PTO Generator Noise??

[aussieboy1000]

Hello All
I'm from down under.
I'm looking at buying a PTO generator for storm blackouts.

http://www.gentechgenerators.com.au/store/content.asp?PageId=9 (The Tractor Pac 20 in frame in 240v single phase
is the one I was looking at)

I've done research on this forum and other in regards to the pto generator vs gasoline powered sets and have worked out all the pros and cons in regard to my situation.
I am leaning to the pto side of things, but before I make my final decision could someone tell me how noisy these pto generators are.
I have run a pto generator/welder in the past, but the banshee wail of the cooling fan that cools the welding unit is not pleasant when parked at the house switchboard for hours on end.
Do these pto generator only units have the cooling fan as well? ( I haven't seen one working)

The tractor engine noise isn't such a problem, my David Brown 885 45hp is doing 1100 rpm with the pto in high gear to achieve 540rpm.

Regards
Dave from Western Australia

 

[Baby Grand]

Welcome to TBN, Dave!
I'd guess that you won't hear much from the genny over the noise of your tractor's engine, but I'm just guessing.
I have a gas Miller welder/generator that does make a considerable din when it's running, so I understand your concern.
Maybe someone who owns one of the Gentach PTO units can comment ...
-Jim

 

[nybirdman]

The Gen-Set itself will make little noise;your tractor at 540 rpm PTO speeds will.I have a 10k PTO unit I use on my 44HP Kubota and it works well.Don't mind the noise as long as we have power when needed.
Much quieter than a gas powered welder/generator.

 

[buickanddeere]

Two pole 3600rpm pto units tend to scream. Still better than sitting in the dark while the house freezes, floods or while the food thaws.
Using a proper transfer switch?
Forgot that you are down under . 3000rpm will still be louder than 1500rpm.

 

[mbazzy]

Hi Guys I am running a IND 16KWH PTO generator off my Massey Ferguson GC1725 the gears in the generator have wined since day 1
I change oil every season with the manufacturers recommended oil. But it's pretty loud regardless of load it's a steady hi pitched whirring. No issues with powering the entire house for multiple days running constanly so other than the constant noise it performs very well. Ive had it for 6 years.

 

[RjCorazza]

Hi Guys I am running a IND 16KWH PTO generator off my Massey Ferguson GC1725 the gears in the generator have wined since day 1
I change oil every season with the manufacturers recommended oil. But it's pretty loud regardless of load it's a steady hi pitched whirring. No issues with powering the entire house for multiple days running constanly so other than the constant noise it performs very well. Ive had it for 6 years.

My 15kw to generator is relatively quiet, definitely drowned out by the tractor engine. Maybe try a different weight gear lube? All of my gear cases get swapped out to 75w140 regardless of what the mfg recommends.
All that said, a high pitched whine is more likely to be caused by the generator head itself.

 

[Smokeydog]

Built a weatherproof and storage cover for a Winco 10Kw generator. Does help with the generator whine. 515 input rpm helps a little too. Both gearbox and alternator noise.

The alternator does have a fan. In my tests the gearbox gets hotter than alternator. Installed a fan to help cooling. Improved meters on generator and in the house to monitor output. More details on another post.

 

[RjCorazza]

Built a weatherproof and storage cover for a Winco 10Kw generator. Does help with the generator whine. 515 input rpm helps a little too. Both gearbox and alternator noise.

The alternator does have a fan. In my tests the gearbox gets hotter than alternator. Installed a fan to help cooling. Improved meters on generator and in the house to monitor output. More details on another post.View attachment 839939View attachment 839940View attachment 839941

I believe I commented previously on your well done trash can cover. I've taken measurements for covering mine, but have not bought the materials yet.

 

[mo1]

Hello All
I'm from down under.
I'm looking at buying a PTO generator for storm blackouts.

Portable Generators and Power Solution - Gentech Generators (The Tractor Pac 20 in frame in 240v single phase
is the one I was looking at)

I've done research on this forum and other in regards to the pto generator vs gasoline powered sets and have worked out all the pros and cons in regard to my situation.
I am leaning to the pto side of things, but before I make my final decision could someone tell me how noisy these pto generators are.
I have run a pto generator/welder in the past, but the banshee wail of the cooling fan that cools the welding unit is not pleasant when parked at the house switchboard for hours on end.
Do these pto generator only units have the cooling fan as well? ( I haven't seen one working)

The tractor engine noise isn't such a problem, my David Brown 885 45hp is doing 1100 rpm with the pto in high gear to achieve 540rpm.

Regards
Dave from Western Australia

I have a two-pole PTO generator and the generator makes about as much noise as the tractor does, my tractor has a regular single-speed PTO and runs at full rated engine speed for full rated PTO speed. The noise is almost identical in both volume and character to running a NH Discbine with a cabbed tractor. It's there but not intolerable. I suspect the noise of the generator comes from the gearbox as it sounds like the whine straight-cut gears make when spun fast. It does have a cooling fan but the noise sounds more like gear whine than fan shriek, at least to me.

I decided on a PTO generator vs. a gasoline one as the PTO unit was somewhat less expensive and would be much more reliable as there is no rarely-used engine on the generator to have issues. I run my tractor a few hundred hours per year and the tractor never goes more than a week without being run, so there is no chance the engine would be balky because it hadn't been used in a while.

 

[Smokeydog]

You get above 25Kv most pto generators are 4 pole, 1800 rpm. Lower rpm should help gearbox noise. I just don’t need that much power.

Have 2400watt inverter gas for over twenty years as a quick standby. Some lights, refrigerator, freezer, telecom and emergency stuff. Good for <8hour outages. Nice and quiet. A 10,000watt pto generator for whole house, 240v loads. Don’t know of a one best solution. Combination gives options and flexibility.

We are about due for another twenty year major ice/snow storm. Recent outages are mainly from grid failure from tremendous population growth.

 

[mo1]

You get above 25kVA most pto generators are 4 pole, 1800 rpm. Lower rpm should help gearbox noise. I just don’t need that much power.

Have 2400watt inverter gas for over twenty years as a quick standby. Some lights, refrigerator, freezer, telecom and emergency stuff. Good for <8hour outages. Nice and quiet. A 10,000watt pto generator for whole house, 240v loads. Don’t know of a one best solution. Combination gives options and flexibility.

We are about due for another twenty year major ice/snow storm. Recent outages are mainly from grid failure from tremendous population growth.

One can run a generator with a larger nameplate capacity than the tractor can power without trouble, the only issue is that the generator can only be run at the capacity that the engine can power. It would cost a lot more than an appropriately-sized generator though.

A 25 kVA generator is huge, it would make 108 amps at 240 volts and would easily supply the full usage of most houses, unless somebody has multiple electric resistive backup furnaces or a bunch of stuff running when they are charging a battery-powered car or something. 25 kVA is the supply that large houses and smaller farms get from the utility as they are often fed with a 25 kVA transformer. A supply from a 25 kVA transformer would normally be called a 400 amp supply and you would have two 200 amp panels.

A 10 kVA generator certainly can power a whole house. The utility said my property needed an unusually large 37.5 kVA transformer because of the mutiple buildings and such, it has three 200 amp disconnects on the pole that feed four service panels. The most I'd ever actually used according to their website was 14 kVA, and I rarely use more than 10 kVA even in the summer.

The outages around here are usually due to lighting strikes blowing the fuse at the customer's transformer (there are reclosers elsewhere), tree limbs/ice knocking down lines, or drunk/high drivers knocking down poles. Elsewhere there are a lot of outages due to inadequate generation and transmission capacity. The local co-op does a good job in avoiding those two. They have successfully resisted the pressure to change their generation mix to higher-cost, lower-reliability, and lower nameplate capacity sources, and with the lower cost per MWh they are getting as a result, they are able to put more into transmission and distribution without blowing the costs out of line.

 

[mini14]

my gas inverter gen 2000w will run for 10hrs on 1 gal of gas, i use it at night time to power a light,fridges and gas heat ala you let the gas run dry at end of use it has always started for me after 8 years. have 3 of them at different houses.they are very quiet.