Idle Time

[GDeen]

Just curious, how long will you let your bus idle on high running the A/C? EG, if you pull into a rest stop for a 15 minute lunch break, do you fire the generator and house air or leave the OTR (or drivers air) running with the engine on high idle? If not, what is the limit before you switch over?

[Joe Cannarozzi]

You can idle that bus for as long as you want. Is it prefferable, no, but it will not hurt anything especially if it is idled up.

A few times when I parked the Pete in spots where there was no plug, in Feb, in Chicago, I let it idle all weekend if I knew I had a good gig lined up for Monday morn I didn't want to miss.

[dalej]

Gordon, I have a 8v so I let mine idle just long enough to get my hand to the key switch after I pull the park brake.

BUT.... If I had a 60, I would start the generator a few minutes before reaching my stop and start the air. I just would rather run the generator then a big diesel under my bed.

That is the way I do it. I pull into rest areas to sleep.

[Jon Wehrenberg]

This is my habit and is not influenced by whether prolonged idling is good or bad.

When we are going to have lunch I start the generator usually at the rest area sign and run as many cruise airs as I think we need to stay comfortable. I do this so the generator is getting exercised. If we are just doing a single day drive it is likely we will be connected to shore power at the end of the day so this is an opportunity to blow the cobwebs out of the generator.

If I am pulling off the road just for a quick rest room break I just let the engine idle.

Before I shut the bus engine off I let it idle at low idle, AC off for a couple of minutes to cool down the turbo. On the 8V92 I would use the pyros as a guide to when the temps were down and it took a few minutes so I do the same with the current bus. If the turbo is hot when it is shut down you can get problems with coking of the oil in the bearings.

[phorner]

If we're only making a 10 - 15 minute stop, I'll let the bus idle. Other than that, I shut it down.

For us, running the generator during longer breaks depends on whether we need the AC or not.

Most generally, if we will be stopped for more than an hour or so, the generator will be fired up and, if we're spending the night, shut back down at bed time.

Does the generator good to use it.

[GDeen]

Alright, thanks guys. I know it is best to minimize idle time on the big engine but was just curious how anal everyone is on this topic. With the weather I have been traveling in lately, shutting down the A/C for any length of time is a non starter.

[Jon Wehrenberg]

Truckers idle their engines all night long so it is highly doubtful that if you choose to do that instead of running the generator you will do any harm.

[Jerry Winchester]

With OTR AC, I just put it on high idle and let it go. If I am going to be more than about 30 minutes, I'll start the generator or depending on the temp, just run the AC off the inverter.

I did learn to kill the OTR before I put the bus in the hanger. It generally pukes out a liberal amount of water when it shuts down. And I let the engine idle on low to cool the turbo off as well.

[GDeen]

I did also learn (was taught by Steve B) the value of shutting down the OTR compressor before driving on gravel, dirt or other loose debris. Creates quite a whirlwind of stuff blowing around. Interestingly, the Marathon owners manual suggests shutting off the OTR before pulling up to a fuel island as a matter of courtesy. Guess that demonstrates how powerfull the system is.

[Jon Wehrenberg]

Steve is in a world of trouble.

Telling a newbie to turn off the OTR AC before driving on gravel or dirt is just plain wrong. We never tell the newbies that because it is so much fun watching them pull into a dirt or gravel road and then seeing the dust storm that would make an Okie proud.

That's like giving away the secret handshake.