# Hopefully getting YM2420D in December, cold weather operation?



## dr03773 (Apr 11, 2018)

Hopefully getting a YM2420D in a couple months, I live in NH and will be using it for snow removal duty. As I understand it, Yanmar engines do not have glow plugs. I will be able to park it either in my garage or my detached shop and plan on using a block heater of some kind. Does this tractor have the warm start system that heats fuel for cold starts? What is a good method for cold starting? 

When / if I get it I will buy a set of manuals from Hoye but am curious to know what I am getting in to.


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## bmaverick (Feb 20, 2014)

dr03773 said:


> Hopefully getting a YM2420D in a couple months, I live in NH and will be using it for snow removal duty. As I understand it, Yanmar engines do not have glow plugs. I will be able to park it either in my garage or my detached shop and plan on using a block heater of some kind. Does this tractor have the warm start system that heats fuel for cold starts? What is a good method for cold starting?
> 
> When / if I get it I will buy a set of manuals from Hoye but am curious to know what I am getting in to.


Yanmars have TermoStarts. Just like John Deere machines. It;s the SAME system. 

Depending on the engine series, Both the Yanmars and Deere accept the plug-in block heaters. You'll need the engine parts manual diagram book to verify if the YM2420(D) has this option.

Over at the Yanmar Tractor Owners Group, it's a common thing to prep the machine for winter use. Here is the list,

10W30 for winter use. Or 5W30 for temps dropping below 0F and into minus temps.
JD20C hydraulic fluid aka Hy-Gard. J20D for sever temps like the oil.
RV/Marine antifreeze for rear wheel ballast. Never CaCl.
Depending on model follow the directions to fill the ThermoStart reservoir or on the direct plumbed lines, ensure none are aged nor cracked.
Inspect the PTO front or rear for snowthrower attachments. On lower Hp machines or high altitude locations a 2-stage snowthrower is required.
The Ariens SnowCab for walk behind snowthrowers works well as a mounted cab on a YM machine with ROPS. The tractor becomes wind resistant to keep the chills out.
Grease all fittings. Now is the time to do this as the Yanmar manuals call for every 100 hours to do this. It's just too cold out around Thanksgiving, thus possibly the weekend before.
Magnetic oil pan heaters. Ensure you have a fresh and paint cured surface before going this route. Magnets and water will cause rust otherwise.
Verify the coolant mixture of 50/50. Prestone 50/50 premix is a winner. Ensure reservoir cap is on good and tight. If dry rotting, get a new cap from Fredricks or Hoye.
Inspect the engine accessory drive belt.
Ensure lights are functioning as daylight hours fade away much in the winter.
Ensure the charging system and battery are in good working order.
Got a trickle charger? Use it in an enclosed building to help prevent charging a frozen battery.
Ensure the horn works. On these YM machines, most don't have the horns hooked up. The horn is located inside the hood betwixt the 2 headlamps. The horn is your only way to blast 3 long, 3 short and 3 long. Mainly S.O.S. should you run into troubles plowing or got stuck ! Recall, cell phone coverage isn't everywhere.
Ensure the tractor PTO functions well with the PTO generator when needed in black outs or a Darker Winter event.

Whew, that is a list.

BTW, get the FREE manual of
YANMAR YM2220 YM2420 PARTS MANUAL NPC-1389.pdf 
here in the Resource Manager section ...
OR
at the Yanmar Tractor Owners Group in the link in my signature.


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## winston (Aug 19, 2008)

Made a mistake, misread posts, no real comment, but unable to delete my post.


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## dr03773 (Apr 11, 2018)

bmaverick said:


> Yanmars have TermoStarts. Just like John Deere machines. It;s the SAME system.
> 
> Depending on the engine series, Both the Yanmars and Deere accept the plug-in block heaters. You'll need the engine parts manual diagram book to verify if the YM2420(D) has this option.
> 
> ...



I was looking at beet juice ballast if it isn't too pricey, I know RV antifreeze isn't cheap. Thanks for the list, most of that is common sense general winter knowledge, was more curious about starting in really cold temps. Makes sense that Deere engines would have the same system since many were made by Yanmar.


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

What exactly is a 'thermo start' and how does it work? My Kubota's all have glo plugs.


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## dr03773 (Apr 11, 2018)

SidecarFlip said:


> What exactly is a 'thermo start' and how does it work? My Kubota's all have glo plugs.


I think I initially misunderstood what the Thermostart is. I had watched a video where the presenter said that the Yanmars didn't use a glow plug but had Thermostart that draped fuel into the combustion chamber. Now after looking into it is is a glowplug that has the added function of dripping fuel onto the coil of the glow plug. Here is the description from hoyetractor.com :

What is a Thermostart?







A Thermostart is a very efficient glow plug used in most of the Yanmar tractors. Instead of relying on just a heating coil like other glow plugs- this unit also drips a small amount of diesel fuel (fed from a small plastic container mounted just above it) onto the red hot coil. This produces thick smoke, lots of heat, and occasionally small flames. All of these things help the engine to start in the coldest weather.


So how does it work?
The fuel line is connected to the thermostart through the fitting (A). The fuel is not allowed to leak out because the set screw (C) is screwed up into fitting (A) and is tightened up against the check ball (B) - forcing it against the ball seat deep inside fitting (A).
When you are ready to start the tractor the glow plug gets energized through the terminal (D) and heats up the element (F). This causes the hollow tube at the bottom of (A) to expand. When the tube expands it also pulls the set screw away from the check ball (B) because the set screw is threaded into the tube that is expanding. This allows a very small amount of fuel to drip down onto the heating element which starts to smoke and burn.







Why do they go bad?
Over time the thermostarts, just like any glow plug can go bad. This is typically because the heating element, which is sort of like a very heavy duty light bulb, burns out. The check valve can also start to leak over time. Running the thermostart for too long (over 10-15 seconds) at one time can also damage it.


Priming A new One.
It may be necessary to bleed the air out of a new thermostart in order for it to start producing smoke and fire. This is done by installing the new thermostart & filling the reservoir bottle with fuel. Then cycle the thermostart on 10 seconds then off 30 seconds. It may take 10-20 cycles to bleed the air out of the line & thermostart.


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## SidecarFlip (Mar 25, 2021)

Interesting...


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## winston (Aug 19, 2008)

Here is a video of a John Deere 650 thermostart in action. Thermostart on my JD 650 - YouTube


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## bmaverick (Feb 20, 2014)

dr03773 said:


> I think I initially misunderstood what the Thermostart is. I had watched a video where the presenter said that the Yanmars didn't use a glow plug but had Thermostart that draped fuel into the combustion chamber. Now after looking into it is is a glowplug that has the added function of dripping fuel onto the coil of the glow plug. Here is the description from hoyetractor.com :
> 
> What is a Thermostart?
> 
> ...



Yes yes yes. 

And more info too right from the JD manuals.

















Additionally, Perkins tractor engines use this technology too.








In your manual on page-27 shows the YM2420 setup.


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