doesn’t have an electric water circulation pump, just one ran by the engine running. But I’d like to give this a good next winter
Maybe you could put the diesel pipe Y piece as close to the engine heater as possible so the CDH keeps the diesel flowing overnight and a minimal amount of diesel is standing in the engine heater line.
Heat gun straight into the air intake, brilliant. We design this into diesel engines, makes sense that it would work on a diesel heater.
Yeah, directly into the intake definitely a quick way to warm the core and any fuel which might be gelled in it. A friend of mine used a air compressor once before to help start a clogged with diesel heater with soot and blasted a load of soot out of the exhaust
Very resourceful man
Thank you
If you have the diesel pipe inside of another pipe it would help to stop it freezing, plumbers do this with condensing boiler external condensing pipe
definitely could be an option. But the -35 temperatures which get below the Arctic diesel are rare. Usually just waiting for it to warm up to around -30 would be sufficient.
definitely could be an option. But the -35 temperatures which get below the Arctic diesel are rare. Usually just waiting for it to warm up to around -30 would be sufficient.
From my personal experience of motorhoming , belts and braces is the only way to go
In Canada eh they formulate the winter Diesel to stay liquid at lower temperatures. It's the oily nature of diesel that makes it get so goopy at -40C etc. Try an additive. Methyl Hydrate should work but maybe ask around. If only the exhaust from your diesel heater could be used to warm the engine rather than making a circular melted spot on the hard pack snow beneath your Van, man.
What about thermoelectric tape for your fuel lines?
Battery cold, get battery heater blanket.
Different grades of fuel in the Nordic is available at pump you don’t usually add additives but of course you can if you wish to. North America does get colder than the Nordic. Normally -38c or -35c winter Gray diesel from the pump is perfectly sufficient -40 years rarer but there is as I’ve been now told in the comments at one company which stock the minors -40c for stuff and it’s always an option to add additional additive
My battery gets cold, but not too cold as it’s based in the cab so it gets some residual heat from the habitation. It would be a different story if it was in the engine bay.
Diesel heaters can be quite fussy on there exhaust pipe length so it wouldn’t really feasible for me to reroute it anywhere else
I think for the next van insulated fuel line would probably be worthwhile
Next upgrade a cheap heating pad for under your starter battery would be an interesting video
Wow! I think I would have stayed in bed till the sun came out ! 😆🌞
It’s the northern Arctic. You could be staying in bed for days until the Sun comes out if it was in January!
As an ex European truck owner and driver, standard diesel is now treated for low temperatures but before that we use to add petrol to a full tank of diesel either fueling in uk or Europe during the winter. Remembering that most of a trucks fuel pipes are outside ( 400 litres about 5 gallons of petrol ) we did do Scandinavia quite a lot in the winter.
The diesel was all pre-treated in the Nordics. You can’t really buy non-winter grade diesel in the winter. But it comes at different levels normally. -35 or -38. I few places also stock below -40c.
Before this section of the trip I had to come from one of the cities and probably filled up on -35 stuff and that night it was -35 for below
Hooray! More arctic mishap fun!
Multiple mishaps in this video and if I’m honest, it was the last one of the video which was the most severe
@@MispronouncedAdventuresYou solved the problems gallantly! An immersion heater in the diesel tank (that doesn't set everything on fire) might be a wild idea that eventually might work.. or drain the battery even more.
@RAGJAW whilst I can see the logic there. the -35 temperatures are rare ish . It wasn’t so much the fuel in the tank either that’s such a large volume of liquid. It takes a long time to lose the amount of heat energy. It was the tiny bore of the fuel line and fuel in it
LOL, after all that, go get a reindeer bacon and peach pizza! 😂 Great to see you remain cheerful throughout and to see the problem solving, we all learn. Thanks for another interesting video
It was a surprising tasty pizza. I wasn’t too sure about peaches on a pizza, but wasn’t half bad.
Great video Alex. Always brilliant to follow 👍
Glad you enjoy them all
Another fab video Alex 👍👍
Thank you 👍
I was told once if you mix diesel with kerosene then under very cold conditions it will flow and no jell up. I guess knowing the proportions and knowing your engine's tolerance would be essential.
Yes for Untreated diesel or similar. This is winter grade diesel and is already treated coming out the pump. It’s normally find down to -35c, but I should of put -38 grade in as it was -35 that night
Kerosene will stay liquid down to minus 40 (both F and C) but it's only sold for heating fuel use in the UK (and probably the rest of Europe) and as a result has a dye and a sneaky reagent so if you get inspected by the 'ministry' you can be prosecuted if you use it for road transport. I have fitted a separate 6 gallon kerosene tank to power my 2 'diesel' heaters with kerosene. It's half the price of diesel as well!
Wow really surprised about the diesel freezing like that , .lucky for you the engine got running again and the back up power bank does the job , superb content 👌
It’s was a cold cold night that one. Even the winter diesel has its limits. Worse case I would have just had to wait for it to warm up from -35c to -30 ish. Definitely having lots of back up options is helpful
Im loving the series Alex,
Great to see you not too bothered about the problem in hand and working out what the cause was,
I wish people would watch all the episode before giving their opinion on "wot you need to do" ....Think you know what you are at as your content shows that,
Keep up the good work and looking forward to next one 👍🏽👍🏽
Logic, problem solving and calmness 👍🏼👍🏼 top job sorting that yourself mate!
What’s that weather website called btw? I did try to look.
I think the ol Yeti has heard you talking about a new van 😂 they have ears you know!! Atb
How many hours of swearing ended up in the cutting floor, Alex? 😂😂😂😂😂😂 Can we have an unedited version of the episode? I'm amazed on how unfazed you sound throughout the whole video. Nice one. Thanks.
Not so many on this one! Maybe a little begging 😂
Genuinely unfazed because it’s only problem-solving, getting stressed about a situation isn’t gonna help it
Good watch mate as always 👍 I love how clued up you are with everything which in your situation you need to be. My anxiety was through the roof watching you trying everything to start the pre start 😂👍
Yeah, definitely it would’ve been different from my first year versus my third year on problem-solving. Lots of learning since my first time. But also having taken apart so many heaters and installed them it’s good to have a idea of the internal working of them.
Great video. I am amazed by all the technology you have and you trust your life at night to a CDH and not a more substantial brand 🤣🤣 problem solving was class. 💪🏻💪🏻
I’d still say “my” CDH is superior in functionality to webasto, espar and autoterm. As I got rid of its original controller and replaced it with an afterburner. CDH coming in such a ranging of quality which is the main issue. My one now has 5000 run hours now. And in this situation, it was the webasto which failed!
Could you not extend the fuel pipe for the night heater and stick the "Y" junction right next to the engine pre heater to lessen the amount of narrow bore pipe available to gel ?
The Y Junction is pretty much as soon as it comes out of the fuel tank which keeps the runs the shortest total length to each unit.
Changing fuel line bore away from the manufactures recommendations is not always recommended.
I’m thinking a super cold weather protocol be good - ie some special steps you take to prevent key things freezing up on the coldest nights?
My protocols between a normal -15 to 20 overnight temperatures versus -35 aren’t really that much different.
I always make sure I’ve always got at least half a tank of diesel which is around 45L, a new protocol will be to make sure I’m running -40 diesel plus In known extreme cold nights coming. Bring power stations and drinks in from the cab into the habitation and put them near the heater. Take any water bottles off the floor.
That’s really about it
Why not direct the diesel heat exhaust at the engine block or runnit through a heat exchanger into the engine coolant? Xx
the diesel heaters exhaust is around 3 m from the engine bay at least and not sure long-term how good pumping exhaust gases into the engine bay would be. as for a coolant run again it would be at least trying to lay 6 to 7 m of coolant pipe there and back again, which is difficult
Good rescue problem solving vid Alex, wonder what the oils doing in the diff at that temp.
I imagine it would’ve been ambient as the engine oil was about ambient as well at -33 . That’s usually why when I talk about the cold I do mention the engine preheat is only heating the engine oil, the gearbox, differential and so long are going to be cold so take it easy for the first few minutes of driving to let those warm up via friction.
nice vid :)
should get a transporter 4motion
Those are a bit small for my liking. I’m currently after a AWD transits
@@MispronouncedAdventures do they exist?
For quite awhile yes
@@MispronouncedAdventures ahh well yeah thats gotta be the one to go for for you. AWD vans are a gamechanger u should try one. wish i still had mine.
@xangodango that’s the plan, looking at building a whole new van
In the Sahara during the winter on an oil pipeline, we used to put a smallish fire under the diesel tank to melt the gel.
Cant do that much more modern vehicle have so much plastic and wires under them now. I would guess your diesel out there is normal grade too
@@MispronouncedAdventures this was about 40 years ago, and it was a large generator. Never managed to set one on fire
Alex when you heat under car is good to put cardboard or what ever to skirt over car and ground. So heat doesn’t escape so easily.
Make an skirt for around the van so the exhaust from the heating keeps the underside warmer
Definitely a way of doing it. Thought with the way I was doing it was it only needs to be temporary like I’ve always could of waited a couple more hours for it to warm up to -30 odd where the diesel would’ve gone back to normal.
Trace heating on your fuel lines would have solved your problem. It’s usually 240v but i’m sure you can get it in 12v too. You can get self temperature regulating trace hearing too so all you need to do is put power to it.
Well it’s definitely a thought it would be quite a lot of work to do and no one else out here really does it. I think for future reference if I knew it was going to be that particularly cold again which is reasonably unusual ( below -35c for a extended period ) I would add an additional additive and run it through the lines.
@@MispronouncedAdventures though don't most people plug in a sump block heater and a trickle charger from public mains (same in Alaska afaik).
Yes, most is a plug-in block heater which is an electrical element with no circulation but they leave it plugged in overnight in urban environments are their own homes. These my type of engine preheaters are far more powerful and quicker due circulation
On extremely cold nights why not run your engine all night. Carry extra Jerry can's.
Mainly as it’s normally not necessary. if I had the -38 fuel in the van it would have been a problem, but it seems I had filled up with -35c. I had a multiple other nights that cold without problem.
I do have a single jerrycan, but I always make sure my fuel tank is at least half full before any overnight stops which is at least 45 L of fuel
Just found your channel,, like my first vid...Sub !! I run my van all winter also in some pretty cold temps in Canada here... I use a cetane booster / anti gel.. (my favourite by far is Stanadyne, but Archoil is also one of the better ones) - I run it all year for the little amount and time it takes - the cleanliness inside the engine and especially in both the air heater (Espar) and engine heater (Webasto) almost triples the service intervals not to mention a small amount of improved fuel economy.... would greatly improve your coldest temps... Cheers
Thank you very much for subscribing. I don’t care that is diesel in your country usually pre-treated against gelling? In the Nordic it comes pre-treated so there’s generally not a need to add extra additives. In this occasion though I had probably used a slightly more urban winter grade diesel on some exceptionally cold weather hence causing me the gelling issue.
I generally all year round run premium diesels with cleaning additives in it which seems to do a good job at cleaning my engine as well as my heater and pre heater
@@MispronouncedAdventures The additive is extra protection for super cold events but the added cetane is the juice,, there is no diesel options in Canada, its all premium year round and calibrated to the season.... and most of the country see below -40C in winter...
That was a well put together, interesting video, your ability to stand back and problem solve logically was good to watch. You appeared to do everything right, you never seemed to lose site of the overall picture and didn't get lost in minor detail but went through the circuit looking for the place of resistance. I imagine you've already planned upgrades to the van to prevent further problems. Perhaps lagged pipes under the vehicle with a heated cable attached inside the insulation and run all night, or maybe run things as much as possible inside the van. I don't own a van but I'm always interested in others living in vans especially in difficult conditions. A cold floor is a common complaint for winter travellers, even in the UK, I'd hate that, perhaps underfloor heating would be an idea - heat rises so more efficient use of warm air befor it goes out of the roof. Did you enjoy the challenge appart of a bit of anxiety?
It's always strange watching adventure films like this becuse as a viewer it's like this al happened a few days ago when in fact your probably off doing something competely different because most of Finland will be in the +C* by now.
You must have a good job being able to take the winter off appart from the work for Roamer, I noticed an Anker battery in shot lol, thanks for the video, hope you can read this my dylexia is woking overtime.
I can read your message no problem at all. I’m very dyslexic myself which is the whole reason the channel is called “mispronounced”
My background is leading Expeditions all over the globe and taking clients into remote places. Whilst normally that doesn’t include a vehicle, problem-solving without assistance is a major part of my job.
As for upgrades to deal with future issues. After this video I purchased a 1000 W electric circulation coolant heater effectively a less powerful but completely electric version of my diesel engine preheater which I will install as a backup option. The diesel engine preheaters are fantastic and whilst I carry an entire spare diesel engine preheater with me as a back up for failure having an already integrated electric one would be convenient.
Underfloor heating has been on my mind for a few years now, especially with three Arctic winters it is a lot of work to retrofit. there are hydronic and electric solutions. However, this year I decided insulated slippers, which were definitely a win!
I enjoy the challenge, I don’t put myself into positions to cause challenges, but if they occur as part of my goal, I enjoy the problem-solving aspect and there are many backup solutions which you don’t see in this video. Including all the way up to satellite communication options.
@@MispronouncedAdventures Wow,! adventure of a different kind all year, it's a shame you can't vlog some of your work but I guess you'll have no time when your work is leading and keeping others safe.
I have attempted to film that work before, but it impacts on my job of actually leading although I do photograph and do Instagram stories is that doesn’t really subtract from my actual professional
I was looking into diesel gelling at some point a while back... one of things that struck me was that if you fuel up with something like -10 diesel and realize your mistake and try to fix it by pouring -40 diesel into the tank, the mixture still retains some of its gellificational abilities - as I recall if you fill a tank 50/50 with -20 diesel and -40 diesel, the end result is not -30, but something like -25, possibly even worse.
It’s generally very hard to fill up with non-winter grade diesel in the Nordic and it’s all pre-treated at pumps to at least -35. And that’s usually sufficient it doesn’t often get colder than -35c
But yes, if you have a low-grade is in your tank it’s not the easiest to necessarily figure out the maths required to change the mix.
For your next camper build : I guess the next camper will have a serious LiFePO4 battery bank (maybe around 10KW or more?). In that case you could consider looking at an electric engine pre-heater. If you stick to a diesel engine pre-heater, you could decide to put the fuel line inside another tube, together with an electric heating ribbon. Hope you find your -40°C/°F in the next winter season.
The next van build is on the close horizon. I like to think.
In the next few videos, I actually buy 1000 W electric circulating coolant preheater, as a back up to the webasto and I am playing a 10kw+ bank yes, in 48v
@@MispronouncedAdventuresThat’s the way to go! Looking forward to the video’s of the next Ford Transit 4x4 with winch and large battery bank (although I wish it would be a Sprinter 4x4 cab/chassis with a GRP box, keeping the same dimensions as the panel van version)
@@tcs7678 going to be an AWD transit for me. I love the transit base. and whilst there is a big difference between AWD vs 4x4. My experience of friends who have an AWD version say they are very capable bits of kit. my thoughts are with a 4x4 ( transfer box ) I’m probably not gonna take it Rock crawling in so AWD should be sufficient for me plans.
definitely a winch for sure.
Almost pulled the trigger last week on one but it sold
@@MispronouncedAdventures The Ford Transit AWD is for sure capable enough. It probably needs a bit of a lift and 245/75R16 tyres because ground clearance is often more important than 4x4. The new Sprinter is also AWD now. I just love my Sprinter Cab/Chassis 4x4 with well insulated GRP box, that’s why I would like to see you build one. But I am sure that the Transit will perform just fine in both snow and sand.
@@tcs7678 i’m already looking at importing the van compass stage 4.0 lift kit for the transit from the US and and running a larger size of tyre because of it
Alex, loving the latest Norway trips. If you take content requests, would you consider ev charging pods to recharge all your power stations and van lithium bat's. It's an alternative to cater for winter van power anxiety issues and I believe a game changer to keep people out for longer, with any version of power station. Would you consider?
I really could do with a standalone diesel heater like that as a backup
That Halcory one is a great option, I can message you the details on it
Saw a canadian van builder fitting 240v electric heat pad to the underside of his oil sump - might be a good emergency measure as well?
I don’t think in this case it would’ve done much as the oil wasn’t an issue. I was still with the operating temperature of my oil which is 0w30.
The diesel itself was the main issue
Definitely have to be prepared out there but you seems to have everything covered
Loads of preparation out here needed. this case was I filled up with the wrong Grade of diesel. a low grade -35c and not a normal -38c stuff
Legend
Apart from dropping the beer! That was a fools move!
Maybe wrap the diesel heater supply lines & pumps in heat tape (and perhaps a heat blanket under the diesel tank in case of emergency.
La vie n est pas toujours facile dans le grand nord...moi j aime beaucoup. Aujourd'hui je suis à Oslo chez ford pour la révision et le temps est doux +3...bonne semaine
Indeed, it’s not always easy and I love it because of that. Good luck on your service
I was told by an old lorry driver that they used to add a bit of petrol to the diesel to keep things going in the winter. I wouldn't recommend it, but if you are really stuck, the engine will at oeast be warm once its exploded!
Yeah, that’s something I’ve heard before as well although my understanding is that was usually for untreated diesel. all the pumps in the winter here are winter grade diesel which can vary to a degree -35, -38 and so on , but even the winter grade has its limits. Which I was on or passed.
If you install larger pipes to the heaters, your problems should be less.
Heater don’t always like changes in there standardised bore. But being -35 overnight, I don’t think changing from 2mm to 4mm would have made much difference. It was the freezing / gelling temperature of fuel which was the issue.
You should fit a heated sump as a back up, in the old days we would light a fire under the engine ha ha
Sump heater wouldn’t of done much in this occasion. The oil wasn’t the issue. It’s 0w30 as it’s a euro6 engine so it’s thin and still inside its operating temperature.
The gelled diesel in the pre heater and the engine was the issue
Hi Alex mate great vid as always… I was watching your vid and had a little bit of a brain wave that might help.. but before I throw my idea out… If it’s something that already been thought of or done or can’t be done then apologies in advance 😂…. I haven’t actually got a van to do the vanlife thing yet.. anyway my thought it.. you run a Chinese diesel heater all night while parked up… so could you not make some kind of splitter with some pipe to direct the exhaust to the sump or engine bay to help keep it warm over night? maybe could even have it run through some kind of pan fixed under the sump 🤔 anyway was just wondering 🤷🏻♂️
In someway that could definitely work logistically not too possible in my van given the location of the diesel heater versus the engine bay it would keep things warmer but not necessarily an effective way of heating the engine. But the hot air principal does work as one of the reasons of lighting a fire all under old engines was to heat the sump as well as all the hot air getting trapped in the engine bay heating the rest of it
Yes it might work but then thinking about…you drive in some pretty extreme conditions so there’s a chance it could actually have the opposite effect… like if there was condensation/vapour coming out of the exhaust could end up turning part of the engine into a block of ice maybe 🤔 😂😂 yeah don’t listen to me bro 😂🤦🏻
If we are not going to see Yeti-2 being built this summer I really think you should have some electric trace heating wrapped around fuel lines and even an electric sump pad fitted to poor old Yeti just for the -40 next year
All being well, we will be seeing yeti 2 this summer. After this video I bought an electric backup option which was 1000W electric coolant heater with built-in circulation pump.
Great stuff, love your ingenuity, a great asset when in such extreme conditions. you mention having a large battery bank. can I ask for the size and specs, please?
My lithium battery bank is medium the large size. 400ah of lithium in total. Using Roamer Xtreme series 12V 200Ah x 2.
The extreme series are a variation on a normal LiFePO4 lithium cell which allows with discharge down to a internal cell temperature of -30 without damage and without heating
@@MispronouncedAdventures Thank you very much.
Hi Alex, I'm picking up loads of tips from you! Such as fitting Anderson connectors and many, many more. Here's one I have for you: Fit a separate tank to serve your diesel heaters and use Kerosene instead, which has a gel point of minus 40 (the same in F or C). I have fitted a 6 gallon outboard motor fuel tank in a slide out box under my van (it is an ex-supermarket insulated box-on-chassis van (like @truebluetravellers) so maybe a lot more room underneath than yours!). I use Kerosene at home so I can decant some from the heating oil tank as required. I have a Webasto and a Hcalory so it saves a bit on fuel cost. I intend to fit a sump heating pad to it as well in case I am forced to use diesel when travelling (I saw @Adz Ventures had fitted one to his Ducato).
For me, I always much preferred the idea and space efficiency of having it plumbed directly into my main fuel tank, because most of the auxiliary tanks for diesel heaters are pretty tiny. But I can see from your point of view if you’ve got the extra Real Estate to have a huge underslung tank then it may make sense to do that method. this trip I used about 170L I think in the air heater.
Sump heater As for me I don’t think it’s too important as my van runs 0W30 engine oil. Which is really rather thin.
Anderson connectors are great things as well as XT60 connectors as well
@@MispronouncedAdventures I was thinking of the sump heater to be used for heating my auxiliary fuel tank, in case I had to used diesel if Kerosene wasn't available. I have a heat exchanger running off my Webasto wet circuit which meets the engine coolant. Gets the engine to about 60 degrees. I also run a separate coolant line from my Webasto which heats my waste outlets and waste tank.
All part of the adventure.. awesome! FYI the LSD ( limited slip diff ) are front only. Rear diffs are open or AWD which would've got out easily. Regarding your oil leak check the timing cover.. very prone to leak on the mk8's. Cheers!
, for the oil leak my timing cover does leak only after Ford redid my wet belt. But that’s not the leak which is the problem the vacuum pump at the back of the engine which Ford also replaced leaked after.
@@MispronouncedAdventures Classic! Hopefully you can get it fixed for free!
BTW my exhaust manifold recently came loose as one of the studs had sheared off so needed re-tapping. Again another very common issue to look out for on these Fords.
Checkout diesel coolant heaters . 😎👍
I have one, that was the problem in the video. The diesel powered webasto engine preheater wouldn’t start because the diesel had gelled
get some gray pipe insulation for the diesel lines under the van
Insulated fuel line wasn’t really something I was aware of. This situation it may have helped although it was cold for a significant amount of time so it may have just delayed the gelling
Alex.how about putting some 12volt trace heating on the fuel lines then putting some 13mm armaflex pipe insulation over it to stop the heat loss just a thought Roger.
In Finland we have normal winter diesel -38 C and arctic diesel -44 C
Both of the bits of footage in the video the pumps were Finnish pumps. But said their operating temperature was to -35 and -38.
Given the temperature in the area I was in overnight was -37c it seems likely that I was right on the operating temperature of the fuel
I hadn’t seen a pump which had a label of down to -44c. I assume they’re specific garages?
@@MispronouncedAdventures Yes. "Neste" fuelstation and only from certain stations
Thank you I wasn’t sure which one particularly had it. I’ll make sure for next winter. I head to those when I’m off searching for the coldest conditions.
@@MispronouncedAdventures I am from Canada and I wholesale diesel fuel additives to retail locations. Our additive EXL Never Gel is good to -53C in the tank and -45C in the fuel lines and filters. As well it adds 5 points of cetane and a lubricity additive. Europe typical has a good cetane index but might be lacking on the anti-gel additive.
You could look at getting a detroit trutrac diff, normal LSDs use friction plates, not sure how the extreme temperatures might affect the operation, not an issue with a trutrac. Incidentally though, both could potentially help the back slide on an icy road which may not be so helpful.....
That will give me something to look into, although I am look at replacing the van with an AWD version
When I was in the Swedish military service up north, on our trucks we put a pan of fuel and lit it on fire under the oilpan, of course it was like 40-50cm of gap between the flames and the oilpan, but it was the only way to get the engines turning in those temperatures. Heating the coolant is good for the engine, but it can take too long to transfer it's heat to the oil, especially if you need to get going.
Oil isn’t really a problem for me heating wise, being euro6 engine in my van it already uses 0W30 which is fine down temps.
But definitely could see him bigger trucks running a thicker oil. Heating both oil and coolant would be a great to heat up. Definitely don’t want to be lighting fires under modern engines way too many plastic and cabling on the under side.
The main issue in this case was the fuel itself
@@MispronouncedAdventures I totally agree the open flame under a more modern vehicle is probably not a good idea, perhaps some candles is alright. But the fact that your starter gave up turning is likely due to the oil getting thick as syrup even if it is 0W30. Also you mentioned that the battery is 5 years old, up north 5 years is the maximum recommended age, while you can expect a couple more in warmer climates. Battery temperature is also important, it should ideally be warm before trying to start, in Siberia it is common to take the battery inside over night. Also a poorly charged car battery can freeze over and/or crack/swell.
That battery is definitely past it best! I think the way I get away with it is I’ve got a trickle charger it. I did see the Nordic prices of an AGM start battery which were eye watering compared to the UK ones.
My old Opel Vivaro 2006 always starts at the same temperature and it had no diesel heater.
Older engines are a lot more simple
@@MispronouncedAdventures Mentioned it because it feels weird that your car won't start with diesel heater. If the diesel heater is on for 1-2 hours, it should start. Wondering if the diesel heater is pumping the coolant around in the engine. Are the hoses hot when you have used the diesel heater on for a long time?
@danieldanielsson5724 oh there was no problem at all with the engine starting after a pre-heater. I had done a few colder nights and with a preheated engine would start like a summer day.
The problem was I probably had -35c grade winter fuel and it’s was -35 to -37 overnight. The fuel had gelled in the engine preheater and engine. But as it had gelled in the preheater, I couldn’t start the preheater to in turn heat the engine.
I watched a video on life in Yakutsk, in Russia. They had a call-out service where they come and preheat your car so you can drive it in the cold. They jacked up the car and put a gas space heater under it. Then raped blankets around the vehicle until it was warm enough to start with a jumper battery.
Hello, new to your videos, I enjoy your content. Do you run full synthetic oil in your engine? Thanks
Glad you enjoy the content. My van uses 0W30 as it’s normal oil which is fully synthetic
Could you run the exhaust exhaust from the cabin heater across to your engine heater?
Not really. the diesel heat exhaust generally need to be kept quite short . To run the exhaust from the back driver side over to the front passenger side would be difficult anyway because the prop shops in the way it would have to be about 3 m long
Why not use trace heating wire on the fuel lines with insulation?
You can buy 'arctic' diesel from selected 'Neste' stations. Its rated -40/-40C. Normal winter is rated -35/-25 or -38/-30. Summer diesel is -20/-10. Use engine oil 0W30, better in these conditions.
Yeah, people had mentioned -40c grade fuel to me before, but I had not seen it at a pump. But if I think about it I haven’t been to many that Neste fuel stations. Usually pick other brands. But I’ll make note of that for next year.
My engine oil is 0W30 as that’s the default for the MK8 transit normally
I'm planning to go to the artic but I don't plan to stop the engine before to be at destination.
That would be a bit overkill. It’s no problem stopping your engine overnight if you have ways to heat it back up again such as plug-in block heaters or diesel engine preheaters like I have.
@@MispronouncedAdventures I guess it depends on the moisture level, I had -20°C in germany, I couldn't open the car on the morning, I managed to get in through the rear, then I had to scratch the frost inside the car, even after the engine started I could barely see anything.
@@BaroudeurAventure moisture in the Arctic is less than 20%. Absolutely bone dry.
👍👍👍
Cheers 👍
I always feel full of suspense if an engine will start.
Maybe fuel tanks should be inside the cabine like the watertanks? 🤔
Any protection to the fuel lines to avoid freezing.
The grade of the fuel was the bigger issue here. yes insulated fuel lines do help heat loss but stationary overnight for 12 hours in -35c probably wouldn’t help that much in the grand scheme of things. plus in my three winter and multiple other colder nights. This was the first time it been an issue. I suspect I filled up with -35 winter diesel and not -38 last time. It’s was -35 to -37 that night
Loving the videos. Will the next van be a Mk8 transit? Interested to hear your thoughts on these vans vs say other makes / models and say FWD equivalents (yes - I've trawled through the whole back catalogue!).
Guessing the next van will have some sort of LSD or maybe 4WD?
New van will be a AWD transit. Having driven many models of vans and in FWD and RWD. Personally for me was the transit as soon I got into one. I found it to be the most comfortable and car like to drive and the most up-to-date and modern dashboard. additionally, because it’s a campervan, I personally prefer the rear wheel drive as it gives me a lot more traction with all the weight over the back. Additionally the transit is also one of the tallest internal options of the vans which is great considering I’m 6’2
Looking forward to the next build! I've always been a fan of the transit!
@MispronouncedAdventures have you had any issues with the wet belt on the transit ?
@markb1971 nope, had its replaced at 111k.
Just a question can’t attach a heater to the fuel tank & insulate it to warm the fuel in extreme conditions ?
Whilst you probably could do those things, it’s not really necessary. It reaches that cold not that often, and I done plenty of other cold nights without issue, I had just filled up with a slightly lesser grade of diesel than I had thought
An lsd will still slip, a elocker or air locker will change your life if you have room, maxtrax are better because you can lend them to others as well
They are good bits of kit. I got to use another RUclipsrs when I helped rescue them later on on this trip
Maybe consider maxtracs or something similar, saved ms couple times
I presume you mean in general and not for this specific scenario?
They are good bits of kit when I was with another RUclipsr I was using his to help him get unstuck
Don’t have this problem in Brisbane Australia
But love your video and your persistence and fault finding 😀
I think if your diesel was gelling up in -35 in Brisbane, we’ve got more problems than just the diesel!!
Maybe try out a block oil heater next year (like Adz has), see how it compares to the diesel preheater. As for SLA batteries, said enough before on that... It was interesting to see how easy 'Ria on Roaming Reckless SLA died within an hour of last being used stranded up a mountain in a blizzard (she'd deep cycled it too much)
I don’t think an Oil heater would do much for me in this case on my van , the Transit’s Oil is 0W30 which is suited for that sort of cold and lower.
I’ll have to check out that other channels. But deadhorse does get a lot colder
@@MispronouncedAdventures You can go down to -50C in Sweden, it's not unheard of...which is Outdoor Boys kind of temps in AK. Did you see what happened to that camper van this week on the NC500 after that wind gust? Lucky people!
@LoremIpsum1970 I did see what happened on the NC500, not a fun evening in the motorhome for sure
Shame about the beer, mate! :D
That was honestly the worst part of the day!
what´s that on your dash ?, odb to the engine ?, and where can i find that one ?? do i need sensors or ....have a transit 2009..... FOUND IT !!!!
KW206 it’s a brilliant piece of kit for a cheap price. It seems as long as your OBD2 port can output the data then it can read it and display it.
Hej kompis jag tror att du kan eventuellt ha lite vatten i tanken, dieseln ska inte frysa. Har varit i husbilen vid minus 45 grader och det fungerade bra.När det gäller däck så tror jag att du missuppfattade mig, vinter däck är speciella däck man använder på vintern spelar ingen roll om du vill ha dubb i eller inte det skiljer sig i gummiblandningen. Mvh Angus
Depends the grade of the diesel you filled up of I might have filled up with the -35 fuel ( which is seen at the end of the video ) before that particular drive, and since the temperatures that might were around -35-37 I was probably below the operating temperatures, which is why it gelled.
As for tyre, yes, I am aware of the different compounds in winter tyres . It is something I have found with my particular tyres I use even in those conditions the rubber remains pretty soft.
Hej jag tankar på bensinstationen som alla gör i sverge dom kör vinter diesel på vintern, jag har bott i norra Sverige i 52 år utan problem .
For a moment i thought that was your piss bottle.
On the same note, multiple times I opened the sliding vans door and quickly had to explain to someone that wasn’t a piss bottle and in fact UK diesel I wanted to see what happened in the cold
cant you put alcohol/cold additive (not a special fuel, but an additive to a good arctic diesel) or petrol to the tank of diesel? i know back in the day people have put some petrol to a tank of diesel, so it wouldn't gel, but since everything has become common rail... i dont know... can you still do that? I've heard people adding 2T 2 stroke motorcycle oil to make CR components last long? Do you thing any of these are good ideas in the arctic? can you make little experiments with this? not sacrificing the transit if anything goes wrong, but like jerrycan experiments.
Whilst the winter grade diesel is pre-treated at pumps. It has its limits which I went past.
But yes to could add your own extra addictive on the extreme cold nights. Normally the -38c winter fuel is fine
It must be hard to earn a living in all those beautiful small towns, but the trade off is so worth it. For work, I drive 40 minutes in gridlock city traffic each way @ $2.00 L. In Canada the Gov takes 1/2 your income! Fuck this, we're selling the house and building a van, see you on the road bro.
The Nordic countries have a very high tax rate, and in some cases significantly higher than the US and Canada but nordics do provide extensive services. For me, I find the country quite expensive because of those tax. But I’m not gonna pretend I’m an expert at all on more than just the basics there.
For you all the best on selling your house and building your new van!
Would insulating your fuel lines under the van help?
Insulating the fuel line help in some cases for sure. But insulating only slows down heat loss. -35c is really cold! so it might of held off gelling for a few more hours. It’s normally not that cold Anyway
@@MispronouncedAdventures I guess if the insulation is wet and frozen under the van it won’t work as well either.
I see your van has 143k on the clock. How reliable has it been? I'm considering one and it would be good to get real user input. Thank you!
Generally very reliable I’ve found. A few bits and pieces.
I bought it at two years old 79k miles.
79k new air-conditioning compressor sold to me broken unknowingly, covered under warranty )
Around 90k the flywheel went, so new clutch and flywheel.
111k new wet belt ( pre-emptive replacement ) and new vacuum pump ( failed )
125k new thermostat
130k new power steering pump ( I broke it doing doughnuts in Arctic round 2
145k ( new alternator clutch pulley )
Apart from that disc and pads, one wheel bearing and one serpentine belt.
And whilst there is a little bit of a list there, I’ve not exactly given it an easy life.
@@MispronouncedAdventures That's pretty good considering most of your list is general maintenance items. Thanks for taking the time to give such detail, I really appreciate it.
@andypugh2000 no problem. It clearly had a hard life in the two years prior to my owning of it given the miles.
But my things I see is generally minor for a vehicle of its mileage. Fair to say I’m happy with it
I mean dont get me wrong it is a beautifull vlog and I love watching it from my realy cozzy living room but still why do you do itI
Because I prefer the cold over to the hot
You need a diff locker.
Something to consider for the next van
Luckily you're a guy who knows what to do in a situation like that. Imagine being a person who doesn't understand what's going on in a similar situation!
Definitely for me in any “ extreme” environment contacts it’s best to have an understanding of how things work and why things might not work.
Definitely learnt a lot since my first winter
Vid dom låga temperaturerna stänger jag ALDRIG av motorn
Problemet löst
Usually it’s not a problem. I’ve done plenty of colder nights and the engine preheater started the engine no problem at all. It just seemed this particular night. I had -35 grade winter diesel which gelled up.
Idling for 12 hours isn’t gonna be particularly good for the DPF for a modern van
Det är inga problem alls med Dpf
Gjort så många gånger med husbilen och varje natt med lastbilen
Get yourself a 🍺
Thank you very much. I will definitely get myself a beer maybe two!
Can't wait for the new van build. How long did building this take?
I’m looking forward to it as well. This one probably took about nine months to a year although this time I have a lot more experience so will likely be a lot quicker.
jeez one question WHY??????
Why not?
Global warming is your fault - you heated all the artic with that portfable heater! LOL
Indeed it is!
👍🚐😎
Cheers
I would insulate the lines and wrap them in a low-voltage heating element like what's in motorcycle gloves.
I would also cover the diesel tank with a thermal blanket with a heating pad.
Lot of work, but it's a good fall-back. Then there is always the heat gun - but that may not work as it would be way too cold (minus 40+) to keep them from freezing back up.
Definitely a lot of work for a very rarely need issue I think they only saw sub -35 around three times this winter. I think next time I will go to a Neste fuel station buy the -40c fuel when it’s gonna be particularly cold opposed to the regular -35 and -38 winter diesel.
Although insulated fuel line might be on my list of considerations
I just wanted to help you... anyway thanks
Appreciate the offer. you could help me with another beer for the one I lost
here's a tip for starting in extreme cold conditions:
depress the clutch when starting the engine.
manual gearboxes often have oils (especially Ford) that gel up really stiff in ambient temperatures of minus 20 or more. so when you're starting the engine, the starter has to spin up that stiff gearbox as well.
your engine will likely start just fine, when the clutch is depressed.
NOTE: even putting it on neutral will not be enough. you need to disengage the whole gearbox.
EDIT: to me, your heater is showing signs of the burner screen going bad. it's a 20€ part, but requires taking the heater apart a bit.
That was the clutch depressed. The clutch has to be depressed in a mk8 transit to attempt to start, the vans computer doesn’t allow the vehicle to start if the clutch is not fully depressed
Which heater are you referring to? When you say burner screen, do you mean the atomiser?
@@MispronouncedAdventures
very well, I should've remembered that fact about Fords of this age. :)
Yes, the mesh 'sock' over the red hot glowy thingy. It has many names, depending on the language, but the atomiser screen indeed.
and I'm of course referring to the eberspacher/webasto engine pre-heater.
fuel gelling up is of course an issue, but when yours did lit up (sort of) it sounded and looked liked it had issues igniting the fuel properly. which is usually an issue where the screen has partially melted or is clogged with soot.
yours could have the beginnigs of this issue, which is then compounded by the extreme cold temperatures and viscous fuel.
@@apple_with_a_human_butt yeah, I imagine many different languages called at differents.
Yeah, I think the extreme smokiness was a byproduct of some partly gelled up fuel. Although with both heaters and the engine itself in the extreme cold the exhaust vapours are a lot more visible than usual anyway.
But since the symptoms had multiple failed starts when I finally got it some sort of combustion it looked like it was spirting in some diesel but not enough to keep it going which was leading to the white smoke