as a new ram diesel owner,i am still curious as to the do's and don't's. my winters are about 10 degrees f. averagewhen should i start plugging in my heater. also what do ya'll think is the best antifreeze for our cummins diesel's?. i also read that some guy's have experienced a cracking or popping sound after plugging their heater in , is this normal?. also ,do you plug your heater in all night, or just a while before you have to leave?

 

I start plugging mine in when the night time temps drop below 40 or so, but that's mainly because my drive to work is pretty short and every little bit of heat helps. It'll start just fine at that temp and a lot lower, though, without the heater.

Lots of guys run them on timers and allow 3-4 hours before when they have to leave. Leaving it plugged in all night will obviously cost a bit more in electricity, and it might shorten the life of the block heater a bit. I haven't found the cost of electricity to be prohibitive, and the price of the part if you have to replace it isn't all that much, either, so I normally don't put mine on a timer. If it's in the garage, it's plugged in.

I needed some antifreeze to top off a while back and bought some pre-mix with a Cummins "C" logo on it at Wal-Mart, but they don't seem to be carrying it anymore, so I plan to go to the local Cummins store next time I need some.