Inline coolant heater

PetethePilot

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 8, 2001
Location
Kenora Ontario
TDI
2000 GLS Jetta Bright Green
Well it's been -30 C and below in Kenora this past week and many TDI's have failed to fire. I'm lucky I'm not one of them.
I want to help a friend who has a TDi that won't fire by installing an inline coolant heater from Crappy Tire. It seems to me there was a PDF in here somewhere that outlined the installation very well but doing a search I can't find it. I remember TDI FLY Guy had done a good one. Can someone direct me to the post or PDF file on the install?
Thanks in advance
Pete
 

tdipoet

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Feb 4, 2002
Location
hooksett, nh
TDI
'11 Jetta TDI
the zerostart isn't an inline heater, it's a tank type heater. from what i understand, an inline heater won't work for our cars.
 

tdipoet

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Feb 4, 2002
Location
hooksett, nh
TDI
'11 Jetta TDI
but it doesn't. you have to add hoses, and it's still a tank-type heater.

i have an inline coolant heater at home. trust me, it looks nothing like the zerostart. an inline heater is installed basically by cutting an inch out of your hose, slipping it in between, and clamping it up. that's it. there is no tank like on the zerostart.

the problem is, an inline heater won't work on the tdi. the coolant will never get warm enough near the thermostat to open it up, which is what you need. the zerostart actually circulates the coolant as a result of the heat differential.
 

DIESELprogrammer

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 15, 2003
Location
NorEastern, Washington, USA
TDI
Golf GLS, 2003, Silver/Gray
[ QUOTE ]
the zerostart isn't an inline heater, it's a tank type heater. from what i understand, an inline heater won't work for our cars.

[/ QUOTE ]

The Zerostart heater IS and “in-line” heater. All you have to do is cut a water line and connect the Zerostart heater between the cut ends. The reason we have to add hoses is only for mounting the heater in a convenient and lower position. The tank serves to provide an area for a larger heating element and more contact with the coolant than would be feasible in our small diameter water lines.

Of course the most common type of “in-line” heater we think about is the type that sits in the lower radiator hose – I have 5 vehicles with this type of heater.

Other types of heater can include:
Block – Usually replaces a freeze plug on the engine block.
Radiant – Heating pad that clips to the lower part of the radiator, or pad for oil pan – VW heater.
Dipstick heater.
 

PetethePilot

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 8, 2001
Location
Kenora Ontario
TDI
2000 GLS Jetta Bright Green
Thanks for digging the"Snowman" install out for me CanBlueGolf...
I have a couple of other questions.
1. the Zero Start heater in the install is 1000 watts. Is 1000W over kill, should I look for a similiar heater with say 600W?
2. Must the cars interior heat control knob be turned to the MAX HEAT position while the Zero Start is in operation to prevent damage to the cooling system?
Pete
 

canbluegolf

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 18, 2003
Location
Canada
PetethePilot, Glad to help /images/graemlins/smile.gif

The 1000 watt version works very well and I don't think it's overkill.
I really can't imagine my TDI without one now. You can always control how long it stays on for with a timer. They do have a 750W one but CDN Tire doesn't normally seem to stock it.

Unlike the older VW's, the heat control knob has no affect on coolant flow on A4's. To my knowledge no one has ever reported damage to the cooling system from a ZeroStart install and I don't see how it could. You can have "bad starts" if you plug the heater in on a cold car only 10-15 minutes before leaving. The reason for this is the computer will not fire the glow plugs because it sees the coolant temperature is high. Of course this situation can be easily avoided.

Steve
 
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