Generator Issue??

[Dick Simonis]

The other day I was running the gen set just checking things out before we head north in a couple of weeks.  After about 20 minutes of running the front AC I started the rear unit and the genny just bogged down and stopped.  I shut off both AC units, restarted the gen set then the AC units one at at time.  Everthing was fine and ran great for about an hour while I fiddled with the new thermostats.

Fuel is mostly full, coach is level, genny oil and water is good and no code lights.

Any thoughts about what to look for or what might have happened.  It had not been run since January so I guess it's possible there might have been a small air bubble in the fuel line.

[Steve Cook]

Had about the same thing on a Foretravel I owned several years ago except it would bog down intermittently but not shut off, just drop RPM then come back up to speed and run until it bogged again. It was the flexible fuel line near the generator sucking air, never leaked but age cracked enough to suck air.  Easy fix,  Steve

[Dick Simonis]

Thanks Steve, I'll look into that fuel line.  I'm going to need the Genny to power the AC units while I'm heading north as my dash air isn't cooling and I am planning on stopping at BCS for this and some other service stuff mid-June.  I could have it done here but would like to support BCS as much as possible.

[Edward Buker]

Dick,

You should have a panel that indicates the current being drawn. It sounds like you may have had a more severe load on the generator than it could handle. The starting current of the compressor is higher than the run current and you had one in opertaion already. It may be that a water heater element was also on or the 12V charging system was pulling current also. I would consider running the genset while you monitor the panel and add loads until you get to about 70 to 80% of your rated output in watts and let it run for 15 minutesor more and see if it handles the load properly.  If your panel reads amps, check both legs, and multiply the amps times 120V for each leg and add the results together.  Unless you know the load the generator was under, it is hard to say that the bogging down was not a normal response to a more severe load then it was designed for.  If it handles the70 to 80% load properly and runs smoothly, then you should be good to go.

Later Ed

[Gerald Farris]

Dick,
Is it possible that you were using to many amps for the capacity of your generator when the second A/C came on line? Since your coach has a 7.5 KW generator, the maximum amperage output is only about 60 amps, as opposed to the 100 amps that is available when you are plugged into a 50 amp shore power outlet. Anything over that limit of 60 amps will cause the generator to stall, because the engine does not have enough horsepower to turn the generator at that output. If your generator has a condition like a dirty air filter or a restricted exhaust from a partially clogged spark arrester, that output limit will be lower, and can even be much lower.  

There is a possibility that the start-up amperage draw on the second unit could have put your output limit if you had several things running like the hot water heater, refrigerator, microwave, or the inverter charging the house batteries in combination with the first air conditioner. If the generator stalled when it was producing 60 amps or close to it, you have no problem.

Gerald

[Dick Simonis]

Thanks guys.

I had nothing else running while I was doing this and the running current for the 13.5 BTU AC units is something like 9 amps or so.  On this model coach I don't have an AC monitoring pane so I'm relying on knowledge more than observation.  I suppose it's possible that when I started the 2nd unit the compressor locked a bit or my start capacitor has a problem.  If I have this problem again I may change to a different capacitor to reduce the starting load.

Also, thanks for reminding me I need to get in there and check the air filter.

Ran it again today and all was well so whatever it was appears to be a bit transient.  However, I may break down and run the coach over to Lazy Days and have them take care of the dash AC.  Driving for 2-3 days without any AC is not a pleasant thought....especially through AZ and NV.

[Gerald Farris]

Dick,
If you decide to go to Beaver Coach Sales (BCS) for dash air repair, you should call them first. I am not sure that they work on the dash refrigerant system. At one time I heard that they were sending repairs on the dash A/C closed refrigerant system out for repairs.

Gerald

[Phil N Barb Rodriguez]

You might want to check your power share settings...............

[Glenn Perkins]

Dick,

If BCS is unable to address your dash air issues, check with Coachmasters of Bend ... they repaired ours a few years back (reran refrigerant lines from the compressor forward due to a dryer unit that failed and contaminated the lines with zillins of "bb-s".  Good work and reasonable too.

Glenn

[Dick Simonis]

Thanks guys.

I've decided to take the coach to Lazy Days in Tucson to get the Dash Air fixed, oil changed, and have them check coolant hoses and such.  Much as I'd like to take it to BCS, it seemed more resaonable to get there items taken care of before I leave.

The way I figure it, I'll still need something done in Bend.

Gen set is still behaving just fine but I may have them do a fuel and air filer change while it's there.