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Old 07-16-13, 10:47 PM   #1
NiHaoMike
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Default Thermal storage crankcase heater?

After an experiment to induction heat a compressor for crankcase heating with 5 turns of AWG18 wire connected to a modified PC power supply (very successfully, I should add), I realized how silly it is to be making heat in a device that is supposed to cool, even more so when the discharge line is very hot in operation.

So what about route the discharge line through an insulated container full of wax? The hot gas melts the wax, storing the heat. Later, as needed, a pump can circulate water (or some other coolant) through a copper coil in the container as well as one thermally glued to the sump of the compressor, acting as the crankcase heater.

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