Engine block heaters are devices for warming up your engine, oil and engine coolant in cold weather. These heaters are mounted in the area surrounding the cylinder or against the engine block, and can be plugged into standard household outlets. Engine block heaters help enable faster and easier starts during winter, when an engine might not normally turn over.
Even when you start up your car under normal conditions, the engine undergoes maximum wear and expends the most fuel. Cold weather only exacerbates these problems, because the fuel does not burn as readily and oil resists flow.
A car battery loses power in cold weather, making it less able to crank the starter motor sufficiently to start the engine. Block heaters do not only warm engine fluids and metal parts, but also the battery, saving wear on both.
A warm engine also means the air in the cabin interior warms up faster, keeping you and your passengers comfortable.
The thermostat in a block heater saves on the power required to keep the engine coolant warm. It turns the heater on and off depending on the coolant temperature.
A cold engine needs more fuel to operate, making it less energy-efficient and increasing the level of emissions in the air. The faster an engine warms up, the less it pollutes the air.
