gallons per idle hour?

I love when I'm able to pop the windows open and let mother nature do the cooling. I only idle when its well below freezing or really warm or humid. Mild temps and I'm shutting it down.

 

I have never had a truck that uses 1 gallon/hr to idle. I've figured it to be .5-.7.

 

I looked at Cummins website. they say 0.5 gal/hour @ 650 rpm. 1.0 gal/hour @ 1000 rpm
The Thermo King website boast 0.1 gal/hour for the APU.
I am sure these figures are not 100 % accurate. add a little on both.
Still it is a pretty big difference. We never did a test, but use APU whenever needed .
Our A/C was messed up bout 1 month ago and was drawing too much power so was shutting down the APU
We idled 2 nights in Phoenix, 100deg.. the fuel needle had substancially moved down in morning.
When we idle it does not show a difference.

When I say "Whenever needed" like many guys on here, I like windows open, let the breeze come in. I really hate it when some ahole comes in and idles all night. then we have to shut windows and start ac....

 

I should add that we run microwave or stove for dinner, run TV in evening or computer, with phone charging. Fridge always on. The only time we use the APU is when cooking and/or extreme weather. or some really loud ahole comes into the night and idles his loud truck .
And bunk heater of course is great.
The APU also runs the coolant in winter to keep engine warm.

 

.65 gph according to the Gub ( thats with no loads )

 

I'm going to be that guy. I idle my company truck 23.89/7 and I have reasons.

1. Everytime I open my door a fly gets in. EVERY SODDING TIME!! I don't want to spend the end of my day working on my Mr. Miyagi impression while trying to eat my dinner. I don't know what it is that attracts these things. Is it the dead bugs on the truck? The perpetually full fuel island trash cans or the ones that line the lot? Or the general trash filled lot itself?
But sometimes man it ain't flies and its wasps or yellow jackets and they buzz around my mirrors. I just spent the last week going back and forth between a town that was surrounded by mega cow farms. Not sure what they are called. Serious gnat problem in the wind, at first I though it was pollen but nope gnats.
2. The mesh on the windows and vents will still let mosquitos in. I opened my Swift Cascadia vent one during the week I tried to use the vents and I got rewarded with a big bite on my nose. My new truck has a door with a window and a window on the opposite side. I might splurge and get quality mosquito netting and cut it to fit but I don't know. They built a Pilot in Vega, TX and there is a swamp right there near the entrance. That swamp has a ton of birds swarming it eating bugs. That water is pretty stagnate just saying. It could be worse it could be one of those swamps with fountains in it. Those really smell.
3. The cold low pressure air helps me sleep.
I was born in Bermuda. Bermuda has a sub tropical climate. 60-80F year round. I live in Arizona now. I gotta pinch pennies so no heat during the winter. I'll triples layer pants and socks so I can run the A/C during summer.
4. The parking lot always smells like piss, cow poop, exhaust fumes, human waste and cooking dpf filters. Always.
5. Company said they want us well rested.
I don't have to worry about saving them money. At .31 CPM and .11 in per diem it just seems like they are saving quite a bit. Same as when j was being paid .28cpm they wanted us rested.
6. Office people are living it up.
Go to the swift terminal in Phoenix. Walk thru the drivers area, the grill and then go to the dispatch building. Lean into the dispatcher area and pretend your hard of hearing. I mean lean almost to the point where you could conceivably fall in. Do you feel that? That cold magnificent air. Makes you wonder if something is broken or set higher every where else in the facility.

I had to shut my truck off tonight so I can check fluids in the morning. I chilled it down before shutting it off and I still can't sleep. I'm thinking I need a fan but I'm saving my loves points for one of those TVs.

 

My Volvos show between 0.5 gph and 0.7 gph during high idle (700RPM). The Volvo display for gallons consumed is dead accurate in each Volvo I've had. The fuel calculations (miles until empty) that rely on the fuel qty needle are no more reliable than the fuel qty needle. But the fuel counter and consumption, which is what you are asking about, shows me every sign of being right on the money every way I've found to verify it's readings. I trust it when I've run the tanks down to the last 15 gallons. Ignore the fuel quantity (E 1/2 F needle). The longer the engine runs the more that needle reads BELOW actual qty remaining. Shut the truck down on level ground for 1-5 minutes and the QTY needle is accurate.

 

It's closer to 1/2 gallon per hour at low idle for most engines so with cheap fuel prices it's more like wasting $10 per night if you let it run for 7-8 hours. It's more about the wear and tear if it's your engine.

 

It's a gallon per hour, sometimes two or three in extreme winter weather. You never shut engine off to keep the fuel from getting gelled and ruined. (As well as keeping the batteries warm and alive...)

overnight idle costs in fuel is equal to a hotel room.

The only way to reduce this cost is to put on a smaller motor to the frame able to use smaller amounts of fuel while doing the necessary things that you previously did with a monster engine up front.

Ive burned 30 plus gallons per hour fighting extreme mountains. Usually the smaller horse engines use the most. And are really thirsty. Big horse engines use less per hour because they literally do not have to work as hard.

 

Get stuck in calexico Ca in the summer and you'll idle as long as your stopped