Proud New Parent of a Fermont MEP-803A 10kW Gen Set! What the heck do I do now?

[hyderind]

YAHOO!!

Uncle Sam, via GovPlanet.com, has sold me a Fermont MEP-803A 10kW Gen Set with low miles with 410 hours used by the military only on Sundays.

I have never used or worked on a diesel generator before...so this is a fun and exciting journey.

Is there a serving checklist that I should follow? Is it contained in one of the manuals?

WHAT BEST PRACTICES do you follow when you get a "new to you" generator?

Any other advice??

Thanks!

Chris

 

[rcamacho]

Downoad all the technical manuals and read them first
Replace the fuel tank well nits - see ultimate well nut fix thread.
Fuse and MOV mod thread... cheap insurance for voltage regulator issues


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[Coug]

Check the exhaust outlet, if it looks oily at all you're going to need to do a heavy loaded run to clear out the wet stacking, usually 80% or more load works best if you can load it that far without it bogging down. If it bogs down, load it as far as you can to slight bogging, when it picks up to where it's supposed to be load it up some more until you hit at least 80%.
Old ovens or industrial shop heaters work if you don't have a load bank. Or do what I did and find one of the 3 ton ECUs at auction and use it, the coil in mine is 9kw 208 3 phase, just about perfect for the 10KW for a load. You don't want to just use your house because if it's not running properly you can fry electronics in things, and that gets expensive fast.

But first, like rcamacho said, download the manuals and read through them, and do the fuse and MOV upgrades (it might already have the fuse), and the ultimate well nut fix as well if the tank is already empty (it should be unless you added fuel already)

Yes, there should be a list in the manual for things to inspect on it, and also go through the stickies at the top of the thread list here, they have some of the info you'll be happy to have later on.

 

[robertsears1]

Also, when you start one of these, you hold the switch in start for several seconds after the oil pressure stabilizes. It is slight overkill to hold it that long but it doesn’t hurt anything and you have to excite the generator head. It feels like you are going against everything you were ever taught about cranking something at first.
Robert

 

[Chainbreaker]

In addition to reading the manuals one of the first things you should do is GROUND IT with a driven ground rod! Since you are going to want to test its AC output before you hook it up to your house, or whatever you plan to use it for, you need to ground it since it won't be connected to the house ground initially. Be sure you understand grounding completely and when to bond/unbond it. If you do a search there are lots of threads discussing proper grounding practices.

Second thing is to do a complete wiring inspection (any loose wires? un-terminated dangling wires?, do a tug test to verify all wires are tight). Diesel Addict just posted a thread showing why you should do this.

The 3rd thing would be to check the fluid levels and purchase all the necessary maintenance items: oil filter, fuel filter, air filter, proper grade oil etc. Whether you change all the filters out first or wait to start it to verify it runs before changing out the filters is your call. On a "new to me" generator, I first like to verify that all filters are in place and that they look visually ok (not completely gunked up, if they are change them out) and then start it up to get it hot (especially the oil before draining) & other fluids circulating before changing filters the first time.

Fourth on my list would be to have something I could use to verify the Voltage/Hertz output. A Kill-A-Watt meter plugged into the convenience outlet is cheap insurance that output is good, every time you start it, before connecting to any load.

 

[Daybreak]

Howdy,
Start here.
[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Tahoma,Calibri,Geneva,sans-serif]MEP-802A MEP-803A Filters and Parts[/FONT]

2nd post has quick links to stuff

3rd post has links to the manuals.

 

[robson1015]

Welcome to the addiction !! This is just the beginning....Congrats

 

[hyderind]

Welcome to the addiction !! This is just the beginning....Congrats

For which there is no cure!

Thanks!

 

[hyderind]

Howdy,
Start here.
MEP-802A MEP-803A Filters and Parts

2nd post has quick links to stuff

3rd post has links to the manuals.

EXCELLENT Link! Thanks!

 

[hyderind]

Howdy,
Start here.
MEP-802A MEP-803A Filters and Parts

2nd post has quick links to stuff

3rd post has links to the manuals.

EXCELLENT Link! Thanks!