T&T: Generator problem

[Ronald Dwelle via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

Westerbeke generator has been working fine—ran it last about 2 weeks ago. You hold down the “pre-heat” switch for about 10 seconds, press the starter, and it starts, but now if you let up on the pre-heat switch, it stops—manual says the pre-heat switch over-rides the low-oil-pressure shutdown. Usually, after the motor starts, rpm will ramp up once it starts putting out electricity, but the rpms won’t ramp up, and it’s putting out no electrical juice.

Any thoughts on how to trouble-shoot it?

Thanks,


Ron Dwelle
Prairie 36, Prairie Dog
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[Craig Mudge via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

Ron,
Check to see if the start/stop solenoid is moving to its’ correct position during the start-up process. This can prevent the motor from achieving its’ required (1800?) RPM. I had this problem on my 8kw model. Was caused by loose ground wire...insufficient power to solenoid.
Craig Mudge
Camden, Maine

[Henry Dennig via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

Ron,
When troubleshooting you can take the oil pressure and water temp switches out of the equation by unplugging the two spade clips and putting a small fuse in the terminals. I had a water temp switch fail, so I pulled the two connectors, pushed in a fuse and it ran for a few days until I got the part I needed.
Good luck,

Henry Dennig
m/v Seven Tenths GH47 lying Jacksonville, FL (For SALE)



<snip>
Subject: T&T: Generator problem

Westerbeke generator has been working fine—ran it last about 2 weeks ago. You hold down the “pre-heat” switch for about 10 seconds, press the starter, and it starts, but now if you let up on the pre-heat switch, it stops—manual says the pre-heat switch over-rides the low-oil-pressure shutdown. Usually, after the motor starts, rpm will ramp up once it starts putting out electricity, but the rpms won’t ramp up, and it’s putting out no electrical juice.

[Rudy Sechez via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

I, too, would first check to see if the shut down mechanism was operating
properly. To check shut down switches, of which there will be 3-5, doing
each switch one by one, pull the wires off of the switch and jump them
together. If the shut down switch is bad, the engine should then start.
Replace any bad switches before running the engine.

*RUDY & JILL SECHEZ*
*BRINEY BUG*-a 34' Sail-Assisted Trawler
850-832-7748
LaBelle FL
E-Book or Hard Copy- ANCHORING -"*A Ground Tackler's Apprentice" *
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[Archie Faulkner via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

Holding down the Preheat switch bypasses the low oil pressure trip, so oil press must be above about 20 psi when you let go. Its very possible that the oil pressure switch is bad or maybe a wire fell off the OPS.Yes the solenoid should pull all the way to the left for a start.
One other thing to try, toggle the switch to STOP before trying a start attempt.ArchieIrish Lady

[J.E. Fordyce via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

Hi Ron,



I second the suggestion to check for a loose ground wire. I had various
problems with my Northern Lights 12KW, including apparent overheating and, I
think, your problem. All was cured when I found several ground wires running
to a bolt on the chassis which was loose. Just tightened it up. I don't know
if your generator is similar, but a fairly long time ago I had difficulty
starting my gen and it turned out to be a loose relay for the glow plugs
which had jostled loose off its pins as a result of vibration. The mechanic
fastened the relays down with a wire tie. The relays are in a metal box
attached to the generator chassis on my unit.



Hope this helps.



Cheers,

J.E. Fordyce

Toronto ON

Adagio I

Kadey Krogen 48 Whaleback

Home Port Midland ON

on Georgian Bay

[Dan Girvan via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

The start/stop solenoid that is common on the gen sets is a two stage design. The first stage pulls the fuel control to the run position and holds it there for as long as the starter is engaged. This stage requires a high amperage and it will overheat the solenoid if it is energized for more than one to two minutes. The second stage latches the fuel control in the run position. It requires a lower amperage and is energizes continuously while running. I believe that they both use the same ground since there is three connection plug on the solenoid pigtale. Look for 12vdc on the supply to the second stage. If there is no voltage, look for a lose connection or something that is blocking the run mode. This could be low oil pressure, high coolant temperature, low frequency etc. If 12 vdc is present for the second stage, check the resistance to the second stage. If the circuit is open, you will need a new solenoid. They are available on EBay.
Dan Girvan
Melody in Sea
Tollycraft 45

Sent from my iPad

[Ronald Dwelle via Trawlers-and-Trawlering]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I tried most of them, to no avail. Then I noticed the gen’s battery was low—12.2. I ran some jumper cables to the main batteries and charged it up. Amazingly, the generator started and ran just fine! So the problem apparently was a low battery and none of the other things.

Now, to find out why the gen’s battery isn’t being charged when the generator runs.

One other thing—the owner’s manual and technical manual, including wiring schematic, is way off what I actually have in my Westerbeke 6BC. Makes it hard to troubleshoot.

Thanks for all.

Ron Dwelle