Onan Emerald 3 Generator, no spark!

DaveVA78Chieftain · February 02, 2013, 11:07 AM

Do not forget that the rubber hose's used to connect metal lines together or act as a vibration dampner get old and crack. This results in air being sucked into the line rather than gas.

Dave

Froggy1936 · February 02, 2013, 11:17 AM

One of the enexplained mysteries of rubber fuel lines They will crack and allow air to be sucked in but will not leak fuel !! I have seen this many times Frank

ClydesdaleKevin · February 02, 2013, 11:58 AM

Yep...its on my project list while we are here. After the test with a gas tank, if that actually gets it running and keeps it running, I'm going to replace ALL the rubber fuel lines...easy enough with our rig since I can access the top of the fuel tank without dropping the tank. Heck, even if that's not the problem I'm going to go ahead and replace all the rubber fuel lines...and go ahead and replace the mechanical fuel pump on the 454 while I'm at it, since I already have a brand new one on hand. They don't look TOO bad, but if the fuel line going to the genny is pourous...and it is...then the rest of the lines probably are as well. While I'm at it I'll make sure the pickup tube in the fuel tank is in place correctly.

My solar power system works remarkably well, but after 3 or 4 days of clouds and rain, it is evident that I still need a functional generator to run for a couple of hours with the Boondocker converter after about day 3.

If its sunny days, I don't have to run the genny at all.

I'll let you all know how it goes!

Kev

vegas39 · February 19, 2013, 11:11 AM

I have the same Emerald III genny. My voltage regulator quit this past summer, symptoms are engine starts but as soon as you release the button, engine stops.

I went to Onan and bought theirs for 330 bucks, Ouch! It lasted two months! After doing a lot of reading, I discovered that the Onan regulators are troublesome and found out that many people prefer a regulator from a company called Flight Systems. I bought a flight systems unit for 155 bucks and no problems since.
Just wanted to get this out there in case anyone runs into this problem with their unit.

Oz · February 19, 2013, 01:28 PM

Where did you get the Flight Systems unit from? Directly from them? Website? Phone order? A distributor? Dont' tease us by telling us you found a good replacement part at a better price without telling us how to get one too - - that's selfish - LOL!

vegas39 · February 19, 2013, 01:57 PM

Quote from: Mark Sobyak on February 19, 2013, 01:28 PM
Where did you get the Flight Systems unit from? Directly from them? Website? Phone order? A distributor? Dont' tease us by telling us you found a good replacement part at a better price without telling us how to get one too - - that's selfish - LOL!

Sorry Mark! You would think after all these years, I could figure out how to post links,etc but nope! I bought it off ebay but you can also buy directly from Flight systems. The ebay price was the cheapest

Froggy1936 · February 19, 2013, 03:56 PM

Re: Generators Votage regulators, I learned the hard way that if you shut the generator off (i shut mine off by turning off the elec fuel pump wich emptys the carb & prevents carb problems from stale fuel) Without turning off all load The regulator will try to pull full voltage out of a slowing down generator Resulting in a fried $300.00 regulator Frank

DaveVA78Chieftain · February 19, 2013, 04:22 PM

Flight Systems: http://www.flightsystems.com/

Lots have people have benifited from their troubleshooting info: http://www.flightsystems.com/troubleshooting/ and their parts prices.

Dave

vegas39 · February 19, 2013, 06:49 PM

Quote from: Froggy1936 on February 19, 2013, 03:56 PM
Re: Generators Votage regulators, I learned the hard way that if you shut the generator off (i shut mine off by turning off the elec fuel pump wich emptys the carb & prevents carb problems from stale fuel) Without turning off all load The regulator will try to pull full voltage out of a slowing down generator Resulting in a fried $300.00 regulator Frank

My uncle taught me years ago to remove the load before shutdown, I also like to let it idle for a few minutes after removing the load and then shut down.
We did quite a bit of full load driving this summer with our genny, both a/c's running in 110+ degree weather, ran without a hitch until one morning I started it up and it would die as soon as I let up off the button. We lucked out, because a friend in California loaned us the regulator out of his unit to get us back home to Vegas. Can you imagine Baker California in August with no air? N:(

ClydesdaleKevin · April 05, 2013, 08:14 PM

Alrighty then! I rolled up my sleeves today to fix my genny, and it started right up and ran just fine for over 20 minutes!

My only guess as to what the problem was while boondocking in Hot Wells Dunes, since the fuel tank was almost 3/4 full, was a bad wiring connection at the coil, or dirty points, or both. By the time I cleaned up the connections and tinkered around with idle settings and whatnot and tested the coil, the coach batteries were pretty darn low on juice, and I couldn't continue with the troubleshooting since it wouldn't turn over anymore, and I assumed the worst...a bad coil or fuel pump or fuel line delivery problem. After adding 20 gallons of gas to my tank today, it started right up and ran smooth as silk for 20 whole minutes, so I'm marking this down as problem solved.

Wow! That doesn't happen very often, does it? I'm guessing either it was the dirty points, cleaned up with a clean white business card, or loose connections at the points or the coil, since I cleaned them all up before loosing enough battery power to turn the genny over.

The only thing I had to do really to the genny today was bring the RPMs back down to around 1600, since my tinkering had it revving too high.

I love it when a plan comes together! Or in this case, I love it when a problem resolves itself!

Kev

DaveVA78Chieftain · April 05, 2013, 11:05 PM

1600 RPM. Should that not be 1800RPM?

Dave

ClydesdaleKevin · April 06, 2013, 11:12 AM

You are correct Dave! 1800 rpm. Typo. And I had to do it by ear, since I don't have a tach on the genny. I turned the idle down to the speed I remember it being at, or close enough. Runs and sounds good now.

Kev

Elandan2 · April 06, 2013, 04:58 PM

I use a "Digital Line Monitor" to check the generator. It simply plugs in and gives you the voltage and frequency. So you simply adjust the generator speed to get the proper voltage and frequency. Here's a link for the unit at Camping World:

http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/item/digital-line-monitor/24900

Rick

DaveVA78Chieftain · April 06, 2013, 06:05 PM

Rick has it right. Like the service manual says on page 6-16, you adjust the frequency for 62-63Hz.

Dave

ClydesdaleKevin · April 13, 2013, 08:19 PM

Since I had no meter, I decided to adjust it to voltage instead. Had to adjust a bunch of stuff anyways to get it running at 6K feet! First I had to set the bowl to the 6K mark...and turn in the spring loaded knob under the bowl to keep it running. Okay...it was running fine, so before hooking anything up, I tested the volts coming out...168 volts! Idle too high obviously...lol!

I brought the idle down as far as it would go, which was still 124 volts with no load, but that is low as it would adjust.

I ran the generator today for 4 hours for the first time in a week to fully charge the batteries, which were getting down to about 12.1 the last couple of mornings and not fully charging in the bad sun we are in.

Fully charged now!

Genny runny well now, although its still at 124 volts. I'm guessing that if I want to bring it any lower I'd have to adjust the governor rod settings, which I don't want to do since it idles fine at lower elevations.

Lets hope our electronic equipment has a tolerance for 124 volts!

Kev

DaveVA78Chieftain · April 14, 2013, 12:08 AM

With all the tools you buy I am suprised you haven't stopped by Sears and purchased this handy $60 meter:
http://www.sears.com/craftsman-digital-clamp-on-ammeter/p-03482369000P

Measurement Functions:
AC/DC Voltage: 0 to 600V
AC Current: 40A and 400A Ranges (Clamp on)
DC Current: 40A and 400A Ranges (Clamp on) Rare for a meter like this. Is that Alternator really charging? Is that converter really working? Clamp on meters at Lowes and such only do AC. DC clamp on is usually a several hundred dollar meter.
AC Frequency (You know, so you can adjust that generator properly)
Resistance
Capacitance
Diode Test
Temperature (Is that overhead AC putting out correctly)

I have never seen a meter for this price that does this much. Works great.

Dave

ClydesdaleKevin · April 14, 2013, 12:10 PM

Cool Dave! Next time at a Sears with some extra cash I'll pick one up. Looks like it would come in handy!

Kev

Froggy1936 · April 14, 2013, 01:27 PM

Hey Kev I bought one when i first saw there ad a couple Mo ago But i bought it on Line ( The Sears store is only a few blocks away) But i buy everything except grocerys on line Acouple dollars freight is easier than going shopping The Temperature reading probe sold me on it Frank

DaveVA78Chieftain · April 14, 2013, 07:20 PM

For me the temp gauge was a bonus. The clamp on DC amp meter was what I wanted.

Dave