Block Heater?

PIPEHITTERS

Member
Joined
Oct 24, 2012
Location
U.S.A
TDI
06 1.9l TDI
So i have an 06 Jetta TDI and live in Alaska. I have been looking at getting a block heater for the car. I read to look at frost-heater and that they are the best. So I looked and I like. But talking with the shop here they said that VW dose not make block heaters for the newer models and they prefer you do pan heaters instead because the aftermarket block heater might cause problems.

Anyone deal with any thing like this?
 

rudall42

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 17, 2009
Location
carbondale, colorado
TDI
Jetta 03, NB 05
frostheater kicks

The frost heaters are well worth the money. Here in Colorado plugging a 03 Jetta in for as little as 30 minutes make the car start much easier in temps
down to 10 F to 0F.

20 below? plug it in, or put it on a timer, for a couple of hours and they
fire right up. With a good battery, you don't need to plug the cars in down to
0F in my experience, but they start a lot easier, less cranking, quicker idling if you do, even for 30 to 60 minutes.
 

cvalentine

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 7, 2003
Location
Anchorage, AK
TDI
2003 Golf, 2014 328d
Our frostheater works great. They are much less trouble than a pan heater. My guess is the shop only has pan heaters to sell you.
 

jettawreck

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 2, 2004
Location
Northern Minnesota-55744
TDI
2001 Jetta and 2003 Jetta
Our frostheater works great. They are much less trouble than a pan heater. My guess is the shop only has pan heaters to sell you.
Bingo!! Shop has pan heaters to sell/install. They have been known to cause some problems, also. Like falling off the pan and into the belly pan and starting a fire. They also don't do much except warm your oil unless you keep them plugged in all the time.
The frostheater/zerostart coolant heaters are the way to go. Couple hours and start like summertime.
 

MonsterTDI09

TDIClub Enthusiast, Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 3, 2009
Location
NoVa/NJ
TDI
2010 Jetta DSG/ up keep on 2009 Jetta DSG 2006 Jetta Pag 2 in North SEA Green
So is the frostheater safe and why would vw not make a block heater for the newer vw's?
They do sell them in Canada. The frost heater is cheaper.The frost heater also has a higher watt heater than VW does.
 

cvalentine

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 7, 2003
Location
Anchorage, AK
TDI
2003 Golf, 2014 328d
So is the frostheater safe and why would vw not make a block heater for the newer vw's?
VW doesn't make a pan heater either. Our local dealer sells aftermarket pan heaters because they are easy to install. I had the local dealer install mine (they install them on all new cars they sell), they used duct tape, and it caught on fire. :eek: I didn't even get an apology.:mad:
 

PIPEHITTERS

Member
Joined
Oct 24, 2012
Location
U.S.A
TDI
06 1.9l TDI
So how do the frostheaters work? Are they a block of metal that heats the other metal around it or is it pumping hot fluids through the block or something?
 

jrip

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 17, 2005
Location
Fort Worth, TX
TDI
Jetta, 2000, Blue, TOTALED, Jetta, 2002, Green
The Frost heater is connected inline with the water cooling system and heats one side of the water system. What happens is it heats a good part of the motor and when you crank the motor it starts immediatly and the engine gets warm water circulating immediatly. It even allows the heater to blow warm air immediatly to take the chill out of the cabin although it won't keep blowing hot for too long until the engine catches up completely heatwise.:cool:
 

jtnf

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 28, 2012
Location
SE Massachusetts
TDI
2015 B7 Passat
+1 for the frostheater.
Physically it is a (high quality) commodity electric coolant heater in an external tank... I believe the heater is from the agricultural and commercial equipment market.
Frost packages it with a bracket and molded hose and instructions, and is effective at pre-heating the coolant and oil but as observed the temp will fall upon engine start when the coolant starts circulating.
Mine is the only "mod" I've made to the car and I find it well worth the price of admission, even in "balmy boston."
 

PeterV

TDIClub Enthusiast, HO5G Doyen & Zen Master
Joined
Aug 17, 2000
Location
So, NH.
TDI
2000 Jetta 5 sp.
Frostheater.com.

OK Terry IS a TDIclub supporter. You are getting all this free info with NO popups or tacky ads....why we support with donations and vendors do the same thing.

W used to have a magnetic heater. 1. the would fall off and burn the plastic belly pan.. 2. VW went with an alum oil pan magnetic did not work so well there.

I have all 3 of our TDI with the frost heater. ZERO problems.

An added feature is it is located under the battery AND it gives off some heat to the battery and keeps the battery life a bit longer. I got 7 years out of my orig batt.
 

coalminer16

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Dec 11, 2008
Location
Central Wisconsin
TDI
Golf 2004
It is an "in-line heater" since it doesn't go into the block as there is no plugs to fit into the block. And it heats the engine warmer then operating temps (get a scangauge II if you don't believe it). 4 hours is the sweet spot to get the engine warm and not wast added power heating the engine most have found. A x-mas light timer can take care of the timing for you.
 

PIPEHITTERS

Member
Joined
Oct 24, 2012
Location
U.S.A
TDI
06 1.9l TDI
I like what i hear and read im digging the frostheater. One more question why is the dealership saying there aren't any thing that will fit because of freeze plugs. So where and what are these freeze plugs?
 

jrip

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 17, 2005
Location
Fort Worth, TX
TDI
Jetta, 2000, Blue, TOTALED, Jetta, 2002, Green
There are holes in the block that are designed as a safety feature. They go into the water jacket and have plugs in them. The concept is that if you fail to have proper antifreeze protection in your cooling system that if the water freezes it will push out the plugs(freeze plugs) instead of cracking the block. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't. If an engine has a freeze plug, then you can take it out and install a block heater that is directly mounted into the motor block. Hense block heater. The Frost heater is actually externally mounted and connected to the cooling system with hoses.
 

DrewD

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 23, 2004
http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=163113 is a link for a do-it-yourself install on a 1500 watt zerostart heater. http://www.farmandfleet.com/product...ries-8000-tank-circulation-engine-heater.html is one source for this heater but if you are lucky, you can find one cheaper. I was able to buy several new ones on Ebay for cheap a while back. DONT' FORGET TO REMOVE THE CHECK VALVE IF YOU DO USE THIS HEATER.

While the frost heater is nice, it is only 1000 watts and I found I liked 1500 watts better when warming up an engine at -20 deg F. The thermostat has a thermostat so it won't hurt the engine using higher wattage

The benefit of 1500 watts is that it took much faster to warm the engine up in cold weather and I had instant interior heat after an hour of use.

Hope my post helps.
 
Last edited:

PIPEHITTERS

Member
Joined
Oct 24, 2012
Location
U.S.A
TDI
06 1.9l TDI
So i read from frostheaters testimonials. (Just be sure to use vw coolant 50/50 mix with distilled water for refill top off.) So before I install i need to drain and then refill when im done with the install?
 

SuburbanTDI

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 5, 2004
Location
Midwest
TDI
Beetle TDI, and two Jetta TDI
DONT' FORGET TO REMOVE THE CHECK VALVE IF YOU DO USE THIS HEATER.

I wouldn't mind the 1500 Watt myself, I take it that removal of the check-valve is pretty straight forward? Also, do you know how the unit size compares between the 1000 and 1500? Does it use the same case?

Thanks.
 

Vince Waldon

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Apr 25, 2009
Location
Edmonton AB Canada
TDI
2001 ALH Jetta, 2003 ALH Wagon, 2005 BEW Wagon
Trust me, a 1000w unit is plenty for this application.
2X....1000W is more than enough for Edmonton where we see -25F with regularity.

And, at least where I live, the 1500W version draws more power than a lot of outdoor parking lots will provide. :)
 

rudall42

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 17, 2009
Location
carbondale, colorado
TDI
Jetta 03, NB 05
1000 w is plenty

There's only about 6-7 quarts of AF in your car. Call it 13 pounds.

1000 watts for an hour is 3412 btu. One btu raises one pound of
water about 1 degree F. So, if there weren't an engine to warm,
all that cold metal, your minus 20 AF solution would boil in
190x13/3412.... about 40 minutes. Cheap timer plugged into
an outlet works just fine. Good product. The extra 500 w aren't needed.
 
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