Your last generator Maintenance Run

[Wakey]

The next step is yo get a trusty electric test meter and check if you have 240 at the transfer switch when the generator is running. You place your test leads on the two wires clostest to the front, lower end of the Transfer mechanism. There labeled E1 and E2 on the diagram

I checked, we have rain coming tonight and in the morning. 242 VAC

No trouble lights before during or after running the genny.

Thanks again!!

.

 

[grsthegreat]

those lights should be on. First thing to check are the fuses, especially the t1 fuae. make shue you have 120 v to ground. If its good, then i have seen a few of the original series of this upgraded switch where the circuit board under the black control board that says generac and ac1-4 has been shorted out. in the original series, the did not have standoffs on the board and a rough installer could ground the circuit board out. newer versions have plastic stand offs. you may need to check that circuit board. to do that you need to shut off generator and totally shut off power to the house. this is to protect yourself from incoming utility power. then you can unhook the entire black colored controller from the clip mounts and pull it out. itsd kind of a pain in butt to get out. first unhook plastic molex connector . the connector is the 8 plug bunch of wires on the lower right . it simply push side retainer clip and unplug. (i didnt do it in pictures because this switch is not hooked into power, its from a box) then use a screwdriver to pop the clips on top and bottom . the real pain is popping the top and bottom clips while slightly lifting and then pressing the side clips with thumb . these next 2 pictures show the clips themselves. dont force it out. . the fact that the 4 lights are not lit lends me to think that this board is fried. it controls the transfer switch itself. heres a picture of what it should look like .

 

[3930dave]

Dave, we're good. I'm a lifelong low voltage tech.

:thumbsup: Didn't know, or couldn't remember your background.....

As you can appreciate, some people (general public) shouldn't be anywhere near live power.

Virtual service call by grs, with pics ! TBN Rules :drink:

Rgds, D.

 

[Popgadget]

GRS, correct me if I’m wrong, I’m not a generator technician, but I did take a good look at the schematic and operating sequences.

if there is 240vac at the E1/E2 terminals and +12vdc on terminal 194 and -12vdc on terminal 23, the reasons that it wouldn’t transfer would be an issue with the transfer relay or limit switch, rectifier or transfer coil.
If those assumptions are correct, then he should check for the 12vdc at the switch to help pinpoint the issue. Considering the battery demolition in the generator, would it be more likely to lose the 12Vdc for the transfer command at the generator?

 

[Wakey]

:thumbsup: Didn't know, or couldn't remember your background.....

As you can appreciate, some people (general public) shouldn't be anywhere near live power.

Virtual service call by grs, with pics ! TBN Rules :drink:

Rgds, D.

No problem and you’re right. We’ve all seen pictures of, and stories about DIY disasters and this thread needs to be protected from that nonsense lol

Cheers back atcha!

I’ll dig back in tomorrow.

 

[grsthegreat]

GRS, correct me if I’m wrong, I’m not a generator technician, but I did take a good look at the schematic and operating sequences.

if there is 240vac at the E1/E2 terminals and +12vdc on terminal 194 and -12vdc on terminal 23, the reasons that it wouldn’t transfer would be an issue with the transfer relay or limit switch, rectifier or transfer coil.
If those assumptions are correct, then he should check for the 12vdc at the switch to help pinpoint the issue. Considering the battery demolition in the generator, would it be more likely to lose the 12Vdc for the transfer command at the generator?

those functions are now handeled thru this black controller that i photographed. first thing to do is make sure that the unit is not fried. if its not damaged, then we need to start checking the individual wires. i have seen several of these boards fried from improper installation due partially to factory crappy design of the older boards. you had to be very, very careful landing the 6 control wires or you could press the board into the steel enclosure. the new standoffs prevent that from happening. ill have to wait till i see the pictures of his board. that board part number is 0L3123 and is about a $70 part. depending of the actual install date of the generator, it may be under warranty. generac has different warranty periods, some are 3 year, some are 5 year some are 7 year and some are 10 years. depends on promotion or optional warranty.

lets put it this way, i have 3 of those boards in stock. like i say, i see it enough to warrant 3 in stock.

 

[Wakey]

GRS, correct me if I’m wrong

I’m pretty sure he’s using the law of averages, he asked about the breaker on the genny twice, and there’s a reason for that. End users make easy mistakes. (Ask me how I know)

Now he’s doing the same expecting to see a fried board, he’s likely right, I’ll find out tomorrow.

 

[Popgadget]

Looking at the schematic, there’s not much on that board that impacts the transfer. The pink relay is the transfer relay, the diodes that rectify the current for the transfer coils are the only solid state devices in the circuit. The other four relays and logic chip is for the load shed functions.
Of course it’s certainly possible for a trace for the relay is burnt off the board, but hopefully unlikely.

 

[grsthegreat]

Looking at the schematic, there’s not much on that board that impacts the transfer. The pink relay is the transfer relay, the diodes that rectify the current for the transfer coils are the only solid state devices in the circuit. The other four relays and logic chip is for the load shed functions.
Of course it’s certainly possible for a trace for the relay is burnt off the board, but hopefully unlikely.

the fact that the 4 leds are not lit, when they should be, tells me something is wrong with the board. it wonts affect generator start up when power fails because that is handled in generator controller itself within the generator. but if this board is fried, it wont send signal to the transfer mechanism itself.

like i said, you have to start somewheres.

as for the repeated comment about the breaker within the generator itself....i probably get 20+ calls a year about generators running and house not getting power thats due to this breaker being turned off. even after repeatedly asking customer to make sure its turned on, and they insist it is, i drive all the way there , reach for breaker and turn it on, and walla they have power. easiest money i ever make. for some reason, they just dont realize a breaker can be off or on...its truly amazing. i actually get people yelling at me that they know how to check a breaker.

the funniest one, not generator relate, was a customer that called to tell me 1/2 his garage outlets wernt working. i asked him over phone to check the GFCI outlet to see if it was tripped. he actually yelled at me on phone saying he wasnt stupid, he did that before he called me. after about 40 minutes of drive time, i get there and walk in garage, look at gfci and push reset button. light on garage door opener comes on, outlets work. i hand him my bill. he wont look me in the eye, but he pays me.

 

[Popgadget]

There isn’t board level documentation that I could find, but it does appear that the load shedding is independent of the transfer function. However like you said, the LEDs not being lit is a red flag even if they aren’t directly related to the transfer.