Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Gen set, simple to run

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Gen set, simple to run

    Rite now I have a lister 6/1 it works fine and I'm using WVO for fuel, so not much to run. But I'm getting older and I'm concerned what it would be like for my family if something happened to me. I know they would be shivering in the dark in short order and be forced to move to town. To get power is going to cost me 16,000 bucks. Yikes! Then ur signing up for a lifetime of bills.
    I m fantasizing about a system the wife and boy could use if need be. I think now I have 250 watts solar panels. And I have 4 Surret 540 s and a big thumpin gen set. I'd like to put a gen closer to the house wit remote start or auto start. Gen set would need to be gas for easier starting and need an in closure with a propane heat source. I'd like to upgrade the panels to 1000 watts.
    The inventor in me wants to cobble some thing together. I have a Koehler 12 hp electric start, thinking of running at say 2500 rpm, I have a 4 k winco gen and I could put a car alternator for 12 v side. Both of these wouldn't run at the same time I could use linear actuators to tighten the belts to select which to run. Put a good muffler and a sound controls box and we r done just need gas and oil. I think this would be better then spending 2500 on a Honda 3000. Any body got any better ideas?

  • #2
    Welcome to the Lister club, and to solar.
    But honestly, following the simple sequence to start the Lister, and it's maintenance, is about as good as it gets, as long as you can make the trek to the shed to crank it up.
    Fabricating something else up, tension 1 belt, loosen the other one. What's that noise, which fuel tank...... for the non-builder to walk into, it will be a mess.

    If you give up on the lister, and want to rely on another genset, I'd look at the honda EM4000S The 6/1 and it's 400lbs of flywheel will start any appliance, the inverter genset will not have ANY overhead for surge starting things.

    And a FYI, this chart for winter fuel seems pretty standard, if you can't get winter diesel in your area
    ( I mix in an equal amount of clean motor oil or 2 stroke oil to retain lubricity for the pump and injectors, I also use aviation gas with no alcohol )

    Winter fuel
    When outside temperatures drop below 0 C, use winter fuel or mix in petroleum in advance:
    Lowest ambient temperature at start [°C] Percentage of petroleum [%] for Summer fuel
    0 to -10 20%
    -10 to -15 30%
    -15 to -20 50%


    Powerfab top of pole PV mount (2) | Listeroid 6/1 w/st5 gen head | XW6048 inverter/chgr | Iota 48V/15A charger | Morningstar 60A MPPT | 48V, 800A NiFe Battery (in series)| 15, Evergreen 205w "12V" PV array on pole | Midnight ePanel | Grundfos 10 SO5-9 with 3 wire Franklin Electric motor (1/2hp 240V 1ph ) on a timer for 3 hr noontime run - Runs off PV ||
    || Midnight Classic 200 | 10, Evergreen 200w in a 160VOC array ||
    || VEC1093 12V Charger | Maha C401 aa/aaa Charger | SureSine | Sunsaver MPPT 15A

    solar: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-Solar
    gen: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-Lister

    Comment


    • #3
      Aren't u on the lister engine fourem I am and over ther I'm Mr X. But ya I'm worried about my own creations, and yes I could put electric start on the roid but who is going to tear it down and decarbon after 200 hr because they don't understand my water drip injection. If I use the drip I get 1000 to 1500 hr between tear downs. Have you ever ran it out ov fuel ad had to prime the injector. Wouldn't be an easy job for a 12 year old or a woman that is clueless. Just forgetting to oil the rocker arms woul be disasterous after a short time. I'm saying in less then a year they could render the roid a useless piece of junk. Mixing and moving barrels of WVO fuel. Collecting from resteraunts. Processing and barreling fuel. All theses things would be the downfall of the hard work I've done to get the roid up and running since 2005. I'm healthy and capable now at 65 but we can see the end from here and I want something the wife can manage with if the unthinkable happens.
      Thus building a gen set. It could be just outside the house wit a control panel on the wall. Using a 12 hp one lung Koehler gas I'd run 2500 rpm ,cut down the noise and increase fuel economy. I'd have linear actuators to make selection by tighten ing belts of eather 125 volt gen or car alternator. Alternator would have xantrex 3 stage battery reg fitted. The motor has 12 electric start. The choke could be a electric door lock. I have a green house vent opener that could be used to open a vent to regulate the hot air produced by gen. Could be housed in 4-4--2 ft insulated box and I'd figure how to heat box for winter use using a propane piolet light. I'd use a couple boat tanks to quick disconect and refuel. So the only ting they we have to do is service a few times a year. I'm in Canada at 57 deg north peace River Alberta. Summers are nice but winters suck and make life challenging. The nice thing about this rig is it's all modular of the shelf parts. A honda 3000 is 2500 hear and remote start 400 more if something blows on it then it could cost a lot to fix and I have seen lots of 1-2000 hondas junked eather wore out or too expensive to repair. Any way just thoughts not going to do it right away just thinking and looking for the perfect solution.

      Comment


      • #4
        The family is going to have to realize that running any sort of power plant, solar or ICE, is going to need an engineer, Someone has to change the oil, water the batteries, clean rodent houses off the power center, Who will replace the belts or maintain the servos on the tensioner ? Sorry about your situation being so remote and spares hard to come by, In my area, the manual battery start honda would be my first choice, along with instruction on the oil changes and valve adjustments, And shops here thrive on repairing abused hondas, but I hear great things about ones that have been maintained properly

        PS, I too am at the LEF, mike90045
        Powerfab top of pole PV mount (2) | Listeroid 6/1 w/st5 gen head | XW6048 inverter/chgr | Iota 48V/15A charger | Morningstar 60A MPPT | 48V, 800A NiFe Battery (in series)| 15, Evergreen 205w "12V" PV array on pole | Midnight ePanel | Grundfos 10 SO5-9 with 3 wire Franklin Electric motor (1/2hp 240V 1ph ) on a timer for 3 hr noontime run - Runs off PV ||
        || Midnight Classic 200 | 10, Evergreen 200w in a 160VOC array ||
        || VEC1093 12V Charger | Maha C401 aa/aaa Charger | SureSine | Sunsaver MPPT 15A

        solar: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-Solar
        gen: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-Lister

        Comment

        Working...
        X