[Spam] Re: [KYHAM] "gas" vs. diesel gen-sets (was BPL, Ham radio and the EOC)

[Bill Fuqua]

Another problem is the life time of the engine itself.
    Many of the generator sets use aluminum castings.These wear a lot 
faster than the cast iron ones unless they have a steel or iron sleeve 
inserted into the cylinder bore or use a high silicon content aluminum 
alloy and etch the surface leaving a thin coat of silicon for the piston 
rings to rub against. I don't know what they use in the Chinese  made 
engines now but I suspect they wear out fairly quickly.
    While brainstorming during the Ice Storm ( had a lot of spare time 
then), I considered using the DC power from the battery and charging system 
of my old 84 van and also bypass the coolant thru an external hose to an 
external radiator that would be used to heat the house. If you used some 
easy quick disconnects for coolant and power you could then disconnect the 
system and drive to the gas station to refill it, if gas is available. This 
would be an effective heater since most of the energy from the gasoline 
would be going into heat anyway. A remote starter would be useful as well.
    If you have electric heat or heat pump this would be an interesting 
alterative.  If you have gas heat all you need to do is to power the 
furnace and a power generator would take care of that.  The DC power could 
operate a 12VDC equipment (radios for example)  and via an inverter llow 
power AC stuff, lights, fans, computers and TV even refrigerators. 
Refrigerators require very little power.



At 09:07 PM 10/12/2008 -0400, Larry Brown wrote:
>Tony and group,
>
>   The short answer is......not very darn long!  To explain, a common
>air-cooled small engine under constant load/continous operation can use up
>to 1 ounce of oil an hour. Yep! That's almost a quart a day.  Based on that
>info oil should be checked every two to four hours  and changed every 25
>hours(per most manufacturers spec). Without hour meters it's difficult to
>gather hard facts but with proper maintenence a box-store genset should last
>600-1000 hours with the occaisional 24-72 hour constant operation.
>    If anyone wants to donate a cheap genset for the cause I'd be happy to
>start one up and let it run till it dies for the sake of science!
>
>Having said all that, the dealer I work for sells and services Honda gensets
>and inverters. Several of our contractor/builder customers have units that
>are 5+ years old and are routinely subject to 8 hours a day 5 days a week
>operation and still going strong. Of course a Honda 6.5KW will cost about
>$3000 compared to the "box-store" special that may run $799 or less.
>
>My own genset is a 4KW Generac I got from a older ham that upgraded to a
>Honda with electric start. It's a 1986 model that was well cared for and
>other than being noisy as H&%L has served me fine. I'm guessing it's had
>around 450 hours of service,some of that in 24-48 hour stretches.
>
>If asked to reccomend a genset, I'd say do your homework and answer a few
>basic questions.
>1) how often will it be used
>2)where will it get most use(home,field day,emergency ops etc.)
>3)what load will it be under(a few lights,radios,deep freeze,fridge,big
>screen TV)
>4)can I maintain it myself or depend on a dealer for service
>5)do I have a safe storage area for fuel(enough for up to 72 hrs)
>6)can I replenish fuel supplies easily(propane stores well longer,gas and
>diesel need to be rotated out to maintain fresh and viable stock. Gas needs
>to be used within 3 months of purchase,diesel about a year)
>
>After you answer these questions,then start researching the different types
>of units(portable,stationary and mobile-trailer mounted). Talk with people
>and see what works for them. Check with state and local enities(maintence
>crews not politicos),fire depts,EM teams neighbors ,anyone that has used a
>genset a while and get their experiences. Find out where the service shops
>are and what they will and will not work on. That $399 special at Harbor
>Freight might sound like a deal but if you can't get repair
>parts........nuff said?
>
>Lastly, no matter what you get,portable or stationary. $299 special or
>$15000 whole house unit. Unless you start and run it at least once a
>month,keep the fuel fresh and do regular maintenence,when another Ike rides
>through the Ohio valley,an ice storm takes the powerlines down or you just
>need a saw and drill on the back forty,good luck! Chances are pretty good
>that neglected genset won't hit a lick!
>
>Sorry for the ramblin folks,just wanted to be sure I hit all the high
>ground!
>73!
>Larry
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "A. W." <ky4sp at yahoo.com>
>To: "Kyham" <kyham at mailman.qth.net>; "Larry Brown" <larryb13 at iglou.com>
>Sent: Saturday, October 11, 2008 10:42 PM
>Subject: Re: [KYHAM] "gas" vs. diesel gen-sets (was BPL, Ham radio and the
>EOC)
>
>
> > Larry,
> >
> > You might be in a position to give us some idea of how many hours of
> > service a typical 3600rpm "lawn mower engine" generator is good for. I'm
> > sure you have quite pile of them waiting right now, with problems ranging
> > from stopped up carbs to having been run dry of oil.
> > How long will one of those hold up running on a near continuous basis?
> > Let's assume for the purpose of my question that the operator would check
> > the oil about every 24 hours, use conventional type oil and change said
> > oil at the suggested interval.
> >
> > Thanks,
> >
> > Tony KY4SP
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > No virus found in this incoming message.
> > Checked by AVG.
> > Version: 7.5.524 / Virus Database: 270.8.0/1720 - Release Date: 10/11/2008
> > 3:59 PM
> >
> >
>
>______________________________________________________________
>KYHAM mailing list
>Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/kyham
>Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.html
>Post: mailto:KYHAM at mailman.qth.net