So i did a cummins conversion in 2010 and never lived anywhere cold, until now in the PNW. How does the fuel heater work and should i hook it up and how?

 

Just wire it to 12V through a switch with a light to indicate it's on and then use it when it gets down around freezing. If you get fuel with a high paraffin content it prevents it from gelling up and plugging your filter and things.

 

I wouldn't worry about it too much at all. The PNW should switch to #1 for the colder months anyways. That along with some winter fuel conditioner should keep you running just fine.

 

So alot of the diesel stations sell b20 diesel which i was a big fan of down south. should i stay away from b20 or will they blend it with the #1

 

I run the fuel heater, winter fuel, and the winter dose of Howes - I would rather go overboard than be gelled up on the side of the road changing my fuel filter on a -20° day with a 40 MPH north wind...

As said, just needs 12 volts and a ground.

 

I haul fuel for a living now, and up here in BC they automatically start blending the diesel for the colder weather at the terminal as I am loading my trailers with product....can't see why it would be much different down in WA/OR?

But as others have said, wire it to a lighted switch on the dash, simple 12V and ground, and run a good winter fuel conditioner...I use power service myself.

 

Even if you wire it up to run, I'd stay away from the b20 in the winter.

 

I'm curious why you'd stay away from b20?

I didn't think biodiesel gels any worse than petro diesel. I do know firsthand that the relatively new ULSD diesel gels much easier than the earlier LSD types, or any of the pre-low sulfur blends.

I actually prefer to mix in some b100 from one of the stations here in Anchorage for the extra lubricity. #1D is pretty bad in the lubricity department.

 

The bio does gel easier/warmer than the dino-diesel.... just like the ULSD gels easier/warmer than the LSD. But then again, Anchorage doesn't get near as cold as the interior.

I just run the #1 and add some 2-stroke and/or some Stanadyne PS or power service.

 

Depending on the base stock, many biodiesels will gel at above 50F. Further, many additives that are used with petro diesel will not lower the gel point of, or dissolve, the waxes in the biodiesel.

My understanding is that it is possible to treat biodiesel for winter use, so if you trust your retailer, it might be fine. But when you are trying to get a truck running by the side of the road, having fuel that doesn't respond to traditional anti-gel solvents, including K-1, can be a big problem . . .

 

So the switch can just stay on during cold weather? Or do you turn it off after a couple minutes?

 

If you have the original 1st gen heater, it is designed to have power applied to it at all times. (It has a super fancy ceramic heating element that is self-regulating.)

The 2nd gen elements have a thermostatic switch that operates them (they turn of at about 45 F fuel temp) -- that said, I ran one for years as a replacement for the original with constant power supplied to it. (This is when I lived in a place about 4 degrees warmer than Oliver . . .)

I would leave the switch on in cold weather.