Generator Question

[_CY_]

that's what it sounds like to me too... motor is running fine off the idle circuit. which will support low amp loads. the second you put a large load on genset. motor control opens up throttle, then dies.

high probability your main jet is clogged, which almost always happens when you let any small engine sit any amount of time. the proper way to put up any small engine is to shut fuel off, then let motor idle until it dies. this uses up all the fuel inside float bowl. nothing inside fuel bowl to dry out and gum up your carb.

other possibilities that could go wrong is electronics ... all sort of problems are possible. everything from losing magnetism, bad brushes, bad diodes, mouse chewed wiring, etc, etc.

rebuild your carb... betcha your genset will run nicely again.

I'm late to the party, but it doesn't sound like a demagnitized coil...since it's producing power but quitting under load.

Possibly a carb issue. How long has it sat with fuel in it? Could be gummed up, could need some tuning. Air filter dirty? Might be time for a cleaning.

(when you were running the blower, were you running the electric heating element too?)

 

[tyromeo55]

BB, How are you coming up with 37 amps?

 

[Mack45]

That 37 amp thing is one of the misleading, marketing things they put on a lot of electrical equipment to make it sound more powerful. It is probably the locked rotor current that is present only for a very short time until the motor comes up to speed. Locked rotor is typically 6 times the actual run current. So if you divide the 37 amps by 6 you get a little more that 6 amps which is probably what the shop vac pulls once it starts. But the gen will actually see the 37 amps for a short time, like less than a second. I would guess the shop vac motor is probably 3/4 horsepower.
I think that _CY_ has hit it on the head. Curious to hear if the generator will power up something larger than the drill but smaller than the shop vac. Short of rebuilding the carb, you might try running it with a little seafoam in the tank for a while first.

 

[Lone Wolf '49]

Okay, since this thread is still going, and I have no generator, been lucky in the thirty years in this house and so forth,since all utilities are buried but somewhere down the line they are above ground except for the natural gas. What brands and wattage do you guys/gals recommend?

 

[_CY_]

everyone has slightly different requirement.... for me it's to run my house with bare minimum for the longest time frame with the least amount of fuel. the last bad ice storm in Tulsa, our power was out for almost three weeks.

got 2x Honda EU2000i gensets with a parallel kit that allows use in tandem for larger loads. EU2000i are incredibly quiet. you can carry on a normal conversation next to one running full blast. will run all night on a few gallons of fuel.

if you slowly put online one appliance at a time. little EU2000i can support more than you think. during the last outage a few weeks ago. had loaned out my second Honda EU2000i.

running three deep freezers and one large 29 cubic ft refrigerator. amazingly managed to run all FOUR appliances overnight with ONE EU2000i.

Okay, since this thread is still going, and I have no generator, been lucky in the thirty years in this house and so forth,since all utilities are buried but somewhere down the line they are above ground except for the natural gas. What brands and wattage do you guys/gals recommend?

 

[HMFIC]

Ya those Hondas are the cat's meow, but they cost a lot.

I'm happy with the Homelite I bought at Tractor Supply but I also think it was the cause of my TV having a power circuit issue a few months after I ran it on the generator.

 

[_CY_]

yup back to everyone's different power requirements. Honda EU2000i is a true sine wave inverter genset. some electronics are sensitive to un-clean power, others no big deal.

since I'm constantly needing portable power... a genset that weights 55lbs is handy indeed. new costs has come down to $900... if you watch Craigslist hard, they come up for sale $600 range. but are gone quickly...