Bahamas Generator Saga Continues

[wsdemmer]

The Bahamas have been great! My generators have not been. One now has oil in the heat exchanger (from an overheat while crossing the GoMx) . That same generator toasted the voltage regulator which was replaced( thanks to Brett Meares from this forum who graciously brought my ordered one back to Marsh on his return trip)but it ran only 5 hours before it started leaking diesel and I discovered oil in the heat exchanger. TOASTED! My other generator out of the blue quit running and I had an elec tech check it out but he said that it was fuel related. The Racor was changed about 40 hours ago and it is very clean. When I opened up the racor the fuel was only half way up the filter assembly. The generator fires up but then shuts down and I have to hit the reset switch. It appears that it is not getting fuel? I will ck the primary tomorrow morning as I did not change it when I did the racor. Other than that , fuel pump? bad pick up? air leak?
There are no fuel leaks on this unit. I ran the generator at anchor last night for 4 hours to make sure there were no problems with the generator (after the elec tech looked at it )and it ran great. Today when I went to charge my inverter bank with the generator late this afternoon the genny fired up and ran for 2 minutes then it quit producing elec (breaker tripped) and the engine was barely running and then altogether quit. Any ideas?

[Nonchalant1]

What model, what brand. Is it an Onan? If so, the fact that it starts, but then the red reset button trips is an indicator of a bad low oil pressure sensor, actual low oil pressure, a bad high exhaust temp sensor. I think you can rule out actual high exhaust temps because it doesn't run long enough to develop that. Most commonly, it is a bad sensor. The reason it runs for a while before shutting down is that those two sensors engage the reset button which is tripped by heat from a small heater coil wrapped around the trip spring. When the coil gets electricity from the sensors it has to heat up enough to trip the switch.

If your two gennys are the same model, try switching the low oil pressure sensors between gennys, and if that doesn't work, try switching the high exhaust temp sensor (harder to reach).

Of course, it would continue to run if you disconnect the wire that energizes the reset switch coil, but then you have no protection from overheat or low oil pressure.

Doug

[wsdemmer]

It is a 20kw Koehler. I just finished changing the primary and filling up the filter and filled up the racor again but nada. Still refuses to completely fire up. Got someone coming to look at it in a little while so I hope we can narrow it down. Looks like I will be heading back to the states in sometime in the near future to get a new genny. I had thought about replacing one while in Florida before the Bahamas trip but decided that they were OK for the trip. I guess my gut was right about a preventative replacement since they are up there in hours. Everyone here that I have talked to recommends NL with the Kubota engine. Anybody have pros or cons on the NL besides $$?

[Canuck Dennis]

One of my gennies has a Kubota engine, 4k hours so far, only had to rebuild the fuel pump due to some water getting into the fuel, runs strong easy to work on, biggest pain is the Onan control box, my Kohler set has a pc board, much easier.

[Bill Root]

For what it's worth, whatever brands you're considering, I would question the dealer very hard on the manufacturer's commitment to parts availability. I have a 20KW Onan that has only 2200 hrs on it, but is 20 years old. The mechanical fuel transfer pump went on it a few months back. I found out that Onan stopped making the pumps a long time ago, and the rebuild kits five years ago. Neither could be found anywhere. The only solution was to convert to an electric pump. Of course no-one makes a 32V pump, so had to convert to 24V. In the end, what should have been a simple $100 repair turned into a $350 bill.

[wsdemmer]

Well the tech just left and the news was good. The fed generator is ok and does not have oil in the exchanger. Reaching under the sound shield I stuck my finger in the wrong hole. We tightened up the fuel leaks and now only have coolant leaking around the neck/exchanger connection which I will fix with marine Tex epoxy. The aft generator apparently has a bad thermal cutoff switch after we found the air leak near the racor. Hopefully I can get the switch shipped overnight and be back to 2 gennys in another few days. It will be great to get back to both gennys running and keep me from running back to Florida.

[ron6785]

The Bahamas have been great! My generators have not been. One now has oil in the heat exchanger (from an overheat while crossing the GoMx) . That same generator toasted the voltage regulator which was replaced( thanks to Brett Meares from this forum who graciously brought my ordered one back to Marsh on his return trip)but it ran only 5 hours before it started leaking diesel and I discovered oil in the heat exchanger. TOASTED! My other generator out of the blue quit running and I had an elec tech check it out but he said that it was fuel related. The Racor was changed about 40 hours ago and it is very clean. When I opened up the racor the fuel was only half way up the filter assembly. The generator fires up but then shuts down and I have to hit the reset switch. It appears that it is not getting fuel? I will ck the primary tomorrow morning as I did not change it when I did the racor. Other than that , fuel pump? bad pick up? air leak?
There are no fuel leaks on this unit. I ran the generator at anchor last night for 4 hours to make sure there were no problems with the generator (after the elec tech looked at it )and it ran great. Today when I went to charge my inverter bank with the generator late this afternoon the genny fired up and ran for 2 minutes then it quit producing elec (breaker tripped) and the engine was barely running and then altogether quit. Any ideas? You may have an air leak, your filter should be full, did you change both of the rings the one on the lid and O ring on the handle?? If you have an air leak on of the symtoms is partially full assembly, check and be sure the top is really tight. Opps didn't see your final post.

[Boatsb]

Why use marine tex? cant you have it soldered properly or is it the removable type with a gasket? Its a shame when the fix of choice is a temp fix if the real fix is not much harder to do and more permanent.

[wsdemmer]

Not much harder in the states but in the islands everything is harder and more expensive. I will probably replace the fwd generator when we head back to Florida so I am ok with the temp fix for the near time.

[jim rosenthal]

If you are going to replace a generator you should look at Northern Lights sets; I think they use ISM or Deere diesels and are very reliable. It sounds, though, like you might not need to. You can do an awful lot of maintenance for the cost of a new genset....

[MikeP]

As asked earlier - is this connection a gasketed connection? If so it's hard to imagine there is no gasket paper in the Bahamas (It's good to always have some on board). That and any common gasket sealer would pretty much make it a "permanent" fix. Of course the mating surfaces could be warped/pitted which might require some work truing them up but that could also be done on board pretty easily with some 240/400 wet/dry sandpaper and a flat surface ( I use our Silestone countertops quite regularly - Don't tell the Admiral!). You can also wrap the sandpaper around a large file and carefully lap the surfaces with that or use the file itself first if the surface requires that much work.

Of course, if it's a soldered or brazed type of fitting, that's a different issue. You certainly can do it it on board with a propane/MAPP torch but if you are not comfortable doing that yourself and there's no one around that you trust to do it, then it's time for the JB Weld (or whatever) as a temp fix to get you home.

In any case, good luck and glad it sounds like you don't need a new genny!

[wsdemmer]

It is not a gasketed connection. I thought about brazing it with my mini torch but decided against it as I have not done one before (copper yes but not brass) so I went with Marine Tex after properlty preparing the surface. Of course while I was down in the genny room I saw my aft generator (the one that needs a new thermal switch) was now leaking coolant below the water circulation pump which I think means the bearings? Never a dull moment. Hoping to fire the fwd generator up tomorrow after the Marine Tex has cured. Waiting on my Koehler rep to find a new thermal switch and overnight it to me. Still thinking a new genny might be in the cards considering the reliability factor. So far Northern Lights is getting high marks. Anybody heard anything about Phasor?

[Fanfare]

I have had a 12.5 kw Phasor for 8-9 years or so. 200 lbs lighter than my old 12 kw Onan. Plus they are helpful on the phone and all the parts are available at NAPA. I have had zippo problems with it. Kubota 4 cylinder engine which also gets good reviews from owners. Recommended.

[Pascal]

My first choices for new bennies would be NL or WSBK. Some NLs like the 20s we have on the boat I run use Luggers which are excellent motors. Simple units, reliable. We ve replaced the injection pumps at 4000hrs as they started leaking. Raw water pump is gear driven. Over all a Simple design

I don't care for the new generation of gensets full of electronics....

Another option is Norpro, I like mine, but some feels they are not common enough and service may be harder to get.

[ron6785]

I have a 15k Phasor and put it in 2007 has a Kobota motor so there is nothing proprietary about it. Runs great and 0 problems cost about $7k less than the NL's.

[wsdemmer]

Hey Ron,
How does the 15kw handle the loads on the boat? Can you run everything you need? I am tossing around the idea of both gens ; one being 21kw and the other 14kw for night time use. I know 21 will handle everything on my boat as I have a 20 now. I was not sure about the 14kw. Can you run the ac's and cook etc? I have been running the fwd generator for about 5 hours now hanging out at Fishers at Great Guana Cay and everything is ok so far. I should get my thermal switch in about 10 days when a guest is coming to stay with us at Marsh. I am leaning towards Phasor and I am currently getting quotes. Just have to decide whether I want to replace both or one.

[SKYCHENEY]

I went from a 20kw Onan to a 15kw Norpro. No problems running everything even A/C and cooking. I figured that as long as I could run just as much as I can run on one 50amp shore cord, I'd be fine even though I normally use two.

[Mike36c]

I have a friend headed to Orchid Bay on Sunday from Stuart, he could bring you a part if needed. I know what it's like to have mechanical issues in the islands. BTW another vote for Northern Lights, 3500hrs on mine with just raw water pump changes.

[wsdemmer]

Thanks for the offer Mike. I have a guest coming in the next week and have made arrangements for him to bring the part with him and have already shipped it to his address. This forum has been very helpful on advice and logistics of parts and service. So far so good with my forward genny as it ran 10 hours yesterday without an issue. Crossing my fingers that it will continue. Another week and I will have both up and running.:D

[ron6785]

Hey Ron,
How does the 15kw handle the loads on the boat? Can you run everything you need? I am tossing around the idea of both gens ; one being 21kw and the other 14kw for night time use. I know 21 will handle everything on my boat as I have a 20 now. I was not sure about the 14kw. Can you run the ac's and cook etc? I have been running the fwd generator for about 5 hours now hanging out at Fishers at Great Guana Cay and everything is ok so far. I should get my thermal switch in about 10 days when a guest is coming to stay with us at Marsh. I am leaning towards Phasor and I am currently getting quotes. Just have to decide whether I want to replace both or one. I can run all four AC's, however my electrical panels are 30 amps per side so the gen would handle the load but I can exceed 30 amps per side running everything. You probably have 100 amps so the 14 k would not handle everything you can run ( ie running all ac's , cooking and drying cloths ).