Opinions please.............................................

Is it better to have your "winter tractor" in a heated building overnight and then take it out in the cold -- or better to store it in a cold building with an engine heater and then take it out into the cold?

Which would result in more water condensation in the oil?

Which would result in the least engine wear?

I would rather have it in a heated building. All the oils will be warm hyd and transmission, rear end etc. Diesel fuel will be warmer less likely to jell. Outside all you got is a warm engine.

Warm building, it will stay warm while you are using it. I had an old in ground silo that we used for a garage years ago, no starting problems, no frost on the seats or windows, just a different world--then I moved.

Generally, a heated building will have less moisture than the outside air and moisture in/on the tractor will have a chance to evaporate between uses.
An "Outside COLD" tractor can be pretty stiff and oil does not flow as well at "Winter Temps".

Ron..

Heated building is best.
I put a towel out of the clothes dryer on the tractor seat in zero degree weather, It helps keep my back side warm.

I truly wish that I had a heated space for my chore tractor this week. Yesterday it was -11F in the morning, and my tractor started fine. But even after 10 minutes of running I still couldn't raise the loader or steer.

One with a cab would have been nice today.

Quit worrying we used to grind feed at least twice a week for 3 pluss hrs on the hammermill for the hogs all in unheated conditions tractor salways was in a steel roffed machine shed and of course the corn crib wasnt heated either. When the oil was changed in the spring for field work a little moisture would drain out first but never any trouble with engine ect.

(quoted from post at 23:18:41 01/23/14) Is it better to have your "winter tractor" in a heated building overnight and then take it out in the cold -- or better to store it in a cold building with an engine heater and then take it out into the cold?

Which would result in more water condensation in the oil?

Which would result in the least engine wear?

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Heated building! Warm oil will flow better at start up. Engine will start easier. I wouldn't worry about condensation either way as long as you get it up to operating temp.

My guess is that you would use a lot less energy just using an engine heater, rather than heating the whole building, including the tractor.

Using an engine heater is a good idea on any engine, but is almost essential with lots of diesels. There are ways of starting dead cold engines, but it takes a lot of battery power and it would seem to be lots harder on the starter. I have read that a good share of engine wear occurs during cold starts. A plug-in engine heater works great.

Condensation in the engine is something I would not worry about unless the tractor never gets up to normal operating temperature. All engines have some way of getting rid of blow-by and other gasses in the crankcase. If that escape route is open (I suspect that later tractors have some sort of positive crankcase ventilation to the intake), then any moisture should go out of there. Checking the oil dipstick once in awhile should show if there is excess moisture.

I would LOVE to have a constantly heated building to store my tractors and other equipment in, but I don"t think that is ever going to happen for me. It would just cost too much, imho. Good luck!

Inside is always better, even if it's just a tin shed, but keep the door shut.

"Quit worrying"

EXACTLY!

I've lived up here on the tundra for 56 years, and NEVER have had a significant "condensation in the oil" issue. Of course, I change the oil at the end of the season, and keep the tractors out of the rain, as much as possible;e.

A warm building to keep your tractors in? Novel idea. I don't know of a single farm in my area with a heated storage building. Do such things really exist?

We've had several guys lose equipment by leaving a tractor in a shed plugged in overnight. Just sayin'...

In weather like this, -20F, I can get the tractors started, but I have to heat the hyd oil sump to get things flowing. Salamander worked great for that, till it died the other day. Now the big propane weed burner does the job.

Went out the other day at -20 and started the F150 field truck. Let it warm for a minute and put it in gear. Pretty sure I blew a seal in the auto tranny. Time to call the scrap car guy...

We have always keep our compact tractor JD750 in a heated building. Had it since 1982 ? Early days used it for mowing and snow removal. About half retired it for a few years and now Dad is back to using it for snow removal again. Still looks like brand new ! Never noticed any moisture signs when changing any of the oils.
Our big tractor the 4020 GAS has always set in an unheated pole barn with doors closed. Always started right up and didn't take too long to get hyd. going good. It would get ringing wet on the outside in the spring and fall sometimes from condensation. Changed the hyd. oil that had been in there awhile and didn't see any signs of moisture ?
So I do prefer to keep them in where there is some heat, but it doesn't seem to hurt them too bad if not heated. If I relied on them for everyday chores I'd sure as heck keep them inside with some heat ! Fire it up run out get stuff done and then put back away.

Be careful when bringing anything into a heated building that has been in severe cold that has hydraulics. Cold cylinders can blow seals and hoses when they get warmed up from being outside. Graders, backhoes, even front end loaders that have been used to lift a bale can blow things apart when heated.