I work at a Hospital and we are doing load shed to help reduce the impact of draw for the local utility,we have two new Cat Gens rated at 1500 kw,anyhow one of the gens run at close to full cap. and the,say crankcase vent ,lots of smoke comes out as oil burning off,this is a NEW engine,and feel its not normal ,as the local CAT dealer say its fine,,crankcase was down about one half capacity after about 30-50 hrs of operation,the supercharger and manifold glows orange in operation,,,any good CAT mech ot there,also 10w-30 CAT (Mobil) oil is in there now and is black as Tobys a-s,,I want to use Schaeffers 15w-40 7000,but as is common its under the warranty,,any input would be great.BL
new Cat Gen question
- Thread starter brian fix
- Start date
- Status
Get the 10-30 out of the crankcase. The engines will have extra blowby until fully broken in. How much KW is the engines running at?
Go ahead and change out the oil and install the Schaeffer 7000.
Go ahead and change out the oil and install the Schaeffer 7000.
Warranty equals use WHAT CAT says when it blows they have NO problems with you. DO NOT go off recomended oil for warranty period.
Brian what water treatment do you use? I work for Garratt Callahan.
bruce
Brian what water treatment do you use? I work for Garratt Callahan.
bruce
Operation and Maintenance Manual
Refill Capacities and Recommendations
SMCS - 1348; 1395; 7560
Lubrication System
Lubricant Recommendations
Due to significant variations in the quality and in the performance of commercially available oils, Caterpillar recommends the following oils:
Cat DEO (Diesel Engine Oil) (10W-30)
Cat DEO (Diesel Engine Oil) (15W-40)
Note: If Caterpillar Multigrade DEO is not used, use only commercial oils that meet the following classifications.
API CH-4 multigrade oils and API CI-4 multigrade oils are acceptable if the requirements of Caterpillar's ECF-1 (Engine Crankcase Fluid specification-1) are met. CH-4 oils and CI-4 oils that have not met the requirements of Caterpillar's ECF-1 Specification may cause reduced engine life.
API CG-4 multigrade oils are acceptable for all Caterpillar diesel engines. When the API CG-4 oils are used, the oil drain interval should not exceed the standard oil drain interval for your engine.
The proper SAE viscosity grade of oil is determined by the minimum ambient temperature during cold engine start-up, and the maximum ambient temperature during engine operation. To determine the oil viscosity that is required for starting a cold soaked engine, refer to the minimum temperature in Table 1. To select the oil viscosity for operation at the highest anticipated ambient temperature, refer to the maximum temperature in the Table. Use the highest oil viscosity that is available in order to meet the required temperature during start-up.
Table 1 Engine Oil Viscosities for Ambient Temperatures
Ambient Temperature
Viscosity Grade Minimum Maximum
SAE 0W-20
-40 °C (-40 °F)
10 °C (50 °F)
SAE 0W-30
-40 °C (-40 °F)
30 °C (86 °F)
SAE 0W-40
-40 °C (-40 °F)
40 °C (104 °F)
SAE 5W-30
-30 °C (-22 °F)
30 °C (86 °F)
SAE 5W-40
-30 °C (-22 °F)
50 °C (122 °F)
SAE 10W-30
-18 °C (0 °F)
40 °C (104 °F)
SAE 10W-40
-18 °C (0 °F)
50 °C (122 °F)
SAE 15W-40
-9.5 °C (15 °F)
50 °C (122 °F)
Refer to Special Publication, SEBU6251, "Caterpillar Commercial Diesel Engine Fluids Recommendations" for additional information that relates to lubricants.
The 10-w30 will spec up to 104*F but with the recent heat wave across the country the oil will be out of range or to the border line. I would opt for the 15W-40 over the 10w-30 any day.
Refill Capacities and Recommendations
SMCS - 1348; 1395; 7560
Lubrication System
Lubricant Recommendations
Due to significant variations in the quality and in the performance of commercially available oils, Caterpillar recommends the following oils:
Cat DEO (Diesel Engine Oil) (10W-30)
Cat DEO (Diesel Engine Oil) (15W-40)
Note: If Caterpillar Multigrade DEO is not used, use only commercial oils that meet the following classifications.
API CH-4 multigrade oils and API CI-4 multigrade oils are acceptable if the requirements of Caterpillar's ECF-1 (Engine Crankcase Fluid specification-1) are met. CH-4 oils and CI-4 oils that have not met the requirements of Caterpillar's ECF-1 Specification may cause reduced engine life.
API CG-4 multigrade oils are acceptable for all Caterpillar diesel engines. When the API CG-4 oils are used, the oil drain interval should not exceed the standard oil drain interval for your engine.
The proper SAE viscosity grade of oil is determined by the minimum ambient temperature during cold engine start-up, and the maximum ambient temperature during engine operation. To determine the oil viscosity that is required for starting a cold soaked engine, refer to the minimum temperature in Table 1. To select the oil viscosity for operation at the highest anticipated ambient temperature, refer to the maximum temperature in the Table. Use the highest oil viscosity that is available in order to meet the required temperature during start-up.
Table 1 Engine Oil Viscosities for Ambient Temperatures
Ambient Temperature
Viscosity Grade Minimum Maximum
SAE 0W-20
-40 °C (-40 °F)
10 °C (50 °F)
SAE 0W-30
-40 °C (-40 °F)
30 °C (86 °F)
SAE 0W-40
-40 °C (-40 °F)
40 °C (104 °F)
SAE 5W-30
-30 °C (-22 °F)
30 °C (86 °F)
SAE 5W-40
-30 °C (-22 °F)
50 °C (122 °F)
SAE 10W-30
-18 °C (0 °F)
40 °C (104 °F)
SAE 10W-40
-18 °C (0 °F)
50 °C (122 °F)
SAE 15W-40
-9.5 °C (15 °F)
50 °C (122 °F)
Refer to Special Publication, SEBU6251, "Caterpillar Commercial Diesel Engine Fluids Recommendations" for additional information that relates to lubricants.
The 10-w30 will spec up to 104*F but with the recent heat wave across the country the oil will be out of range or to the border line. I would opt for the 15W-40 over the 10w-30 any day.
Semms like Cat never heard of Schaeffers ,or wants to sell a service agreement with a sort of OK oil,,it to add I am not impressed with the technical knowlege of the service guys at Cat ,sorry to Slam cat but this is what I see of them..HA wait till it gets out of warrenty and service agreement,the damage is done..BL
Get the 5w40 oil and you can run it from -22F to 120F.
These newer electronic engines typically run higher crank case pressures than in the past, so the breather tubes will have more visible discharge. If you have the service manual it will have specs as to maximum allowable crank case pressure. Oil usage and breather discharge will be high during break-in, this is normal. What particular CAT's are these? Since they are new, it is likely that they are ACERT engines. ACERT engines typically run considerably more boost compared to older versions of the same engine which will contribute to increased crank case breather discharged.
Since gensets typically operate for extended periods of time at high load, a 40wt would be a wise choice IMO. I would stick with an ECF-1 (or whatever spec your genset requires) while under warranty. After warranty run whatever oil brand you prefer that produces good UOA's.
I am not aware that CAT is using blowers on any of their modern engines, if you are talking about the hot side (turbine side) of the turbocharger glowing I would defiantly talk to CAT about that. Normally CAT will not allow those kinds of exhaust gas temperatures. To see an orange glow, most types of cast iron manifolds and hot side turbo housings will be around 1400*F which is quite warm with sustained temps. If this has a pyrometer I would record the reading while the genset is at full load and see what CAT has to say about it (call CAT, don' talk to the local wrench). I'm also assuming that these are Prime rated sets?
Since gensets typically operate for extended periods of time at high load, a 40wt would be a wise choice IMO. I would stick with an ECF-1 (or whatever spec your genset requires) while under warranty. After warranty run whatever oil brand you prefer that produces good UOA's.
I am not aware that CAT is using blowers on any of their modern engines, if you are talking about the hot side (turbine side) of the turbocharger glowing I would defiantly talk to CAT about that. Normally CAT will not allow those kinds of exhaust gas temperatures. To see an orange glow, most types of cast iron manifolds and hot side turbo housings will be around 1400*F which is quite warm with sustained temps. If this has a pyrometer I would record the reading while the genset is at full load and see what CAT has to say about it (call CAT, don' talk to the local wrench). I'm also assuming that these are Prime rated sets?
If you are referring to my statements androbot2084, let me rephrase, a 40wt at operating temp is a wise choice, as in xw-40. 0w40 would be great as long as it's ECF-1 (or higher) rated for warranty purposes.
A 100% synthetic ECF-1 15w40 should have all of the high temperature advantages of a SAE40 petroleum oil. Yet the 15w40 has the much wider temperature range for cold weather operation. For 20 years mechanics have been telling me that only straight 40 weight petroleum oil can be used in stationary engines, 2 stroke diesel engines, marine engines and aircraft engines even though the military has been using synthetic multigrades in these types of engines for years.
I serviced standby gens all over the NY area for 17 years. Now I work as an engineer in a building with FOUR 2000 kW Cats. They're my babies. I just changed the oil last month. Cat recomended a CH4 rating, I used CI4+, two steps better than what the factory calls for. It's Mobil 15-40. When that engine is loaded up, glowing manifolds is a thing of beauty. That engine will never wetstack. You could install Airseps. They capture the vapor coming from the breathers and put the solid oil back into the crankcase. Racor makes a nice, compact version.
Also- take the tops off your Chromalox block heaters and if they have adjustable thermostats, set them to come on at 80 degrees and shut off at 100. Most people are mislead into thinking hotter is better. If you run them too hot, you melt the oil film off the cylinder walls and prematurely wear the pistons and liners. It'll make the goses last longer too. As soon as mine get hard and need to be changed, I'll install Boston Flex Pure Silicone hose. It takes the heat better.
You're welcome??
In my earlier statement about the Airseps- I highly recommend them. If you're getting a lot of oil vapor coming from your breathers, think about where it's going... through the radiator. All that oil mist sticks to the radiator, dust sticks to the oil, soon you have an airflow restriction and a hot engine. I've literally removed a leaf bag of dust from Cat D349 radiators in the past.
- Status
