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Engine Preheaters and Moisture

T

Tcheairs

Well Known Member
I posted a thread hoping to determine whether or not leaving my engine pre heater (a 500w ceramic heater ducted to the lower cowl of my RV7A) on all the time was a contributor to moisture formation inside the XIO 360. I also run my engine dehumidifier all the time also. The thread went on and on with many different opinions and also some test results.

Subsequently I found the following article written by Ken Sutton who did comprehensive extensive testing on his twin Cessna 310. It pretty much settles the question for me and I am posting it in hopes that it will shed some light for others who ponder the question of non stop preheat and dehumidification to defeat internal engine moisture.

https://www.reiffpreheat.com/Article-Sutton.pdf

I'd appreciate comments if any
 

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  • Engine Humidity Ken Sutton.pdf
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Considering that you can make an engine dryer for about $20 and it takes 30 seconds to connect it to your engine after putting it in the hangar, it sure seems like it has a good ROI.

If you want to go "all the way" and buy the more expensive Black Max or DryBot, it's got a good return if you can avoid rusted cam lobes.
 
I run a Blackmax on my Dakota all the time. I have a mostly broken Tanis system, that I have a new kit for, but haven't installed yet. My plan is to only turn on for the coldest months here in Houston, so like Dec, Jan, Feb or maybe less. I'm planning the same for the RV14A.
 
Tcheairs said:
I posted a thread hoping to determine whether or not leaving my engine pre heater (a 500w ceramic heater ducted to the lower cowl of my RV7A) on all the time was a contributor to moisture formation inside the XIO 360. I also run my engine dehumidifier all the time also. The thread went on and on with many different opinions and also some test results.

Subsequently I found the following article written by Ken Sutton who did comprehensive extensive testing on his twin Cessna 310. It pretty much settles the question for me and I am posting it in hopes that it will shed some light for others who ponder the question of non stop preheat and dehumidification to defeat internal engine moisture.

https://www.reiffpreheat.com/Article-Sutton.pdf

I'd appreciate comments if any
Click to expand...
Fantastic Article! As I age, and begin to fly less, i really need to implement a dehydrator on the new engine.
 
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