One thing I noticed is that, above the engine, there's a loose wire tied up. There's no schematic in the manual.
I'm sorta curious what the wire is for, but I haven't had the time to trace it.
I also noticed the loose wire (blk/wh). I looked at it briefly. My only slightly educated guess at this point is that it will stop the engine if grounded. I did call the number on the front of the owners manual and they were able to send me a wiring diagram by email. Ask for the wiring diagram for the APG3012 if you call. The diagram is a poor jpg copy of a poor pdf file. The schematic drawing is ok, but the writing is not easily decipherable. (I can send it to you if you want.) Also, the schematic does not exactly depict the genset wiring, but it's close (e.g., the loose wire is not shown on the schematic, the schematic shows only one main winding but the alternator appears to have two, and the little module that the oil level switch connects to is shown to have three wires on the schematic but actually has a four wire connection, some day I'm going to figure out what exactly is inside that module). The genset is really pretty generic.
The alternator appears to have two main windings that are paralleled inside the alternator on the terminal block. Therefore, it appears that this unit could be rewired for 240 volt operation.
Haven't posted in a couple of years but now I do have a question that I'm sure has been answered but I can't find it in all of these posts.I am in the process of moving the exhaust of my gen to the outside of my shed so I can use it without it being in the elements. So far I have all the exhaust hooked up using a car muffler and upon starting it I find there is a lot of noise coming from the muffler it self. Not the exhaust or inlet but from the muffler sides. I remember somewhere where some one wrapped their muffler with something to quiet it down but I don't remember what was used. Maybe fiberglass house insulation but would it burn? Any ideas?
vmckague wrote: Maybe fiberglass house insulation but would it burn? Any ideas?
Both Brad and I tried house insulation. The pink burned almost immediately when placed around the exhaust pipe. The yellow lasted longer and did not burn as badly.
If the exhaust pipe is long enough to dissipate heat, then the muffler will be cool enough to wrap with the yellow (Johns Manville} insulation. You "might" get some slight burning at the muffler inlet. You must make the outer covering over the insulation water proof if it is exposed to rain. Insulation will soak up water like a sponge
I have found another commonly available material for wrapping the exhaust pipe that works well. It is the cord used as a gasket on wood stoves. It comes in various diameters and is usually sold in a package with a 7' length. You can get about 30 turns on a 1" pipe with the 7' piece. If using the larger size gasket cord you can easily wrap a 2' length of 1" OD pipe - maybe more. Once wrapped with the gasket cord wrap again with heavy duty aluminum foil and mechanic's wire.
The stuff the Wiz is talking about works well, but is expensive as heck. An alternative is to visit a U-Pick-It auto wrecking yard and look around for a car or truck that has the silver covered fiberglass insulating material under the hood. It is typically used around wiring that is close to an exhaust pipe or across a firewall. Some of the so called luxury cars like old Caddy's may even have it under the front carpets. The bone yard boss should only charge you a few bucks for the stuff. When I pulled some I had additional parts so he just gave it to me. Take a razor knife and/or heavy scissors because it is often sewn into a sleeve that will need splitting to get off (or cut the wiring harness).
Edit added:
Another thought has come to mind. If the muffler is outside a shed, is it possible to stack some 4" or 6" cinder blocks around the muffler with a 4" block cap? No mortar should be needed. This will create a sound barrier and serve as a heat insulator.
Also consider the James Hardie 1/2" concrete backer board as material to make a box around the muffler. Pieces of aluminum angle iron join the corners and edges nicely. It is also unaffected by heat or rain.
* This post was
edited 10/13/09 08:35pm by professor95 *
Professor Randy T. Agee & Nancy Agee. Also Oscar, the spoiled rotten Dachshund, Mechanicsville, VA
2009 Cedar Creek 34SATS 5th Wheel - GMC 3500 dually Even a bad day camping in our RV is always better than a good day at work!
I have found another commonly available material for wrapping the exhaust pipe that works well. It is the cord used as a gasket on wood stoves. It comes in various diameters and is usually sold in a package with a 7' length. You can get about 30 turns on a 1" pipe with the 7' piece. If using the larger size gasket cord you can easily wrap a 2' length of 1" OD pipe - maybe more. Once wrapped with the gasket cord wrap again with heavy duty aluminum foil and mechanic's wire.
$8 a package at Lowe's. Maybe the photos will make my description more understandable.
Recall reading a lot of posts in this thread on the same subject and I think the general consensus was to leave the generator unbonded between the neutral and ground.
I suppose I'm confused on this now, and asking for clarification with the end goal safety.
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Recall reading a lot of posts in this thread on the same subject and I think the general consensus was to leave the generator unbonded between the neutral and ground.
I suppose I'm confused on this now, and asking for clarification with the end goal safety.
Shoot man, your gonna open a huge can of worms with the bonded/unbonded debate.
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pritch272 wrote: ... I suppose I'm confused on this now...
Don't be confused. That article is written with "politician wording", a technique that uses words and phrases to explain other words and phrases without actually addressing the concept behind the original words and phrases. The author doesn't remotely address the actual electrical concepts and reasons described by some as to why the ground and neutral wires bonded (connected together) inside a portable generator being used as a singular power source for an RV may not be a good idea.
Shoot man, your gonna open a huge can of worms with the bonded/unbonded debate.
No, it is not a can of worms - it is PANDORA'S BOX.
I think James just gave one of the best responses possible to the Blog article You see, my observation is that too many authors of such articles are more prone to write what they have read or heard than to make an in-depth analytical assessment of the actual situation that occurs when using a portable generator with a RV.
"We" have devoted pages and pages to this very subject. Members of the discussion have included OSHA professionals, electrical engineers, master electricians and experienced electronics technicians - just to name a few.
While my position that it is safer to NOT bond the designated neutral (actually, a generator has no true "neutral") when using a portable generator with an RV was not universally accepted, no one could tell me why it would be safer on a RV to make the bond.
What I believe we did agree upon was that the inclusion of a ground fault circuit interrupter between the generator and the RV provides a significantly higher level of personal protection from an electrical fault. Thus, if a GFCI is used, the issue of bonding the designated neutral or allowing it to float really does not matter.
You can read the entire thread on Grounding Generatorshere.
BTW, Quabillion, it is good to hear from you. Just yesterday I was wondering what new projects you might be working on and how the new Honda inverter was working out.
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