Letting the tow truck sit

[Renegade1LI]

The other big item is don’t let a vehicle sit on tires for extended periods of time. Long-term inactivity is more harmful to tires than weekly drives. Driving on your tires will help flex the tire and maintain oil dispersion within the rubber compounds.

[beeje]

Our truck sits most of the time. Weeks at a time. I drive it to work occasionally or when I'm off, to lowes of wherever. Still has to the OEM batteries. 45k on the odo

[TLightning]

Top off the fuel tank fuel and use a biocide, NOT a stabilizer. I use Biobor and get it at West Marine:

https://www.westmarine.com/search?Ntt=biocide

[mtlakejim]

Good info folks. Many thanks

[steiny93]

Running or not running a diesel will have zero impact on tank growth. Avoiding contaminated fuel is your only prevention; the additives do very little (we had a truck come in that was contaminated; additives didn't cut it).

Diesel doesn't have the stable issue that gas does; you aren't going to 'varnish' up a diesel injection system like a gas engine will.

For long durations storage; either put a battery tender on the batteries or disconnect a negative. The amount of runtime you need to get ahead of a cold start is significant; starting without usage is doing more damage then good in my opinion (hard to quantify however).

I'm in ND; my HDT (volvo semi) would sit 6 months at a time without starting; left the batteries on a tender; zero issues over 5 years. Doing the same with a 6.7 cummins in a Ram; no issues yet. We do the same with our heavy equipment.

[2008 Montana 2955rl]

Originally Posted by mtlakejim

How long is too long to let big bertha sit. We don't use the 1 ton very much at present since we are locked into one location due to work. Wife has a new SUV and I have a work truck. Is there an issue with letting the 1 ton diesel just sit there for extended time frames?

I have taken diesel cars that had sat for 25 years or more in a barn and were never started during that time. All I would do was put in a new battery and put on new tires then drive the car from Texarkana to Dallas. Never had issues with them after sitting so long. Keep the battery charged and don't keep it stored on dirt or it will rust. Drive it occasionally to keep the tires round. You will have no problem.

[N1282X]

This is exactly why i tow with a 2003 F-350. The high price of a large truck cannot be justified when its primarily a tow vehicle. We have worked hard for the money we have saved and im not going to blow it on an extravagance.

[steiny93]

Originally Posted by 2008 Montana 2955rl

I have taken diesel cars that had sat for 25 years or more in a barn and were never started during that time. All I would do was put in a new battery and put on new tires then drive the car from Texarkana to Dallas. Never had issues with them after sitting so long. Keep the battery charged and don't keep it stored on dirt or it will rust. Drive it occasionally to keep the tires round. You will have no problem.

Last week we pulled a diesel pickup that had been sitting for 19 years out of one of our buildings. Had 'pets' in the air cleaner, vacuumed those out, changed the engine oil and made sure it had coolant. New battery and it started after a very short crank cycle.

[drjjj]

2015 Ford SuperDuty F350 Platinum CC 4WD. Before I retired the truck got driven at least 5 days per week. Went on a hunting trip for about two weeks twice while still working. DW likes her SUV so truck sat. Came back to dead batteries after both trips. After I retired battteries died again twice when the truck sat for 7-10 days at a time. Went to three different dealers and a "specialty shop" that only dealt with electrical problems. Conclusion: due to the constant draw on the batteries from radio presets, alarm, etc., etc., I was told either drive the truck every 3-5 days or put a battery tender on it. Had Southwest Wheel here in San Antonio install a battery tender that charges both batteries and has the male plug on the front of the truck for easy access to an extension cord. Since then I plug it in if I am not going to drive it for a week or more and so far no more problems.

[TDury]

I’m in Florida and my F350 sits for lengthy periods. My problem was a family of squirrels took up home in the engine and chewing fuel lines and wires. All in all it was about $2000 in damages (insurance covered less deductible). Now I buy Fox Pee to try to discourage them from returning.

[JABURKHOLDER]

Something to consider is lubrication. Bearings get lubricated. Seals get lubricated. After prolonged sitting, and not running the engine, the oil will drain from the bearings creating a potential dry start situation. Also seals can dry out and start to leak.
Just saying.

[steiny93]

Originally Posted by Renegade1LI

I always keep a quart or two of diesel 911 & a spare fuel filter in addition to adding conditioner at each fill up. Most diesel problems tend to occur in the winter once it drops below 17 deg, untreated fuel will start to gel. Most stations in cold regions switch to treated fuel for the winter but a few times I got untreated fuel in canada & had to add 911. There is no down side to treating your fuel with a quality conditioner at each fill up like kleen diesel, use the silver bootle above 30 deg & the white below 30 deg. A couple times a year I add bio clean, than change the filters in a few weeks.

I live where its cold (-30s ambient), fuel problems in cold weather are simple to mitigate, use #1. The world of fuel treatments is a mess; just stay away and use the right fuel for the right conditions. I don't have a single can of diesel treatment in any of my diesels.

Spend some time with the folks building the fuel delivery systems for modern engines; ask them about fuel treatments. You will absolutely not get a go ahead and use them response, you'll get use clean fuel spec'd for your conditions response.

[mlh]

[QUOTE=steiny93;1173571

Spend some time with the folks building the fuel delivery systems for modern engines; ask them about fuel treatments. You will absolutely not get a go ahead and use them response, you'll get use clean fuel spec'd for your conditions response.[/QUOTE]


Have you spent time with these people? If you have tell us what you have learned from them and what companies they represent.
Thanks Lynwood

[mtlakejim]

Originally Posted by N1282X

This is exactly why i tow with a 2003 F-350. The high price of a large truck cannot be justified when its primarily a tow vehicle. We have worked hard for the money we have saved and im not going to blow it on an extravagance.

You have to understand that we are unexpectedly stuck away from our home state (where we have an estate with tractor and use for the large truck other than the 5th wheel). My career took me to Southeast New Mexico for a few years. Once we retire the truck will go back to much heavier use.

At the time of purchase the 5th wheel was more of an extravagance than the truck. I needed the truck for our property and fairly frequent heavy towing. The 5th wheel was for fun-----when we bought it. Oddly it turned out to be a very wise investment as it kept us from having to buy a ridiculously priced sticks and bricks here in the middle of an oil boom. We were very fortunate to also find a nice campground away from the man camps. We have great neighbors.

I will say this though. The truck doesn't feel like an extravagance when I have a 42' 5th wheel behind us in the mountains!!! When towing I have absolutely no regrets we bought a 1 ton dually long bed. When we take the kayaks down to the river or pull the tractor out into a field I am glad I bought the 4x4.

Not everyone has the same needs or use for trucks. We needed a beast and that is what I bought plain and simple.

[Renegade1LI]

Originally Posted by steiny93

I live where its cold (-30s ambient), fuel problems in cold weather are simple to mitigate, use #1. The world of fuel treatments is a mess; just stay away and use the right fuel for the right conditions. I don't have a single can of diesel treatment in any of my diesels.

Spend some time with the folks building the fuel delivery systems for modern engines; ask them about fuel treatments. You will absolutely not get a go ahead and use them response, you'll get use clean fuel spec'd for your conditions response.

This is off the power stroke web site

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[TLightning]

Any company that sells any fuel additive will have a list of benefits just like Ford does. Their claims are all the same as well....the additive does all and cures all. I use Power Service from Wally World. However, none are biocides to protect the fuel when sitting.

[prndl]

Originally Posted by steiny93

Running or not running a diesel will have zero impact on tank growth. Avoiding contaminated fuel is your only prevention; the additives do very little (we had a truck come in that was contaminated; additives didn't cut it).

Diesel doesn't have the stable issue that gas does; you aren't going to 'varnish' up a diesel injection system like a gas engine will.

For long durations storage; either put a battery tender on the batteries or disconnect a negative. The amount of runtime you need to get ahead of a cold start is significant; starting without usage is doing more damage then good in my opinion (hard to quantify however).

I'm in ND; my HDT (volvo semi) would sit 6 months at a time without starting; left the batteries on a tender; zero issues over 5 years. Doing the same with a 6.7 cummins in a Ram; no issues yet. We do the same with our heavy equipment.

What battery tender are you using for both batteries in your RAM?

[Dreamersandtravelers]

Check under the hood frequently for rodents nesting. Maybe add some diesel fuel treatment for algae prevention. Avoid 'starting' engine without running long enough to recharge what is drained when starting. Biggest issue we had at fire dept. Started daily checked pump the turned off. Drained battries too low in a month or so.

[daveinaz]

Sitting for long periods (with batteries tended to) is better than starting it up for short trips.

[mlh]

Originally Posted by mlh

My truck sets for months at a time in the tractor shed. It only has 500 miles on it in the last 18 months. I keep a CTEK battery charger on it that I got at our Interstate battery distributor. It charges your battery while maintaining them. Some chargers will boil the water out and ruin them. These won’t do that and won’t ruin your battery.
Lynwood

This is the one I use for both batteries.