Trouble getting MEP-003A going

[nostaw]

I have a MEP 003A I'm trying to get going which I purchased from gov surplus in the spring.

Where I am now the engine runs for ~1 min, blows black & white smoke when running, then stalls. I bypassed the high temp and the low oil pressure switches with a jumper and tried bypassing them separately.

Usually after I get it to "run" and it stalls I then have to wait ~15 mins and re-preheat it before it will run again.

I followed the troubleshooting directions in the service manual and I've installed new air, fuel, & oil filters and cleaned the fuel strainer. I primed the fuel system to purge the air as well and filled it with oil and some fuel. I also verified the fuel solenoid is working.

I found the governor linkage was not connected and I reconnected that -- is there an adjustment procedure for it?.

I'd love to have this working ahead of the weather we're supposed to get tonight (there is nothing like waiting until the last minute!) -- any suggestions would be welcome!

I tried searching, but didn't see a whole lot I hadn't already tried...

TIA,

Jon Watson

 

[R Racing]

Did you look to see if anything built a home in your air cleaner ?? also look at your fuel filters and system.

 

[nostaw]

Air intake is clear... Fuel filters are new and freshly cleaned.

JW

 

[JimH]

Does it indicate that it is making electricity? The generator head could be shorted, which would be very unfortunate.

 

[DieselBob]

Staying with the "air intake " idea is the control on the filter set for summer or winter ?. When it is running does it sound like it is under a lot of load, slowly dieing or just all of the sudden stopping.

 

[derf]

The 15min wait might indicate flooding. Check summer/winter air flow and then maybe pumps that feed the injector pump.

 

[derf]

Probably not the problem here but is there a vent open/close on the fuel tank cap?
If so, it is set to open?

 

[nostaw]

Air flow is set to normal / summer.

Not sure how to check the high pressure fuel side... I purged the filters, so the lift pump is working... I can hear it prime and slow down during the start sequence.

JW

 

[nostaw]

Does it indicate that it is making electricity? The generator head could be shorted, which would be very unfortunate.

The gauges for AC power are not really moving... The seem to bounce up when it is stalling.

I have the main AC switch set to off per the manual.

JW

 

[nostaw]

Probably not the problem here but is there a vent open/close on the fuel tank cap?
If so, it is set to open?

Vent is set open... I did check it... Appears to move / isn't stuck.

JW

 

[jbk]

make sure the fuel linkage on the side of the inj. pump comes all the way up to max fuel. make sure the plastic bottom ball joint on the fuel rod is not cracked. theirs pelimanry adjustments of the govenor rod, fuel linkage and govenor in the tm. need to pull the throttle out some and have a meter to check engine speed rpm. maybe your engine is only running on one cylinder, would explain the black and white smoke. it would be hard to get to speed on one cyl.

 

[treeguy]

Loosen all the injector lines at the injectors like 1 turn and crank the engine. Have someone watch the lines and see if you get fuel spirting from all 4 of them. Or, prior to this, remove the fuel feed line to the injection pump, turn the switch to on and make sure you have a steady stream of fuel. This would make sure the preliminary pumps are working and you can rule out fuel to this point. Then try the injector lines to see if you are getting fuel out of the injection pump. The point is to track down the fuel (if you say the air is good). Starting at the low press pump output like I said and then follow the path of the fuel you will be able to determine if at what point you may not have fuel. If you have fuel at the top of the injectors, maybe the injectors are dirty. They can be dissassembled, but you MUST count the removal turns on the nut that puts pressure on the main injector spring (it has to be reassembled at the right spring tension, so count the turns). Like a mouse in a maze looking for cheese, trace the fuel until you don't have it where you should and that will tell you where the problem is. And, don't EVER run the unit at less thatn 3/4 throttle or you'll damage voltage regulator.

Good luck, the nasty weather is on its way! (yah and make sure you know the right way to hook up to your house. If you drive a ground rod then you must disconnect the utility neutral in your panel. If you don't drive a ground rod then you must disconnect the ground from the genny panel to the genny frame.) See house hook up MEP's.

 

[Isaac-1]

I personally like to trace from high pressure end back to low end, saves steps if you are getting fuel most of the way.


Ike

 

[PeterD]

I personally like to trace from high pressure end back to low end, saves steps if you are getting fuel most of the way.


Ike

Naw, do a 'binary' search--that's faster. I start with fuel in to the injection pump. Have fuel, then it is the pump or something after (injectors). No fuel? Then I go back and check the input to the filter(s).

 

[mistaken1]

Good luck, the nasty weather is on its way! (yah and make sure you know the right way to hook up to your house. If you drive a ground rod then you must disconnect the utility neutral in your panel. If you don't drive a ground rod then you must disconnect the ground from the genny panel to the genny frame.) See house hook up MEP's.

Why disconnect the neutral?

Depending on local codes the house panel and the meter can should both have a ground rod (and or metal water pipe and/or if old enough a metal gas pipe as well creating the grounding electrode system) so if you disconnect the utility neutral (grounded conductor) you still end up with two separate grounds bonded to the grounded conductor at two separate points.

Proper generator neutral (grounded conductor) and ground (grounding conductor) bonding is important. Neutral (grounded conductor) and ground conductors must be bonded together in one location only. This is done at the main electrical service panel, where both conductors connect to a common ground rod (grounding electrode system). In other words when connecting a generator to an electrical distribution system that already had the neutral (grounded conductor) and ground bonded together (your house) do not drive a separate generator ground rod.


If you leave the building service grounded conductor in place then why disconnect the ground to the generator frame? If there is a problem and the generator frame becomes energized without having the frame bonded to ground it becomes a life safety hazard (when you touch the frame your body is a path to ground). If the frame is bonded to ground and the frame becomes energized the short circuit current should open the generator output circuit breaker.

Are you referring to the bond between the generator neutral and the generator frame? If so then yes that should be removed so that there is just one point in the distribution system where the grounded and grounding conductors are bonded. But the generator frame should still be bonded to the generator feed circuit's grounding (green wire) conductor.

What you really need (read do or else) to do is disconnect the ungrounded (phase) conductors from the utility feed so that you do not try to power the neighborhood and/or kill/injure utility workers with the backfeed. A transfer switch is best for this although those metal lockouts would work for occasional use.

Panel Interlock Kit Kits - for safely connecting generator power without a transfer switch


Now if you are setting up a generator to feed power outlets in a tent city then yes, drive a generator ground rod or three and bond (connect) all of them to the generator neutral (grounded conductor) as you are now deriving your own grounded electrical distribution system. Since neutral (grounded conductor) and ground conductors must be bonded together in one location only. This is done at the main electrical service panel, which is now the generator and this is where both conductors will connect to a common ground rod (grounding electrode system).

 

[nostaw]

First off, thank you all for your suggestions / guidance.

At this point my diagnosis efforts are on hold. To get all my vehicles into the garage I had to push the generator into a corner and I don't want to try starting it when it is indoors in a confined area and fuel may be squirted around.

So far we've seen a lot of wind and rain, but the power outages have been brief.

When the rain and wind slows down I'll pull the generator back out and get back to work on it.

From what people have suggested I think the next steps will be to go through the fuel system and check for pressure. I'll loosen up the injectors and look for fuel there, then check the IP. The lift pump is working and I'm pretty sure some fuel is making it to the IP.

w.r.t. connecting to the house.... My background is electrical engineering, and I worked as an electrician's assistant in high school. I have 150' of 8-4 SO cable to connect the generator in the 1 phase / 240V mode to my panel. The house and the generator both have ground rods and I'll tie the grounds and common together at both ends, so there should not be any ground loops. The plan is to tie L1 and L3 to the 2 "hot" sides of the panel, tie the LO and ground (from the generator) to the ground / common strip of the panel. At the generator end the ground wire will connect to the generator frame, which is also tied to the 8' ground rod. The main breakers will be disconnected and locked out. This all assumes I get the generator running first!

JW

 

[treeguy]

Right, what Mistaken1 said. My only concern is that 8-4 at 150' might be a stretch depending on what in your house you are running. I think most recomend a min. of 6-4. But it does sound like you have the right idea, good luck getting her running.

 

[nostaw]

Right, what Mistaken1 said. My only concern is that 8-4 at 150' might be a stretch depending on what in your house you are running. I think most recomend a min. of 6-4. But it does sound like you have the right idea, good luck getting her running.

I'm not planning to run the electric stove...

I will just run the stuff I need to be basicly comfortable. Can do without laundry for a few days and cook on the grill. Load shouldn't be 10k, so I think I'll be OK with 8-4... I thought about 6-4, but the $$$ was adding up fast.

Plus, I had trouble finding outlets / sockets rated for 50A, never mind more...

JW

 

[Speddmon]

Good luck getting your generator running, the symptoms you describe sound like fuel issues to me. could be a gummed up IP?


As to the other direction of this thread, you guys need to read through this post. The NEC (National Electric Code) spells out in a lot of detail how to install a back-up generator or power system, and the proper grounding methods. Unless I read the post wrong by treeguy, you NEVER unhook the utility neutral in your main panel. You should not have to unhook anything in your main panel when connecting a standby generator.

 

[mistaken1]

Right, what Mistaken1 said. My only concern is that 8-4 at 150' might be a stretch depending on what in your house you are running. I think most recomend a min. of 6-4. But it does sound like you have the right idea, good luck getting her running.

I think #8 is too small as well. I am using #6 for a MEP-002A.