Diesel Truckmounts - Has Time Arrived ?

[Larry Cobb]

We are constructing a new Diesel powered truckmount.

The primary advantage will be increased fuel economy and longer engine life. HP will be in the mid-twenties, with torque equal to a 30 HP gas engine.

We expect the cost to be in the 17K area with a #4MP blower system(17" hg.) and HX system.

It will be packaged with fresh water tank, recovery tank, stainless silencers, triple reel and General pump system.

Do you think that system would have lower-cost operating advantages for your company?

Larry Cobb

P.S. We built some Diesel transmission PTO units many years ago.

 

[John Watson]

Larry, I have been out of the loop on this for years, Do new diesel enginies require some sort of cytalitic converter like gas engines in autos?

I have heard about our local busses getting sometype of exaust upgrade so there is no or very minamal harmful emmisions..

There was something on TV about diesel engines being used in coal mines and the harmful exausts were caught and disposed of in what looked like a large air in take filter.

 

[bob vawter]

diesel???

Ya..i had a Perkins powered "Big Red" back in the 70's....damn thing ran for twenty years till i sold it to a guy that i "believe" is STILL running it!

 

[Larry Cobb]

John;

No catalytic converters.

There have been regulations for large diesel engines to capture particulate from the exhaust.

Excessive idling is one of the concerns.

The 2-cylinder engine we are using has Electronic Fuel injection,
which eliminates most of the particulate.

Larry

 

[rhyde]

What kind of diesel engine are you using ?

 

[Brian R]

How noisy is that gonna be. And yes, my customers care.

 

[Larry Cobb]

Randy;

We are evaluating two different Diesels.

At the moment, the Lombardini engine (25 HP) is the leading entry. They have produced over 4 million engines, so they have been time-tested.

It has lots of torque @ 2000 RPM.

Noise doesn't seem to be excessive.

Kohler recently bought the long-time Italian manufacturer and supports them thru it's nationwide service centers.

Larry

 

[Lyman]

Is a diesel 20 % more fuel efficint then a gas engine( fuel cost). Any diesel over 1600 rpms starts to use more fuel as rpms increase more then a gas engine. Also you will need a extra tank for diesel unless truck is diesel. How about propane.......... By the way, love the powrmax.

 

[Dolly Llama]

How noisy is that gonna be. And yes, my customers care.

Brian, gas or diesel, it's the blower that makes the lion's share of noise on a TM

Larry, what RPM does the engine run while at "operating" speed?
what RPM is the blower spinning?

..L.T.A.

 

[Weebco]

Larry,
What kind of heat will be produced, you said it will have hx system.

 

[Larry Cobb]

Gary;

Heat exchanger capability looks very similar to a 26 HP gas engine.

Larry;

Maximum fuel efficiency is slightly over 2000 RPM.

Blower will be overdriven.

Fuel efficiency should be about 30% better than a similar power gas engine.

Larry

 

[KevinD]

I for one would never buy one. I have never been near a diesel engine that did not stink.
But that's just me, I hate diesel fumes.

 

[Lee Stockwell]

Probably you WERE around one that didn't stink.

You didn't hear it...you didn't smell it.

 

[TimP]

I'm starting to think propane will be the most efficient way to go cost wise. As it's about 25% less than gas and providing only 10% less output. Not to mention for burning it gives more heat which we need in TM's. I would like to see a heat exchange system fired by propane, with minimal restriction to the blower, and possibly a little giant to boost the heat. In a #5 blower set up....but it's not out there for sure.


Diesel is something I've been looking at too but the price of diesel negates any savings right now vs gas. Engine longevity is something to think about though because that could be a savings over buying multiple engines over a lifespan of a TM, and labor to instal them.

It really is hard to make a decision. But the way fuel is going up.....actually coming back down right now. But at the cost it is anyway I'm starting to think my next TM will be a slide in...fuel unknown at this point.

 

[The Preacher]

But the way fuel is going up.....actually coming back down right now. But at the cost it is anyway I'm starting to think my next TM will be a slide in...fuel unknown at this point.

i told ya you can have mine and all the accounts for a resonable fee!!!

 

[TimP]

Reasonable???? HAAAAA

I'm not interested in buying a business that isn't being run full steam ahead. I don't find much value in trying to buy other peoples customers, I don't see how anyone can say yeah they will use you cause they used them last year???? How do I know you did a good job or didn't screw them some how????? If I was going over your way to run a business I'd start up new and run a special for a while and go up high the next year and try to do the higher end business. Just my way of seeing it.

 

[Johnny]

KevinD:

Diesel is a manly scent. Like a horse barn or a fresh-caught bass.

 

[Walt]

If you run b5 biodiesel it wont smell nearly as bad. And personally i would be very interested in such a machine mounted in a sprinter van.

 

[Jimmy L]

Think of the soot in your van.

 

[John Watson]

We had a 53 M-37 Ambulance with a Diesel powered welder mounted in it used mainly for thawing frozen pipes in Alaska, Even with the exauhst piped to the outside, the interior stunk and blackened with soot all the time.

 

[Walt]

Couldn't that be fixed by plumbing the blow by tube out of the van? Also, I believe that the new low sulfur diesel should improve the exhaust soot situation.

I wonder how the aussies handle it?

 

[steve frasier]

I have been running B5 low sulfer diesel and the truck seems to get better gas mileage and runs better and doesn't smell

 

[Dolly Llama]

I wonder how the aussies handle it?

you ever been around sheep, Walt??
I thnk they have lots of sheep over there and New Zealand

diesel fumes/soot smell GOOD compared to a barn full of Bo-Peeps :mrgreen:


shoot, for that matter, diesel fumes smell better than most wet wool rugs...


...L.T.A.

 

[pHilh]

Have any of you blokes that are complaining about the smell ever owned a Steamway unit??

 

[floorguy]

why exchanger unit???

I mean if you got the fuel there, run a burner with it.. let that engine breathe so it can run better..

it likes torque but not choke..

 

[Dolly Llama]

Have any of you blokes that are complaining about the smell ever owned a Steamway unit??

been running a powermatic for over 12 years, Phil.

as long as you burn K-1 kero they don't stink.
Burn diesel in it and it smokes when it fires AND stinks.



..L.T.A.

 

[Clark]

We run Yanmar Diesels. Pricey but they are very dependable.

 

[Bob Foster]

Here is some additional perspective on diesel driven truckmounts. It is not all as logical and easy as it seems.

Great idea to have a low maintenance engine with its low rpm torque curve but,
Where are most people going to get service? Experience has shown that the typical small engine repair place really doesn't want to work on them.

Parts availability may be ok in many areas but very bad in others

Diesels must work to stay healthy. Very small diesels have historically been problematic for mechanical problems especially Lombardini on TMs. However B&S owning them now is of help.

The better very small diesels - those less than 25 hp such as the Isuzu or Yanmar are very good but expensive and also suffer with not having a readily accessed parts and service facility in many parts of the country (great engines).

Now if you step up to a 59 blower you can get into some interesting industrial diesels that have better service availability and better pricing. Engines like John Deere, Isuzu, Perkins, and other are well suited. These engine need to work to stay healthy too. They are unsuitable for smaller blowers because you can't keep them working enough.

Another problem with diesel engines in TMs is getting them to give up enough BTUs to adequately heat extraction water with a heat exchanger. This is why you see Vortex and Aerotech grabbing heat from the exhaust and other esoteric heat recovery methods.

 

[rhyde]

Couldn't that be fixed by plumbing the blow by tube out of the van? Also, I believe that the new low sulfur diesel should improve the exhaust soot situation

Biodiesel has higher soot content than ULDS diesel the “new” diesel vehicles with particulate filter traps cannot use Biodiesel over 10% including the sprinter and dodge Cummins without cloging the filters .

I have been running B5 low sulfer diesel and the truck seems to get better gas mileage and runs better and doesn't smell

I’ve been running b-20 in my dodge and the vortex IMO both run better on biodiesel mix and get a little better MPG than regular or ULSD diesel better lubrication and much less injector clatter. The first 2 filter I changed in my dodge after i switched to B-20 where black as a lump of coal the card lock pump I use has a filter system so now when I changed filters in the dodge and the UD they looked brand new.

 

[Jim Bethel]

I wonder how the aussies handle it?

you ever been around sheep, Walt??
I thnk they have lots of sheep over there and New Zealand

Larry, Larry Larry! We are two different countries.

Aussies = Australian's.
Kiwis = New Zealander's.

That's like me saying "I hear that all Americans carry guns. Well that is at least what I seen last time I visited Ottawa"

Jim