Can the preheater be left on continuously, i.e. is condensation a problem?
We encouraged Aviation Consumer for years to conduct a study on this issue. Here it is… PREHEAT AND CORROSION: NO SMOKING GUN Aviation Consumer, March 2007, pg. 23 We can’t print the article due to their copyright, but you can buy a copy off their web site. Here are a few excerpts: They instrumented a Continental 520 on a Bonanza that was equipped with our Standard System. The preheat system was plugged in and they recorded internal crankcase temperature and %RH (relative humidity) data over a 7 day span. During that period ambient temps ranged from teens to 30F. Results… The internal RH started at 60%RH at ambient temperature. After about 12 hrs of heating it stabilized at about 120F and 15%RH and it held pretty constant for 7 days. Conclusion… “These findings don’t support the view that preheaters cause corrosion.” “Clearly, a preheater seems to dry the engine out, not cause it to behave like a terrarium.” “While our experiment is far from definitive and doesn’t consider all po
