Standby generator

[fixerupper]

I finally have a standby generator after living on this place for 66 years without one. We haven't had a long power outage for a good 30 years but I know the time is coming and with three shops that could freeze up I figured I had better be proactive instead of reactive. This is a 10k 1PH outfit made for the armed forces somewhere in the early 50's or maybe late 40's. I overhauled one like it a few years ago so I am very familiar with how it works. The engine is a Willys four cylinder, same as the Jeep. I bought it from a farmer friend who used it only a few times. When he did use it he had a smaller hog confinement and this generator kept the confinement fans and feed augers and lights going beside powering his house. He is a trained electrician so he knows his stuff when it comes to power distribution. The only drawback I can see is it is gasoline powered and keeping fresh fuel in it will be the problem. I'm going to look into the feasibility of converting to propane but it might be more bother than it is worth. I have a spot for it in the corner of the machine shed where the farm's transformer and double throw switch are right outside the wall so all I will have to do is run a six foot cord out a hole in the wall to the switch and I am good to go. There is a little tune up work I need to do but overall it isn't butchered up or altered and except for one thing and appears to be all there ready to go.

The one thing that is altered is a broken ceramic resistor in the battery charging circuit so it won't charge the battery. A battery minder on the battery will cure that problem and will be more reliable anyway. The starter/generator is a separate 12 volt armature and fields on the big generator so when I hit the starter button it slowly and silently starts turning over instead of the usual whining starter we are accustomed to hearing. Anyway, I won't get to it for awhile but at least I have it on the place.

 

[Janicholson]

Before filling with fuel, Re work the fuel tank outlet to a valve on the outside. Then every 6 months or year, drain it easily into a jerry can and refill with fresh.
Put the elder fuel in with a partial tank in some other tractor etc. Jim

 

[Russ from MN]

Don't worry so much about old gas, pipe it up like Jim recommended and change it a couple of times
a year, I run lot's of year old gas and don't have any problems. I think where you store it is
important, temperature change causes condensation, inside a building will minimize that.

 

[jeffcat]

I know in NY State you can buy premium gas with out ethinol in it. I
would highly recommend this type of gas. Then follow that twice a year
drain out. Other than that you found a great old toy.

 

[David G]

Why would you buy premium for a Willey's, they are very low compression.

 

[zinniman1]

Don't forget the Stabil/Seafoam. Earl

 

[johnlobb]

In Chelsea, MI, the Mobil gas station sells 89 octane ethanol free gasoline. They call it midgrade. It's the only fuel I put in all my small engines. $4 a gallon, but well worth it.

 

[buickanddeere]

Buying premium to avoid the ethanol.

 

[Mike M]

I have the exact looking unit. They are very good and put out more than rated for at least compared to more modern units. Wonder how much a person can sell one of those for ?
Mine had a natural gas carb. installed on it years ago. It looks similar to a regular gas carb. It was simple for me to adjust it and pipe LP into it. Nat. gas or LP is the way to go for these as they sit so much and it does not go bad.

 

[Texasmark1]

You care to elaborate on that sir?

After Jeffcat put me onto the problem with my BS V twin mower engine, I decided to try some premium at his suggestion, and some NGK
spark plugs. Gas prices for the 3 grades (87, 89, and 93) were the basic price for 87, 40 cents more for 89 and 20 more cents to move on
up to 93.

I buy from a large, family owned grocery store chain who are real picky about their business and fuel is part of that. I feel that I don't get
shorted on the quality of the different grades.

So, at $2.12 for 87 and a whopping $2.72 for 93 one would surely think that there is more to it than price gouging the "uppeties". I realize
that gas comes from different sources and is delivered to different customers. Requirements for the contents could be and probably are
from A to Z as long as the published octane rating are achieved and if containing alcohol, it's also mentioned on the pump.

On performance, the small engines do show improved starting and ability to power through loads better with the 93. The Silverado either
didn't care what was in the tank or 25 gallons wasn't long enough of a test for the computer to make up it's mind. My every day MPG didn't
change so it was back to 87 for it.

Just wondering what makes 93 that much more special. Got any fact based, concrete numbers on what?

Thanks,
Mark

 

[JDEM]

Neat rig. I had a similar one with a Hercules engine That Willy 134 is a neat engine. Super-long stroke. If you buy regular
pump gas with the "up to 10% ethanol", and add Stabil, it will easily last a year with NO issues. Buying the ethanol-free mid
or high-test is a waste of money. Adding propane will make it lose power. Getting rid of the ignition points is the best
thing you can do for reliability.

 

[Billy Shafer]

If you go to propane uscarb.com is a good place to check out. They have conversion kits.

 

[Mike M]

Mine seems to still make good power comparing it to other 10K more modern units it will still run stuff more than those. And I'll keep my points and cond. because in the middle of the night on a weekend and no one has power I can keep the points working and spares kept on hand are very low cost.

 

[Doug-Iowa]

If anyone knows where I can find a set of original covers for one of those generators, please let me know. I have one I'd like to restore back to military configuration. Thanks!

 

[fixerupper]

The reason I am concerned about the gasoline going bad is the other generator I overhauled several years ago came back to me last spring with a gummed up gas tank and fuel pump. The carb was OK ironically. He used a mixture of 50% non ethanol pump gas and 50% av gas thinking this concoction would hold up better in storage. I ended up cleaning it up by soaking it in 85% ethanol for several days.

I have not had problems with 10% ethanol going bad and gumming up the works here in northwest Iowa climate conditions in any of my gasoline engines except for one, the pony motor in my R Deere. I don't know what is unique about that pony motor to make it cause these problems. If the fuel system would gum up on any of the old tractors I would merely jump on another tractor and use it instead. This generator, however, has to be reliable. If it doesn't start and run it is just a mere dead chunk of iron sitting in the corner of the shed and the farm will be without power. Leaving just a little fuel in the tank is no good because of condensation problems. Having the tank completely full helps negate the condensation problems but that's a lot of gas just sitting there going sour. This rig does have an option to run a fuel line to a remote tank. Turn the valve one way to get fuel from the external tank or turn the valve the other way to use the tank that is on the unit. I am thinking about rigging up a small external tank for test runs and leaving the main tank empty but then the main tank will be condensing water and rusting. Just a few rambling thoughts.

As far as propane goes, I don't know how much power I will need from this engine to power up the farm but I am thinking it is minimal in size already so I don't have much leeway. About the only thing I can do is set it up and load it down and see what happens.

 

[Billy Shafer]

What size is it in KW.

 

[Pete in MD]

He said it's 10K.

 

[JDEM]

Hey, "to each his own." I've had it with points in equipment that sits a lot. They oxidize from sitting and then when needed, the unit won't start. No big deal when the points are easy to get to. It IS a big deal when hard to get to. Like the Hercules IXB3 in my HG crawler. I got so fed up with the mag, I put on a brand-new one last fall (NEW, not rebuilt). This spring? No spark again and I spent half a day in the woods getting it going again. Mag has to come off to clean the points and that is a project.

My Ford 641 also was a no start this spring but at least the points were easy to get at. Now they are gone - forever.

As far as using propane goes? Figure at least a 10% engine power loss at max. This may not matter on some gensets that have more engine then needed anyway.

 

[JDEM]

I have a 15KW Fairbanks Morse genset sitting in the woods with a Continental flathead engine. I change the gas every two
years and use Stabil. Zero issues with the gas going bad and it is the cheap gas with ethanol.

 

[buickanddeere]

Small high output air cooled engines , chainsaws in particular should be fuelled with premium. My snowmobile has a limp home mode to select if 87 is used instead of premium.

 

[Steve@Advance]

Something you might consider on the fuel:

Being the age of the unit, good chance the fuel tank is getting some rust growing it, along with whatever has been sitting in it turning to goo.

If you could get a couple of outboard tanks, they could easily be disconnected to let the fuel system run dry, then reconnected and primed for restart. Plus they are sealed, not vented. That makes a big difference on the life of the fuel. If you go this route, factory tanks and hoses are much better than aftermarket.

Also, connecting the electrical with a rubber cord, if this is going to be a permanent install, some Sealtite conduit would serve better. No rodent damage or rot to worry about.

 

[Billy Shafer]

Thanks Pete. Time to clean my glasses.

 

[Billy Shafer]

You might try smokstak. We have a military section over there.

 

[Pete in MD]

I have to do the same thing at times.

 

[vsteel]

The reasoning is most of the time if you are going to get non ethanol gas, it is going to be premium and the second is the refineries are trying to save money so they use marginal gas and can bump up the requirements with ethanol so the standard gas isn't as good as the older standard gas. Because premium has so much higher octane they can't totally make it up with ethanol alone they need to start with a better base stock. That is the theory I have heard anyway.

I personally have not had any issues with ethanol gas but some have had a lot. Seems to be a very personal experience.

The recommendation for premium is for small motors that might sit for a while and they have a harder time with bad gas because of their small passages in the carburetors. If you don't have a problem with run on, pinging, or a requirement from the engine manufacturer, and you run a lot of gas through the engine (like your pickup that gets a lot of fill-ups in a year) you are probably not going to see any change.