Trevo

I work a security detail where I'm required to use my own vehicle as a base from the elements. Right now I leave my windows down because it's a nice cool 60-70 outside and leave the jeep off except for when I'm doing my rounds every so often.

My question is during the winter time when it starts to drop below 50, sometimes -10 outside here in Colorado. Im going to have to idle my vehicle for 7-8hrs a night 5 nights a week for the heater. Is this ok to do? What kind of extra maintenance will be required?

Any alternatives, like plugging a space heater into the power port, or will that be too harsh on the battery in the winter time?

sa29560

Another CO resident here. Hope this helps.

Kind of had the same situation with a prior job I had couple years back. Would be in and out the jeep servicing accounts starting the jeep up to 10 times in 12 hours.

In the winter I never noticed any ill effects. Only issues I had was losing a starter and replacing a battery. My coolant system was flushed and water pump needed replacing. All done easily and very inexpensive.

During the summer I wondered whether the heat contributed to my cracked header on the exhaust which still needs replacing.

JeepaRoo

while I havent consistently idled my JK's for 8 hours at a time, i have sat in mine and ate lunch for an hour or more at a time idling with no issues... and n roadtrips slept in rest areas for a couple hours or more without issue summer or winter... the heater gets EXTRA hot sitting and idling as it seems the air intake air is heated from the engine heat... ive had my heater knob set all the way on full cold when its in the 30s out and still been plenty warm.. (and im the guy who HATES to be cold)...

-Christopher

jk_sea

I don't know the circumstances of your job, but it seems like they should provide a company vehicle to trash, and idle for extended periods, at their expense. That's a lot of wear/tear and gas spend for a personal vehicle. Hopefully they compensate you adequately.

If not already, you should be following the hard/extreme use-case maintenance schedule for the vehicle outlined in the owner's manual. In terms of idle-hours, I'd do some research to see what a good threshold is for changing the engine oil by hours logged instead of mileage. Mileage assumes a mixed-use scenario that assumes only a little bit of idling, but mostly driving. Everything else, make sure the fluids are viable and clean, and at the appropriate fill level, including your power steering and automatic trans fluid, if yours is an automatic.

The concern with turning off the vehicle during your winter shifts would be keeping the windshield clear, and the number of cold/hard starts the engine would endure throughout the shift. That's almost a case to just let the engine stay warm and loose at idle speeds versus cold starting every few hours.

One alternative might be to wire a bunch of marine batteries in the back of the jeep so you can run an inverter that powers a portable space heater, but those draw a LOT of power, and deep cycle batteries are expensive. Another option might be to wear a heated motorcycle suit to stay warm. They are battery operated, but you'd need a big set of batteries to keep up with you for 8 hours.

Any chance your employer can put a garden shed out there, and run an extension cord to it? lol You could keep your Jeep plugged in and warm with a block heater, and you could chill in the shed with a space heater and a TV or whatever else they'll let you do while on shift. Just be sure to unplug the shore power on the Jeep before you take off!