Air cooled engines and heat

Hello,

I have a Deutz with an air cooled engine. I plan to brush hog this weekend but temps are forecasted to be in the upper 90's approaching 100. This tractor is an old 5506 and most of the indicator lights are inop. How can I prevent overheating the engine?

Make sure the cooling fins are clean and all the air shrouds are in place.

Air cooled engines were designed for the cool climate of northern Europe, where 80 degrees is a hot day. When Deutz put Deutz engines on Gleaner combines, the dealers and custom harvester guys said that Deutz couldn't haul in replacement engines fast enough, especially when they were cutting in Kansas and Oklahoma. Custom harvesters expect machines that will work hard in the hot climate.

If it was mine, I would fix the inoperative indicator lights, gages, etc., inspect the cooling fins, air inlets, screens, etc., for debris and mow away.

Dean

cut early in mornings maybe late in evening.

Why Worry:

"How can I prevent overheating the engine?"

With a COLD engine, remove any air shrouds and THOROUGHLY pressure wash the engine, paying particular attention to the COOLING FINS. After washing make certain that you have re-installed ALL of the air shrouds. Then, when operating your machine, particularly in DUSTY conditions, periodically blow out the engine with compressed air.

Years ago, when I worked underground in the Mines in Death Valley, California USA , all of our ScoopTrams (underground front-loaders) & Dump Trucks were powered by air cooled Deutz engines. Colemanite, the mineral we were mining is formed by HOT mineral waters, and some of the lower areas of the Mine where the air circulation wasn't that great would create Temps nearing 100 degrees with about 90 percent Humidity. These areas were so hot & humid that the Company had to install huge Chiller Fans so that we could work down there; and even then we could only work for about 20 minutes at a time without risking Heat Exhaustion or possibly Heat Stroke.

The Deutz engines worked flawlessly as they were supposed to, but we DID wash them out and blow them out several times per shift, because being a Mine with a lot of vehicles moving around in a "confined space" we did have a severe DUST problem.

Doc -
Top Millwright / Senior Underground Mine Maintenance Mechanic

Start as early as you can see in the morning, come in for lunch. That might be 6 or 7 huors. I think you deserve a nap then.

worx for me ,, then go bak out after 3

I am surprised no one mentioned fully synthetic oil, it has a much higher operating temperature and flash point.

My first car was an air cooled VW and I have had many over the years. I still rebuild them and use the advice my friend gave me when I was 13. If you think it is running hot, spit on it. If it sizzles it is too hot. Head temps on air cooled run 350 normally, so don't spit there. The block is a good indicator. I've only had one get hot in all of my years and it was my own fault. The timing wasn't set right.

If the flow of air isn't obstructed and the timing is set right you won't be able to overheat it. Think of your lawnmower. If the cooling fins are clean she will run just fine on a 100 degree day.

Back in the day I always put cylinder head temp gauges from JC Whitney on all of my engines to monitor them. They weren't expensive and were only mechanical so fairly foolproof. I'd image you should be able to get the same now. I have four old VWs left. I only drive them on nice days. Funny how when you can afford a car with A/C you don't seem to be able to be without it!

(quoted from post at 13:26:11 07/17/15) Hello,

I have a Deutz with an air cooled engine. I plan to brush hog this weekend but temps are forecasted to be in the upper 90's approaching 100. This tractor is an old 5506 and most of the indicator lights are inop. How can I prevent overheating the engine?

Click to expand...

Would repairing the instrumentation cost less than a ruined engine?
As long as the find are clean, the fan at full speed without slippage from worn pulleys and glazed belts and shrouds are in place. You won't be able to overheat the engine if operated at full rated rpms.

I have two Deutz tractors, make sure your cooling fins are clean, fan belt is good, you will be fine. I have run mine for hours, come up shut down the tractor and you can check the oil, wipe the dipstick with your fingers, the oil is not even more than luke warm. Some people make all kinds of claims about cooler climate etc... Have not seen any truth to that at all, but KEEP THE FINS CLEAN.

AC made tractors like that in some of the later models they were not air cooled people called them nnalert tractors

(quoted from post at 14:14:09 07/17/15) I am surprised no one mentioned fully synthetic oil, it has a much higher operating temperature and flash point.

Click to expand...

Should work if it doesn't take out the seals - I remember that back in the day only 2 oils that were approved for air-cooled engines like Harleys and Cushman because using a 'paraffin -based' oil was bad for air-coolers due to their higher operating temp. The 2 oils were: Harley Pre-luxe and Royal Triton Purple.

If you are worried, go to a Harbor Freight store or order online an Infrared non contact thermometer....get on their site and do a search for it. Price varies as they are usually on sale for about $30. Just take it with you and when you get worried, point it at what you want to monitor with the temp set to C or F to suit you and pull the trigger. You can hold the trigger down and move it around and it will tell you any temp in view. It is a conical radiation pattern so the farther away from an object the more things come into the cone and you get an average. 8" away on something like an engine block would be appropriate.

Also synthetic oil helps too. I am a believer in it in all my air cooled mowers and it runs the full year rather than having to change a couple of times with dino. One thing I found that I didn't expect. The mowers don't run as hot as I expected. The worst I have found on a crankcase after a hot, hard workout was just over 200F. Obviously the exhaust is hot, my mufflers run about 600 and the heads and cylinders around 275. The thermostat in my 2011 Silverado gasser is rock solid at 210F and they insist on syn. blend to save your warranty......I forget their trumped up name for it. I noticed my Mobil 1 now has that certification.....Dexose or something like that.

But the other guys hit the other important stuff and that was engine hygiene before you start and a good belt that is tightened to spec for the fan and work when it's cool.

If you have 90° or 100° air flowing across clean cooling fins you'll be fine. You'll still be lowering the temp by quite a bit with ambient air temp of 90 or 100 F. I've seen engineers put a Deutz Air Cooled Welder/Air Compressor combo into a bread truck and close it up with it running to see what would happen. It melted the little plastic warning light lenses on the control panel at the one end and the engine was fine. The exhaust and intake was vented to the outside of the truck. It was used as a repair truck and they wanted to be able to close it up while it ran so no one would steel the tools out of it while the welder was inside a building making repairs etc.

Like others said if the fins are clean and the belt is tight no problem. I think Rommel's tanks had this engine in the Sahara

Air or liquid cooled you have to be aware of temp when brush hogging. I did some mowing this June a few weeks earlier than usual. I expected with less seed heads there would be less accumulating in the radiator screen, but it turned out to be about the same amount of time that I had to stop and clean out.

I have a friend with a Agco 9130 air cooled pulls a 15 foot batwing over 500 or so acres every August in SE Illinois. Thinks the fan blows the fescue seed right through the fins.