ways to improve fuel economy at a idle (I know, odd question)

Ah, I see. Rig 2-5" T&E pumps, hydraulically driven, 3 cubes per minute, cutting load/unload times by 60%.

 

With the Detroit you can adjust the idle rpm, and by lowering it would save you fuel. But it sounds like you are using it to PTO, not just idling.

 

With the Detroit most important thing is to keep engine at full temp. Even a 5 degree drop the engine will go ba k into warmup mode and fuel consumption will increase 30-50%. If you have a scangauge you will notice this. Detroits also have a half engine mode but I have no experience with that and don't know if it applies in your situation. As you know as you increase idle speed fuel consumption also increases. The last thing to talk about is timing, and you're correct this affects consumption as well. After a few minutes of sitting the engine will advance timing some (not as much as warmup mode) in an attempt to keep the engine warm. I have all the software that confirms this. If you can find a way to prevent the engine going to steady state the fuel consumption will drop, but it will be harder to keep temp.

My Detroit runs at 5 boi(beginning of injection in crank degrees) fully warm with the park brake pushed in at idle. Pull it out and after a few minutes it will advance to around 11 degrees and the pulse width plus Hoh will go up. I will do a chart capture for you to help you understand

 

turn off defroster

or other items that make a/c compresor kick on/off

 

I'm confused. In a previous post you stated 45 min load time and 45 min unload time. That would be consistent with something like a 3" bowie if it includes a bit of setup time (hoses) and you are loading a 40cube triaxle trailer. The 4100 T&E pumps are rated at max 1.8 cubes per minute so if you are getting 3 cubes per minute (30m3 in 10 min) with yours that's outstanding. The point of my post was that you can rig up 2 T&E 4100 pumps (if they are hydraulically driven) and cut your load/unload times by 60% (I was assuming you were running a 3" bowie) or, since you are running a 4100 now, cut your times in half. Of course, this only works if you are pulling your own trailer since the trailer would require 2 sumps.

 

Throw some Vaseline on it, less friction and energy, works every time...................