Your last generator Maintenance Run

[3Ts]

instead of a "T" to connect 2 tank, try using an automatic switchover regulator. That way one tank will drawn down to empty and the regulator will switch over to the full one while you get the empty one refilled.
https://www.amazon.com/Camco-Double-Stage-Auto-Changeover-Regulator-59005/dp/B0024ECBCA/ref=pd_sbs_5?pd_rd_w=WG124&pf_rd_p=c52600a3-624a-4791-b4c4-3b112e19fbbc&pf_rd_r=ZMWT99ZWMQ0JGPGXB4B5&pd_rd_r=e04d9d64-fb59-407f-9396-3c1bce6beca3&pd_rd_wg=dYUKu&pd_rd_i=B0024ECBCA&psc=1

 

[daugen]

3T's, thank you, now why wouldn't you like a T?

I almost bought that Camco unit in the beginning but wanted the combined output of the tanks, not one at a time.
After much explaining on this thread, I still wound up with wrong connectors on ends and could not hook
up my two 30's together. So I'm getting somewhere by going up to a 40, but if I could get the additive effect of a 40 and a 30, that
may be the best I can do. Bad back, arthritis, very hard to horse these tanks around. Rental home, can't put in bigger tank.
Everything I have here I take with me, and if I wind up owning a home again, and buying another automatic system, I'm sure going to be all set
to barbecue hamburgers with all these tanks. I wind up lending them to neighbors who run out...done that a bunch of times.

Lou, thank you, I run the gen dry by turning off the tank valve, it stops almost immediately. What else could leak?
I like the horizontal position because it hides the tank better.

 

[LouNY]

3T's, thank you, now why wouldn't you like a T?

I almost bought that Camco unit in the beginning but wanted the combined output of the tanks, not one at a time.
After much explaining on this thread, I still wound up with wrong connectors on ends and could not hook
up my two 30's together. So I'm getting somewhere by going up to a 40, but if I could get the additive effect of a 40 and a 30, that
may be the best I can do. Bad back, arthritis, very hard to horse these tanks around. Rental home, can't put in bigger tank.
Everything I have here I take with me, and if I wind up owning a home again, and buying another automatic system, I'm sure going to be all set
to barbecue hamburgers with all these tanks. I wind up lending them to neighbors who run out...done that a bunch of times.

Lou, thank you, I run the gen dry by turning off the tank valve, it stops almost immediately. What else could leak?
I like the horizontal position because it hides the tank better.

I wasn't referring to a leak on the 40 so much as that when full if the filling station squeezed a bit more then the 80% fill in when the tank is laid down to the horizontal position if it was on an unlevel location which allowed the valve end to be to low it could possibly have liquid propane at the valve level. If opened in that situation you could possibly get a small amount of liquid propane fed to your generator. Liquid propane trying to vaporize in your regulator can freeze a regulator and cause excess fuel to be present past the regulator.
Just something to be aware of. It is a handy looking tank, I would be tempted to lay a little stub of a 2x4 flat on the ground under the foot that would assure you of getting vapor and not liquid and also keep the foot from getting froze in the ground.

 

[3930dave]

:thumbsup: Team Hyper knocked another one out of the park for Nik..... thanks again for posting that up grs.

I hope things are getting better in TX.... many folks just aren't ready for that kind of cold in the SW.

I remember reading an article years ago about the jet turbines (mil) they were using to pump NG..... tricky to set up, as few people are skilled at tuning those. I don't know much about the NG system today; not sure what is doing the heavy pumping modern day...

Stay warm, and keep those gens happy......

Rgds, D.

 

[Industrial Toys]

I just thought I would put this here in this long running back-up generator thread. Saw something on YT that caught my attention. Why don't more people have (converted gasoline) portables that they can run off their NG or Propane? Wouldn't that eliminate MOST of the downfalls of gasoline powered portable sets?

 

[3930dave]

Interesting story about how the outage could have lasted months, the blackouts prevented greater damage to the grid.

Texas was minutes away from monthslong power outages, officials say | The Texas Tribune

To most people, electricity is just "there". Article touches on the complexities behind the curtain...... always reminds me of watching big square dances when I was a kid....... pure magic in motion, till somebody stumbles.....

Rgds, D.

 

[3930dave]

There's a bunch of issues at play. First is curtailment, giving home heating gas allotment a priority. Next is natural gas controls, like regulators, actuated valves and instrument sensing lines freezing due to entrained moisture. Just like a semi-trailer truck having it's air brake lines freeze. Next are generating plants that were improperly winterized so that feed water lines and instruments (freezing controls, sensing lines etc.) wouldn't freeze. At the end of the day, it comes down to poor planning and poor execution on the part of ERCOT and the plant owners. Apparently, due to the pandemic, ERCOT was not performing "cold operation readiness inspections" and was instead relying on the plant owners to perform these inspections. I've also heard that ERCOT does not have a definition for cold readiness nor procedures to insure compliance.

Cold, and esp. fast delta T is brutal on most physical products.

Avg person up here sees it on vehicles....... cold snaps take out much more than just batteries every Winter. There is a lot of engineering and ongoing maintenance that has to be done well in physical systems, to deal with cold extremes.

People die from heat exposure, but extreme cold is one of the worst times to have no electrons in the wall.....

Rgds, D.

 

[3930dave]

I just thought I would put this here in this long running back-up generator thread. Saw something on YT that caught my attention. Why don't more people have (converted gasoline) portables that they can run off their NG or Propane? Wouldn't that eliminate MOST of the downfalls of gasoline powered portable sets?

I see a bit of chicken/egg with that situation. A lot of the people (like those who hang out here) who are tuned in to this issue, already know enough to keep a gasoline unit in running order. Remembering to Do What's Needed..... Why I tossed a note on here Back When......

Lots of people (here) now run NG on big stuff, and some like d recently did, have selected new propane-capable smaller gens.

Availability can be a factor, as Rob pointed out, around him dzl and gasoline are usually never an issue.

My last Costco run, I noticed a Tri-Fuel gen on the shelf......... Firan or Firman (can't remember spelling). Prominently on the box, they displayed the wattage ratings...... of course, Gasoline was the highest capablity, followed by Propane, then NG. NG rating was quite a bit lower than gasoline.

Having multiple options is a bonus....... I know people who've gone with a natgas bbq, and really enjoyed forgetting about tanks.....

What is available locally, and personal knowledge and preferences will drive many of these new-gen purchase decisions....

Rgds, D.

 

[Industrial Toys]

Not having to store gas, not have the contamination issues in the carb and not having to try and go in search of gasoline, never mind trying to know how much you are going to require, would be a HUGE benefit. Without gasoline, unit could be stored nicely inside too.

Make sure it's capable of long run times (temperature issues) and of course have a low oil shutdown.

What could go wrong?

 

[90cummins]

I'd like to thank those that provided links pertaining to soft start electronics.
I chose to go with Schneider Electric which is the manufacture of my Xantrex XW4024 inverter at a cost of $124.70 with free S&H.
The Schneider Electric Altistart ATS01N112FT is rated at 12 amps, is 1 or 3 phase & 110 to 460v compatible.
As mentioned previously the squirrel cage blower motor pulled 21.7 amps on start-up and gave my Honda EU2000i fits.
The Honda would over-rev and surge until the motor came up to speed and then stabilized at 2.3 amps, 262 watts.
After installing the soft start module and adjusting the initial starting voltage and ramp up time the Honda easily handled the load in ECO mode and amperage peaked at 16.9 amps.
The initial low voltage and timed ramp-up gave the Honda time to react and accelerate with the load rather than getting hammered all at once.
It has been running for over a week on utility power with no issues.
This (should) allow me to utilize the Honda which is my most efficient power source thru the night powering the wood furnace and save my diesels for the daily heavy lifting (charging & support of whole house back-up batteries).
I have yet to verify this with an actual hours long or overnight test.
Hopefully one issue resolved 1 more to tackle. Next challenge is to get my DC generators automated with the AGS (auto generator start). Documentation is very vague and I may have inadvertently damaged the circuitry.
Just ordered a replacement. Hopefully I've learned a thing or two and get this up & running on its own.
After the mess in Texas I need to tie up all my loose ends and get my system at 100% readiness.
90cummins