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Northeast Louisiana | As far as brands go, we own CaseIH (Cummins) engines, John Deere, Duetz, and used to have some propane burning Chevy 350's. Each has it's pluses and minuses. The propane engines crank easy, but are very loud, are more tempermental, can run hot, and suck a lot of fuel when working hard.
The Duetz engines are reliable and fuel efficient. They are air cooled, so you don't worry about antifreeze and radiators, but we have trouble with rats building nests in the cooling fins during the off season, and with mud daubers filling the fins with mud, so we have to take those to the shop every spring and wash them out, and keep an eye on them during the year. Kind of aggrevating. The other thing is that not just anybody can work on them. The nearest place to us is about an hour away, and they won't send a mechanic out, we have to take it to them. But the ones we have seldom need anything done to them and have a long life-span.
The Case and John Deere power units are my favorites. I really can't tell any differences in the way they operate, and if buying new would base my decision on price and dealer support. They are dependable, pretty fuel efficient, and pretty much anybody can work on them. Like any water cooled diesel, keep the coolant in good shape and change the oil at regular intervals and they should run a long time. | |
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looking for a irrigation type power unit
