Your last generator Maintenance Run

[daugen]

Final Answer. Thnx g.

Rgds, D.

yes, grs, thanks very much.
2 hours a month. Doesn't sound like much...
but whole issue of being plumbed to full 1000 gallon tank is to have
several weeks of run time. Or more if one has to conserve.
Ice storm or aliens? The latter I'd like to conserve my propane for...

Next I look for what I think is a small roll of gaffing tape I bought on a whim from Amazon a few years back.
Buried somewhere in the barn shop.
Actually, don't they make little plastic plugs for the holes?

ok, looked it up on Amazon, none of the receptacle covers I found had the third leg, the round ground, favorite
of mud wasps as it fits their offspring so well. I pulled a live critter out of mine...

 

[Chilliwack Murray]

I agree there should not be a problem with windings and moisture if they are in good shape, but couldn't moisture itself cause the insulation to break down, ar attract dust and dirt which could have a scouring action? It would be nice to know that getting rid of moisture wasn't an issue.

Heat is the main enemy of winding insulation. 30,000 hour rated insulation is derated to about 2000 hours when run at it’s rated temperature and 15,000 at 75% of its rated temp.

Properly wound stators should have no movement so scouring wouldn’t be an issue, moisture could collect dust but is far less of an issue than oil residue which will never evaporate. The best thing to do is ensure no crankcase blowby gets into the windings.

 

[Industrial Toys]

So many sets seem to fail from roadspray in vehicle compartments. If the winding insulation is good, corrosion shouldn't really be able to effect them, but it seems to happen all the time. Or, is it the heat in those compartments?

 

[Chilliwack Murray]

We don’t see many stator winding failures but the majority of the ones we see are mechanical damage from foreign objects.

Pretty hard to tell on a small unit if moisture or heat caused a failure but due to the number of units running in wet conditions and the relatively few failures it’s not much of an issue. Moisture affects the brushes and slip rings far more than winding insulation.

Once the electrons get out they destroy most of the evidence.

 

[Industrial Toys]

Yeah, the dealers don't want utilities coming back, saying the thing is not working again, causing inconvenience and downtime, so often it's just replace the stuff and move forward as they say.

 

[LittleBill21]

Heat is the main enemy of winding insulation. 30,000 hour rated insulation is derated to about 2000 hours when run at it’s rated temperature and 15,000 at 75% of its rated temp.

Properly wound stators should have no movement so scouring wouldn’t be an issue, moisture could collect dust but is far less of an issue than oil residue which will never evaporate. The best thing to do is ensure no crankcase blowby gets into the windings.

can you explain this hours comment, what is the temperature for 30k hour insulation, and what is rated temp. guess im confused that it gets derated at its rated temp? can you explain it better?

 

[Chilliwack Murray]

Insulation is rated by class for a specific number of hours, class H or 150C and 30k hours is typical for the equipment I work on. Reduce the temperate by 10 degrees C and you typically double the life, increase by 10 and you cut the life in half.

Consumer equipment is class A or less, design life is often only a few thousand hours and in the 60-70C range so running at higher temperatures can have a significant impact.

Here’s a quick google result:

https://www.marathongenerators.com/generators/docs/manuals/thermal-life.pdf

 

[3930dave]

can you explain this hours comment, what is the temperature for 30k hour insulation, and what is rated temp. guess im confused that it gets derated at its rated temp? can you explain it better?

Unless you have trouble sleeping at night , most people don't want to go through the math..... high temperatures are often used for Acclerated Life testing.....

Constant Temperature Accelerated Life Testing using the Arrhenius Relationship - Delserro Engineering SolutionsDelserro Engineering Solutions

Simple example - all else equal (proper charging etc), car batteries last longer in colder regions than they do in Phoenix AZ.

Rgds, D.

 

[RoyKing]

PERMIT APPROVAL final got it we turned in the wind report along with all the engineer diagrams. $149.00 Everybody told us you needed a electrician to pull a permit for 30kva with ATS but we got a homeowner installed permit.

 

[Tomtint]

So I have seen this thread now and again.. always reminded me that I needed to go out and start up my generator..as it has now been about 2 years since it was run. ..Well we lost power today about noon and it’s 6 pm now..power company says they hope it’s back on by 9:30 pm...about 4pm I finally dragged out the generator..fully expecting it to be a mofo to start.. found that it was dead empty of fuel.. so I put in 1/2 tank of fresh gas... figured I would pre empty the fight and remove the air cleaner and give it a shot of starting fluid.. but all I had was carb cleaner... so in it went... turned the fuel shut off to open.. 2 pulls and it sputtered..3rd pull and it came to life.. lights on.. fridge on.. well on.. screw the power company ��. I know remember when I put it to bed last time, I filled it with non ethanol gas From a 1 gallon can.. ran it till it stalled and shut the fuel off. ...had it been basic pump gas I suspect I would still be cleaning or rebuilding a carb right now.