What to put in outdoor Diesel Generator

[dlundblad]

I keep it in heated garage. I'm taking a "cold" start, as in from 65 degrees.

0w vs 5w won’t matter then.

 

[kschachn]

0w vs 5w won’t matter then.

No winter rating matters at that temperature.

 

[dlundblad]

No winter rating matters at that temperature.

Nor will it cause the oil light not to turn off in an acceptable time.

 

[Fabulous50s]

Whats the consumption numbers on that lil gem?

2.5 gph at 100% load. I sized it for 60% load, so a conservative estimate is 2gph.

 

[RobbyDawg]

I am a generator tech for a living and we use 10w-30 in pretty much everything, oil pan heater or not and never run into any lube related problems. Temps get down to about -20F here so not quite as cold. IMO a stick on pan heater is the way to go.

Now OTOH, our office ordered me straight 40w natural gas engine oil to use in a Ford V-10 NG engine that sits outside. That unit runs faster than 1800 RPM too because it has a speed reducing gearbox. Can’t remember if that one has a pan heater or not but either way, I ain’t using straight 40 lol. Just because it’s natural gas oil, doesn’t mean it’s the correct grade. Mfg spec for the engine is 5w-30.

 

[Fabulous50s]

Yes, I've worked on both the twin turbo LS LP engines, and the Ford V10 LP engines.

I'm a master electrician and was an auto mechanic prior, generators are right up my alley.

I setup the 150W Katz pan heater on an ambient air temp switch set to 30F. I'll go check out the installation when it gets cold and see how much heat the pan holds at that temp. Should be 9+ qts in the steel pan.

 

[dlundblad]

2.5 gph at 100% load. I sized it for 60% load, so a conservative estimate is 2gph.

Wow. That isn’t bad at all.

I’m guessing the engine is around 50 hp? 2 hp per kw.

 

[Fabulous50s]

Yes, I think JD rates this engine at 60HP for 1800 RPM operation. The same engine in used in farm equipment is rated 85 HP at 2400 RPM. There is also a 50HZ option for this generator which is 1500 RPM at 50HP.

RPM is set by a sensor counting the flywheel teeth and feeding that waveform to a module which outputs a current signal to an electromagnet on the.mechanical injection pump.

 

[eljefino]

You won't have oil problems, you'll have fuel problems. I'm not confident your K1/ D2 mix is adequate. Might want to heat that up too, and put a strong dose of anti-gel additive in. And have a plan for circulating old fuel out.

There are thermostatically controlled outlet adapters that turn on at 35'F, farmers use them for livestock water heaters. Would be a good "dumb" source for some or many of your heaters.

 

[Fabulous50s]

Just put 10qts of old reliable in... T6 5w-40. I set the stick on pan heater to come on at 20F.

Really it's just the starting and hitting the 1800 RPM limit and being under load in a matter of seconds. That is crazy oil pressure bypass opening conditions.

@eljefino I wired in a Honeywell temp control (just ziptied the sensor bulb to the enclosure) to one of the receptacles I put in the genset for the pan heater.

The block heater will be powered 24/7 as, and the battery tender is powered only when the engine is not running. Just an aux contact in the transfer switch.

 

[RobbyDawg]

Many of the larger (and expensive) generator engines have pre-lube pumps which are set to run intermittently, say for 5 min every hour. This ensures there is adequate lubrication when a unit goes straight to 1800 then hits load right away.