Generac Generator Factory Fill Syn 5W30 - 8 hours

[benjamming]

wjdell,
I'm not running the 12 minute runs anymore. It makes more sense to run for a longer duration be less often.

The engine is 30 HP 2 cylinder 992 cc overhead valves. Cylinder block is aluminum with cast iron sleeve. These units have been run and tested at the factory prior to being shipped and do not require any type of break-in.

Engine Oil Recommendations:
Use all season SAE 5w30 synthetic oil or use SAE 30 oil of American Petroleum Institute (API) Service Class SG, SH, SJ or SL. Change oil every 100 hours or yearly. Valve clearance should be checked after 6 months of operation.

 

[Gary Allan]

Quote:

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Gary,

The unit comes prefilled from the factory with the oil, so I have no idea if it was green going in.

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I figured as much ..but your post needed a bump to get some attention. It appeared to work.

 

[Pablo]

Thanks ben!

Quote:

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Engine Oil Recommendations:
Use all season SAE 5w30 synthetic oil or use SAE 30 oil of American Petroleum Institute (API) Service Class SG, SH, SJ or SL. Change oil every 100 hours or yearly. Valve clearance should be checked after 6 months of operation.

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ASE or ACD perfectamundo. Sure LP doesn't have the lubricity of diesel or gasoline, BUT that doesn't mean a good motor oil won't work well. Pull a sample at one year if in doubt, or just change and sample.

 

[Oil_Can_Harry]

Ben,

There is a nice online forum hosted by Ziller Electric that deals exclusively with Generac home standby generators. Before anybody asks, my answers are (1) No, I don't work for Ziller electric and (2) I did not purchase my genset from them. I only mention the site because it has some useful information about Generac generators and things to look out for. Here is the URL and I hope it is some use to you.

http://zillerelectric.com/forums/index.php

 

[wjdell]

I understand the dropping the 12 min runs. I have a Kubota and it says on the fill cap 10W30. Now in the manual it also gives me options, same for my Lombardini. My Lombardini shows a 60w for above 100F. I see your gen set does not require ANG, but that may not mean you can not use it. Its a very nice oil. I also think that Amsoil DEO may be another fine choice if your manual says you can in fact use a 40. There is always Mobil Delvac 1 ESP CJ4, and Schaeffers 9000 CJ4. If I was restricted to a 30 then I would use Amsoil 30 ACD. 4 gal case would be good for 3 years. I have used ACD for about 20 years. I am not sure its the same as it was many years ago. It seems to me to be thinner now then years ago. I run my GENSET 1 hour the first of the month. Its a slow turn diesel and is very fuel efficient. I could not afford to run a big GENSET, in 2004 FPL was out for 21 days. It was $450 for gasoline for a 5k watt. I had to decide that the A/C is not necessary and opted for cooking, showers, lights and entertainment. My slow turn diesel GENSET goes over 6 hours on a gallon, 8 if I turn the hot water off. If you are in doubt about oil weights I would contact the engine manufacturer direct. I also would get a manual for the engine. You may even be able to get this off the net in PDF. If I could use something thicker than a 30 - I would. In my ever quest to use ONE oil for all, I may go to Schaeffers 9000 since they rec it for VW 505.01, although it is not VW tested.

 

[Steelhead]

pablo, "I know you really don't like Amsoil, but come on man."

what a childish statement. I don't dislike Amsoil products. Most of their oils are well engineered quality products but far overpriced to cover their bloated marketing program. I used Amsoil for several years but could not justify the excessive pricing.

please stay with technical points and not sink into personality attacks.

I think you will find the Generac gen. set manual is referring to the generic gasoline powered engine version for spec'd oil. Propane, LPG fueled engines have special oil requirements for long engine life. Valve regression and piston ring groove coking were some of the major reasons propane conversions have lost popularity. Most used regular off the shelf PCMO in their conversions with dire results.

a 40 weight is not excessive in an air cooled continuous hvy load gen set in Alabama temps.

 

[Pablo]

Quote:

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Use all season SAE 5w30 synthetic oil or use SAE
30 oil of American Petroleum Institute (API) Service
Class SG, SH, SJ or SL.

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I cut this from here:

http://www.generac.com/PublicPDFs/0G0492.pdf

This engine is no different than:

http://www.generac.com/Products/Engines/Manuals.aspx

http://www.generac.com/Products/Engines/VTwin/SpecSheets.aspx

Other than it plumbed to run on LP.

From the Amsoil website:

Quote:

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Note: AMSOIL Synthetic Natural Gas Engine Oil should not be used in automotive engines that have been modified to use propane or natural gas.

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Amsoil ANG Oil

I know this engine and it's variants. I worked for Alpha for 5 years, we integrated Generac (and Kohler) generators into street side cable power back-up units. These would sit idle for long periods in some areas and other areas were exercised often. They were always filled with synthetic API SJ oil. NOT a special NG oil.

I am going to say it again in this thread. Follow the manual. Your engine will not wear out prematurely by using the recommended oil. What steelhead is saying is not precisely correct. I agree the LP and NG do not have the same lubricity as gasoline or diesel, but this engine series is not a specific LP/NG engine made to run ONLY on these fuels. In fact, if you use some super low ash oil, which is not API SL (at the very least) it may not be the best for the lower end. This is not personal, but some advice here is a little off the mark.

 

[03cvpi]

We have a couple of generators at work that are propane powered (converted from natural gas). Both have inline 4 cyl engines with a 6 quart capacity. Teledyne Continental 4 cyls. They have about 2900 hours on them. We have used from day one Valvoline 10w30 or Carquest 10w30 and have had no issues. We do have to adjust the valve lash every 1000 hours, but they have solid lifters. Oil is changed yearly or at 100 hours whichever comes first. Both are brought online for 2-3 hours once a month. Units are nearing 20 years old with the only issues being a buildup of the stick oil in the fuel pressure modulator (impco valve) which required cleaning and one burst disk which required rebuilding the valve. Valvoline 10w30 works well in the 4 cyls. UOA have shown no unusual wear that can be attributed to acid buildup and most TBN are still above 4. If the units are run continuously the OCI is moved to 1000 hours or monthly. Longest run we have had is six days after an ice storm, no UOA but oil was like new coming out. We have had more problems with the generators themselves. I thnk we have gone through 6 or 7 brush sets since new and they are a real pain to change (4+ hours)

 

[benjamming]

Sorry for the long delay in posting - the island didn't have internet access (probably had something to do with me not bringing my computer).

OCH,
Yeah, I found Ziller a while back. Thanks though for mentioning it.

wjdell,
That is from the service tech manual. Actually, my manual is one edition newer than what his printed manual was when he came out at 1st start-up. It has the parts breakdowns, etc. Maybe I wasn't clear earlier. I have spoken to 3 different folks within the tech department at Generac & they all tell me that 30 weight is fine - no need to get ANG, etc.

 

[dblshock]

Boy, glad I found this thread, my Guardian N.Gas 7.5k went on-line this April and hasn't seen any action other than the 12min. exercises once a week...I was going to stop the exercises for all winter here in WI. (don't want to fire it up in real cold temps, more harm than good) and was planning to change the factory fill with Rotella 5-40 come spring maybe a filter then too if I can buy one cheap...good plan?...also thinking of running it out of fuel prior to putting it to sleep for the winter?

 

[Steve S]

Propane engines do best on a HDEO engine oil ,Nat gas specific oils are designed mainly for steady state ,constant load operation which caused ring sticking and deposit problems.How do I know these facts? I am not an internet expert I have worked on LPG / NG forklifts at a dealership for 17 years and went through the factory training on Lpg and natural gas . Propane and N.G. engine life is greatly increased due to the fact that the Gasses are dry.

 

[Pablo]

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Propane engines do best on a HDEO engine oil ,Nat gas specific oils are designed mainly for steady state ,constant load operation which caused ring sticking and deposit problems.How do I know these facts? I am not an internet expert I have worked on LPG / NG forklifts at a dealership for 17 years and went through the factory training on Lpg and natural gas . Propane and N.G. engine life is greatly increased due to the fact that the Gasses are dry.

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Dead nuts good input. Thank you Sir!

 

[dblshock]

My Generac has a private label oil filter, I'd like to use the SuperTech filter on this 7.5k Guardian but have no idea what the alternate filter number might be, anyway to find it?

 

[benjamming]

dblshock,

Start a thread in the oil filters section with genset model #. Also, you should be able to get a manual online that should go a long way in helping you. You can also start a thread in the small engine section with other genset questions.