My truck is frozen; advice?

Discussion in 'Experienced Truckers' Advice' started by Kshaw0960, Feb 4, 2023.

  1. Kshaw0960

    Kshaw0960 Road Train Member

    1,575
    4,969
    Jun 17, 2018
    0
    Other night I parked the truck and went to sleep. Was -19 degrees and a “feels like -31” on the weather app. Woke up at midnight to the low air alarm. Checked the truck and the air dryer hose broke. I ended up walking to a hotel and fixed it in the morning. I did put howes anti gel in the truck 200 miles prior.

    However now the truck won’t start at all. Everything is frozen solid it feels like. Then the next day it was 2 degrees at the warmest.

    How f’ed am I, and what can I do.
     
  2. Truckers Report Jobs

    Trucking Jobs in 30 seconds

    Every month 400 people find a job with the help of TruckersReport.

  3. Kenworth6969

    Kenworth6969 Road Train Member

    2,295
    6,207
    Jul 3, 2020
    0
    Hopefully you put enough antigel for that extreme cold.
     
    Rideandrepair Thanks this.
  4. DUNE-T

    DUNE-T Road Train Member

    6,366
    14,939
    May 10, 2015
    Detroit, MI
    0
    Tow it to a repair shop and let it thaw out inside
     
  5. Kenworth6969

    Kenworth6969 Road Train Member

    2,295
    6,207
    Jul 3, 2020
    0
    This is one reason I don't turn the truck off when it gets below 0.
     
  6. DUNE-T

    DUNE-T Road Train Member

    6,366
    14,939
    May 10, 2015
    Detroit, MI
    0
    Or you can rent a generator from Home Depot to plug in your block heater for a few hours and then start the truck if your batteries are not dead
     
  7. Gliding ProStar

    Gliding ProStar Heavy Load Member

    829
    5,835
    Nov 12, 2016
    Waxahachie, Texas
    0
    Getting the truck towed to a shop and put indoors like one of the other posts says is a good idea and may be the quickest way to get it thawed out.

    I've been in this situation once before and luckily the place I was at let me use their sink to get hot water. I had anti-gel in the tanks but the fuel lines and the fuel filter was frozen. So, I'd fill up about 12 gallon jugs at a time and walk them next door in a shopping cart and fill them up. I poured the hot water all over the fuel filter and fuel lines and got them unthawed enough to get it started.

    If you don't have easy access to hot water I would have it towed and put indoors.
     
  8. AModelCat

    AModelCat Road Train Member

    27,627
    144,550
    Jul 7, 2015
    Canuckistan
    0
    See if you can find a local shop who can come out and put a heater on it.

    Even one of those little torpedo heaters with an 8' sock aimed at the bottom of the engine for 2 hours, plus a battery charger on there should get you going easy and probably cheaper/quicker than a tow to a shop to get thawed. The hood will capture the heat and warm up everything under the hood.

    This was a daily deal for us back when I lived way up in the north. Even with a block heater plugged in for days it'd be about 50/50 if the truck would start. Heater on the pan for 2 hours, then aim the sock at the air cleaner intake so it'd suck warm air and away you go. We were using an indirect fired heater so it was warm and unburnt air being put down the intake. Might not be effective with a direct fired heater.
     
    cke, Rideandrepair, Cat sdp and 2 others Thank this.
  9. lester

    lester Midwest's #1 Feed Hauler

    2,807
    7,450
    Jan 2, 2012
    NW, Iowa
    0
    Look in you fuel tanks or pull the filter and see how cloudy your fuel is. If it is super cloudy or even half gelled already forget about it. You cab try the diesel 911 buy I've never had much luck. Any other additives won't mix when the fuel is cold. I've spent an entire day replacing filters and filling with additives trying to get a truck going with no luck.
    Tow to a warm shop
     
  10. Kshaw0960

    Kshaw0960 Road Train Member

    1,575
    4,969
    Jun 17, 2018
    0
    Yeah truck doesn’t have a block heater. I’ll see what I can do. This town is small and even getting Uber is impossible.
     
    Rideandrepair Thanks this.
  11. Big Road Skateboard

    Big Road Skateboard Road Train Member

    4,320
    20,519
    May 2, 2021
    0
    Do as @AModelCat suggested. Fired up a lot of trucks that way in less than 30 minutes
     
  • Truckers Report Jobs

    Trucking Jobs in 30 seconds

    Every month 400 people find a job with the help of TruckersReport.