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dpb

wrote:
....

I have a neighbor with oil heat. He has a diesel farm tractor. He
always drains fuel from his tank for the tractor. It seems to run ok,
but he's always complaining about gelling in severe cold weather. I'm
not sure if it's because he uses that heating oil, or just a common
problem with diesel engines in general. I know truckers are always
adding stuff to their fuel in winter. This is one reason I wont buy a
diesel tractor. I'll stick with gas.

Road diesel is sold w/ "winterizers" already blended (as well as a bunch
of other additives) so the gelling problem is typically already taken
care of. In general, it is rarely a problem until temperatures get
extremely low.

I also farm and would never even think of using a non-engine-specific
fuel in a $100K+ tractor engine -- an old clunker might be something
else again, but a modern diesel engine requires a quality, blended fuel,
especially the lubricity requirements for any hope of longevity under
hard use.

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