Cummins Marine Diesel Repower Specialists › Forums › Cummins Marine Engines › 160 vs 180 thermostat

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  • August 31, 2023 at 6:20 am #153861

    Blake H
    Participant
    Engines: 6BTA
    Location: Long Island, NY

    I currently have the 160 deg thermostat installed in my 6bta. I do a lot of drift fishing at idle and slow trolling. My temp gauge usually reads 145-150 even at cruise. Should I switch to the 180 thermostat considering how much idling and slow trolling I do?

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  • September 1, 2023 at 7:06 am #153901

    Blake H
    Participant
    Engines: 6BTA
    Location: Long Island, NY

    So Iā€™m on the Long Island Sound. Rare that my runs are more than 45 mins. My boat is way overpowered as itā€™s a 25ft downeast hull with a 6bta. The engine is rated to 370 but the prior owner detuned the engine to about 315 by under propping. My cruise is around 2300 RPMs. But most of the time Iā€™m idling while drifting for fluke or trolling at 3.5 kts for stripers. There is white smoke at idle and at the slower trolling speeds. I have a raw water alarm before the water pump and a EGT gauge at the helm.Ā 

    September 1, 2023 at 5:55 am #153897

    Patrick Mangum
    Participant
    Vessel Name: Patty Wagon
    Engines: Cummins 6BTA 330
    Location: Charleston, SC
    Country: United States

    I have the 160 t-stats on my 6BTA 330s used in a sportfishing application – 2 hour runs offshore at 2200 rpms with 8 hours at trolling speeds – 1000 rpms

    In 80+ water temps I’m seeing 155ish at trolling speeds and 165 at cruising rpms.Ā  I haven’t had any smoke running a little cooler with the 160 t-stats.

    Do you have a redundant temp alarm?Ā  You can add a 190 temp alarm to provide you with an early warning if temps start to creep up.Ā Ā 

    September 1, 2023 at 5:32 am #153896

    JimmyK
    Participant
    Vessel Name: Incognito
    Engines: 2 x 6BTA 370s
    Location: Boston
    Country: US

    In my opinion the 160 thermostat, which opens up well before 160 as you’ve discovered, is a compromise between low power temperatures being too low and high power temperatures being too high.

    The high HP 6BTA engines have very little room for error when it comes to the cooling systems when producing a lot of HP (like at cruise RPM).Ā  The 160 t-stats give a little cushion here, which is nice.Ā  With that said, no question that they are at less than optimal temps when trolling when the cooling system is up to snuff.

    You can try the 180’s and see how your temps do, but in the end I think most of us would rather err on the side of avoiding a catastrophic overheating event and live with the low temps at low power.

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