Your last generator Maintenance Run

[3930dave]

3930dave....
Shell V-power (High Test) aka [the good stuff] gas has no ethanol in it. Better for the small engines in the long run.

Good point, I'm not a fan of the E either.

Shell will be more widely available; I buy my Hitest Efree at Costco, as I already give the gubmint too many tax dollars to waste already.

Rgds, D.

 

[farmer2009]

I'm traveling, and on flaky wifi at the moment.... can't type fast enough to post all I want to say.....

Gas motors.... does seem to vary by make and model, and regional fuel source.... mine seem happy at 3 months, past 6 often takes extra cranking.

Murphy never sleeps, but quite a few of you guys have been beating him back into his corner... for now

Rgds, D.

Generac 7500E with a dead battery but a working pull start.

I normally keep stabil in the generator but was using it earlier in the year pretty regular and didn't ever add it to the last tank. Gas was regular 87 octane E10.

 

[daugen]

My 22kw Generac went on test cycle right in the middle of last weekends cold temps and ice.
Not a happy startup at all. Surging, sounded like rpms rising, kind of a misfire, then after fifteen seconds, smooth as could be. Did I ingest some water/condensation/ice? Propane, 500 gal tank, full.

 

[Looking4new]

Good point, I'm not a fan of the E either.

Shell will be more widely available; I buy my Hitest Efree at Costco, as I already give the gubmint too many tax dollars to waste already.

Rgds, D.

I'm not sure where you are Dave, but I will be paying $1.369/L for high test today.

 

[90cummins]

I periodically run my Honda EU3000iS generator but I don't put a load on it unless it is working during a power outage. Just how important is loading it during a maintenance run?

It's not nearly as important as a Diesel unit which if started should always be run under load long enough to warm the engine.
Running gasoline engines with no load during the cold months is not advisable although the consequences are not as nearly as severe as with diesel units.
1) Gasoline and Diesel engines produce 1 gallon of water for every gallon of fuel consumed which wets down the exhaust system and introduces moisture into the oil, therefore it should be run under load to warm up and drive the majority of moisture out of the system so it doesn't accumulate and corrode internal parts..
2) Running under load warms the engine and generator windings driving moisture out.
3) Running under load purges the carburetor of old gas (preventing deposits) and verifies the engine runs at the proper speed and that all electrical components such as switches & relays are operating properly.
I bought (2) 1000/1500 watt portable heaters at tag sales so I can properly load and warm up my portables.
I also have a large 9kw heater with 3 settings of 3kw, 6kw & 9kw which I use when I run my 25kw pto generator.
Using combination's of the 3 units I can load most generators very close to maximum capacity to verify that the voltages and Hz are correct.
During my testing I found that the voltage on both of my Generac XL4000's started to droop at 3.3kw and at 4kw it was dangerously low at 105v.
I would also highly recommend that you purchase a Killawatt meter to check the voltage, Hz and verify the load you are applying to avoid overloading your generator and running low voltage.
90cummins

 

[daugen]

the only load testing my big gen gets is when the power goes out.
Is there a not too expensive load tester for smaller units, say up to 9kw?

good reminder to measure the voltage at the plug when the backup gen kicks on.

 

[dragoneggs]

Thanks 90cummins... is this the one you suggest?

P3 P44 Kill A Watt Electricity Usage Monitor - Low Temperature Alarms - Amazon.com

 

[Matt in Virginia]

fwiw,
I have a Honda EU6500IS Inverter that gets the oil changed every 15-20 hours or twice a year. Battery life is a point... I know this will be seen as excessive, however, I run 100% True Fuel in the beginning so I did not have to worry about the fuel system. As the generator gets used a little that turned expensive and the only non-ethanol mix fuel available is Sunoco 112 octane racing fuel. I know guys that run this in their German Stihls. I still run Truefuel in them, however, the guys who actually run less often than daily(have a tree service on my lot) but more often than I do are having zero problems with Sunoco 112. I have run the EU6500IS and monitored head temps with IR Temp guns and they actually run cooler than with lower octane pump gas(The pre-detonation argument of low octane fuels being more volatile must to some extent be accurate(?)). Honda tech said it would lead to higher head temps whereas a race mechanic, builds offshore racing engines, said that is just what it is designed to avoid. Not seeing the Honda tech's advice, local garden center guru, playing out in reality has me wondering. Find it difficult to think Honda would have covered "don't run $10 a gallon 112 octane race fuel" in your generator to be in the factory course. Who knows literally?

I am not seeing a problem but don't want to learn the hard and expensive way... Make that more expensive..;-).

Regards, Matt.

 

[grsthegreat]

Problem is my 30 year old 2400 watt gen gets run maybe every other year if i need it .... and it still starts and runs good. Ive never run it under a load unless im using it. My generac 22 k runs 5 min once a week....no load. Im not worried about it. If it was diesel...that would be another matter

 

[grsthegreat]

My 22kw Generac went on test cycle right in the middle of last weekends cold temps and ice.
Not a happy startup at all. Surging, sounded like rpms rising, kind of a misfire, then after fifteen seconds, smooth as could be. Did I ingest some water/condensation/ice? Propane, 500 gal tank, full.

You might need a cold weather kit. I have one on oil filter and under battery. Major difference noticed in cold