The PF ICE (gas engine) generator thread

[hufnagel]

Note: i'm not a generator expert or an electrician. These are my thoughts and mine only. Do what you will at your own risk. No Holiday Inns were used.

You could adjust your generator a bit, so it's making more reliable power at the top end of loading.
When I recently went through and did a Big Service on my generator (because it asked for it by running like crap last time) I also took the opportunity to dial in the voltage output while under load.
Before adjusting I was seeing 122V @ no load, 115v @ 2200W standard load, and 112V at near full load.
After adjusting it puts out 130V @ no load, 123V @ 2200W standard load, and 118V at a 6000W test load (4x 1500W electric space heaters on full.)
(note I'm pulling these #s from memory, and might be a bit off. I will try and find some notes I might have written and update this post with corrected data if I find it.)
It no longer sounds like it's working hard even at full load.

My suggestion would be, figure out what it's running at with your standard load, and try to dial it in to run about 120V on each phase, and maybe a touch more. In my case it was just turning the governor screw *just* a touch to get it to bump up a couple volts.
120V "standard" allows a 5% swing, so 126V-114V is considered "acceptable" from your primary energy supplier.

eta: https://pistol-forum.com/showthread....=1#post1116227
updated data.

[hufnagel]

Good news, they weren’t done.

Attachment 57728

hey @rob_s I just noticed... what's the breaker below the backfeed for? you're going to have to turn that off to let the interlock work.

[LittleLebowski]

Note: i'm not a generator expert or an electrician. These are my thoughts and mine only. Do what you will at your own risk. No Holiday Inns were used.

You could adjust your generator a bit, so it's making more reliable power at the top end of loading.
When I recently went through and did a Big Service on my generator (because it asked for it by running like crap last time) I also took the opportunity to dial in the voltage output while under load.
Before adjusting I was seeing 122V @ no load, 115v @ 2200W standard load, and 112V at near full load.
After adjusting it puts out 130V @ no load, 123V @ 2200W standard load, and 118V at a 6000W test load (4x 1500W electric space heaters on full.)
(note I'm pulling these #s from memory, and might be a bit off. I will try and find some notes I might have written and update this post with corrected data if I find it.)
It no longer sounds like it's working hard even at full load.

My suggestion would be, figure out what it's running at with your standard load, and try to dial it in to run about 120V on each phase, and maybe a touch more. In my case it was just turning the governor screw *just* a touch to get it to bump up a couple volts.
120V "standard" allows a 5% swing, so 126V-114V is considered "acceptable" from your primary energy supplier.

Sharp, very sharp on the governor. That being said, are you reconsidering your emergency heating? It would be easier with wood/propane, etc.

[rob_s]

hey @rob_s I just noticed... what's the breaker below the backfeed for? you're going to have to turn that off to let the interlock work.

I don't recall off the top of my head, but I do recall figuring that out too and not being concerned with whatever it was I wasn't going to be able to use...

[hufnagel]

https://www.electriciantalk.com/f2/1...2/#post1310459

knowledge bomb.

[hufnagel]

Sharp, very sharp on the governor. That being said, are you reconsidering your emergency heating? It would be easier with wood/propane, etc.

those were just to give it a load, as I wasn't willing to drop the house at the time to test.

We keep the space heaters for spot heating rooms, like the bedroom when the in-laws are here. Sometimes the garage in the winter, when I need to do some wrenching.
I have been known to toss a space heater in the passenger compartment of one of my cars, with a timer that will warm the interior up before I had to drive the 1 mile to the gym in the winter.
House is central furnace, and I have a wood burning fireplace. I can fire up the furnace no problem on the generator, and I can heat the family room REALLY WELL with the fireplace, if needed.

[hufnagel]

I don't recall off the top of my head, but I do recall figuring that out too and not being concerned with whatever it was I wasn't going to be able to use...

That's good. The electrician that replaced the panel in my mom's house, didn't listen and put the furnace breaker RIGHT below the backfeed. I was a bit cross.

[hufnagel]

Found it!

Oh yeah! Generator is running smooth now. Replaced all the gas, drain the carburetor, ran on some straight seafoam for about 5 minutes, flooded the carburetor with liquid seafoam and let it sit for 20 minutes, filled it with fresh gas, topped it of with the rest the can of seafoam, ran it for 10 minutes to clear it out (BIG SMOKE SIGNALS), put a new spark plug in it, ran some more, and just finished tuning the power output by adjusting the governor, so I now have 133V no load, 125 volts 3kW load (pair of space heaters), and 115 volts at 6kW load (4 space heaters.) Should be no issues with it next time I need it, unlike Tuesday when it clearly wasn't happy and would drop a phase randomly.

Go give your generators some love, people!!

I was a little off on my #s , but not TOO terribly.

[SecondsCount]

Note: i'm not a generator expert or an electrician. These are my thoughts and mine only. Do what you will at your own risk. No Holiday Inns were used.

You could adjust your generator a bit, so it's making more reliable power at the top end of loading.
When I recently went through and did a Big Service on my generator (because it asked for it by running like crap last time) I also took the opportunity to dial in the voltage output while under load.
Before adjusting I was seeing 122V @ no load, 115v @ 2200W standard load, and 112V at near full load.
After adjusting it puts out 130V @ no load, 123V @ 2200W standard load, and 118V at a 6000W test load (4x 1500W electric space heaters on full.)
(note I'm pulling these #s from memory, and might be a bit off. I will try and find some notes I might have written and update this post with corrected data if I find it.)
It no longer sounds like it's working hard even at full load.

My suggestion would be, figure out what it's running at with your standard load, and try to dial it in to run about 120V on each phase, and maybe a touch more. In my case it was just turning the governor screw *just* a touch to get it to bump up a couple volts.
120V "standard" allows a 5% swing, so 126V-114V is considered "acceptable" from your primary energy supplier.

eta: https://pistol-forum.com/showthread....=1#post1116227
updated data.

Please tell me that you measured the frequency on the output when you were doing this? It should hover around 60 Hz or you could see issues. Attaching a resistive load, like a heating element, won’t create any issues but something like a fan or pump motor, or anything with a transformer, won't like it.

[hufnagel]

Please tell me that you measured the frequency on the output when you were doing this? It should hover around 60 Hz or you could see issues. Attaching a resistive load, like a heating element, won’t create any issues but something like a fan or pump motor, or anything with a transformer, won't like it.

You know, I didn't. I'll make a point to do that next time I do my monthly generator test fire.