[EAS] [BC] a note of interest

[Tim Stoffel]

Another good solution, in addition to insulating the fuel tank, would be
to circulate some of the engine coolant to tubing wrapped around the
tank, to help keep it warm. I don't think you would have to add too much
heat-- perhaps a 1/4 inch or 3/8 inch line wrapped around the tank,
under the insulation. This becomes worth the effort if you are subject
to longer outages.

Insulation would also make electric fuel heat more practical, if this is
a way you want to go. If I were going to do an electric fuel heat
system, I would consider using some of the self-regulating heat tapes
that are readily available, and can be custom-tailored to your
requirements. Without doing the math, I think the amount of electrical
power required to heat the fuel would not be very much compared the
other loads you have on site. I would not want to run more than about
100 watts of heat in a typical fuel tank heater. All in all, using waste
engine heat makes much more environmental sense, even though it involves
moving a liquid around.

For those of you in cold climates, a battery heater, in addition to a
block heater, is a good idea. For a personal installation, I am looking
at putting a generator ins well-insulated shed and heating the whole
shed to 100 degrees. The heat source would be radiation from the engine
mass heated by the block heater. When the generator starts, louvers open
to allow normal cooling. If engineered properly, this should greatly
reduce the amount of power required by the block heater, in return for a
somewhat uncomfortable environment in which to service the generator. It
might even be enough to consider running the block heater off solar
power during the day.

> Someone else mentioned piping the generator's return fuel line to the
main tank instead of a day tank. This
> would continually add a small amount of heat to the reservoir, so
maybe a simple fiberglass tank wrap is enough.