Running cold

Two weekends ago I replaced the water pump. The old pump must have been really bad because now my engine will not heat up, no matter how hard I push it. It used to get quite hot. Now, even after more than half an hour of hard work, the temperature gauge only gets to the very bottom of the operating temperature.

Now I'm looking at options for making the engine run hotter. I guess I can tweak the mixture (something I have no idea about). How do I do that?

What else should I be looking at?

Should I get a thermostat? I have not needed one before in the 3 years I have had this tractor.

- TS

If you do not have a t'stat I am surprised it ever warmed up let alone get hot. A t'stat is what makes the water get hot. Yes you should have one. Also how do you know your gauge is correct? You should get your water as hot as possible then take a thermometer and stick it in the radiator to check the temperature. If the temp. is on the cool side then you can figure your gauge is not going to show very hot.

The engine should definitely have a thermostat or it will never get hot. You don't say what engine you have, if it is a Continental it will be in the top hose and if it is a Standard Engine it will be in the housing the top hose attaches too. The Continental should have a thermostat that opens at 140deg F fully open at 199deg F and a Standard engine should open at 147deg F and fully open at 171deg F. Don't tweak the mixture to make it run hotter as that will burn the valves. If you want to know how to set the Carb, email me and I will send you the info, just tell me what the engine is. If you run without a thermostat the engine will create sludge in the oil pan and that will mix with the oil and cause premature wear, it will also be less economical and have less power. If you set the Carb you should check the Ignition timing as well just to make sure things are right. Even when you have thermostat fitted you will find that the engine will not get hot enough in your really cold weather conditions, so you should blank off the bottom part of the Radiator so that it will not draw cold air in through the coldest part of the radiator, they can freeze up even when the engine is running in very cold weather unless they are working hard. If you blank the radiator keep checking the temperature that it does not overheat and don't block the Radiator instead of fitting a new thermostat. A thermostat will keep the temperature automatically, blanking it wont. An engine should always have a thermostat fitted even in warm weather to keep the engine at the best operating temperature, it is designed to run within a given temperature range..John. [email protected]

Install the thermostat so you engine will run at the correct operating temperature. Otherwise your clearnaces will not be correctand the fuel usage and wear will be high. Your oil will tend to sludge because the condensed water in the crankcase will not evaporate.

Thanks for the replies. It is a TED20, so standard engine.

I have ordered a thermostat. Before my latest round of maintenance I have never needed one for it to heat up, but I agree it makes sense to have one. I am looking forward to the extra power and heat!

The coldest weather we ever get is about 0º Celsius, and I would normally be inside by the fire in those conditions. The coldest conditions that I would run the tractor in would be about 10º!

Then again, in Summer it can get close to 40º.

- TS
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