Generator Questions

[Rich Biebel]

Originally Posted by 5848

I have the chance to purchase a Onan Emerald 1 Genset 4Kw rv generator and was wondering your thoughts on this model? This would go into our race trailer.

They were good units.....but that would be a pretty old unit. They have not made that design for over 10 years. Did it have an hour meter attached to it ? It's always helpful to know the amount of usage on a machine of that vintage. An hour meter is the closest thing to an odometer.

I would not buy one unless it looked to be well cared for and could be tested. It is very easy to run one even if it is not installed in anything.

Add a battery and a gas can and run it and check the output voltage. I run every unit I work on....on a bench and it gets load tested with a resistive load bank to full rated load.....It's a lot of work to install one in a trailer or M-H so it should be confirmed as good before doing an install....

[5848]

The hour meter has 232 hrs on it and the unit does look to be in good condition. What is the noise decibel on one of these units? There are asking $500 for the unit.
Thanks

[Rich Biebel]

Originally Posted by 5848

The hour meter has 232 hrs on it and the unit does look to be in good condition. What is the noise decibel on one of these units? There are asking $500 for the unit.
Thanks

Buy it.....They are very quiet. They made about 3 different styles of mufflers and you would need a below the floor mount for a trailer.

They run at 1800 rpm and that helps keep the sound down and is also why they lasted a very long time usually. They can go for thousands of hours with proper service. Sounds like you found a good one but it should be run tested....

[5848]

Thanks for your help on this, one last question can you tell me the age of unit by these numbers.
model # 4.0BGE-1R/26100E
Serial # J870G.

[Rich Biebel]

Originally Posted by 5848

Thanks for your help on this, one last question can you tell me the age of unit by these numbers.
model # 4.0BGE-1R/26100E
Serial # J870G.

The newer machines have the build date as the first 4 numbers of the serial number.

J-87 may be the month and year.....but I am not sure on that.

Oct. 1987...possibly

[FED 387]

looking at a used onan model 4BGEFA 26100J ---says he has been having problems starting the unit also when he had it last running the engine would rev up then go down then rev up again---- not much to go on but any ideas on a fix & is this a good unit??? Price is almost a steal but do not want to buy a money pit either-- whats a fair price on a used one--- Thanx & Regards FED 387

[Don Higgins]

Just a follow up on my problems with an Onan 10K generator.

The generator would run for around 30 minutes and shut down. Code was always 36. We checked fuel flow and fuel pump power which was fine. Finally I shook the E1 fuel pump wire on the circuit board connector and it shut off. Checked connector and it was good. Checked the board connections and they were tight.

What is happening is the vibration from the generator is causing a connection issue on the board. Needs a board but they are $800.

So I decided to wire around the fuel pump circuit and put a separate wire to power the pump. If I had more time I would have wired it into the relays already inside the sheet metal but it appears everything is run off grounding not positive signal.

Here is what I did, put a small switch on the dash next to the generator start switch. Pulled power from the lighter circuit and put another fuse in line. Ran the wire down to the generator and connected to the fuel pump wire. So when I start the generator I also flip the switch on the fuel pump circuit. Now runs all day no more problems. Total amount the fix was $15.

When you shut off the generator you just flip the fuel pump circuit off also. Even if you don't it will still shut off.

[Rich Biebel]

Originally Posted by FED 387

looking at a used onan model 4BGEFA 26100J ---says he has been having problems starting the unit also when he had it last running the engine would rev up then go down then rev up again---- not much to go on but any ideas on a fix & is this a good unit??? Price is almost a steal but do not want to buy a money pit either-- whats a fair price on a used one--- Thanx & Regards FED 387

Yes they are good units but older. They have not made those for well over 10 years. Unstable engines are almost always a carb issue. Dirt inside it will cause problems. They are also very sensitive to adjustments of the mixture as well as the governor mechanism.....

Like all small engines....if they sit with gas in them and are not used you are going to have problems....It is a very common problem and adding fuel stabilizer is not always going to prevent this issue.

There is no way to say if it is worth buying without seeing it and doing an evaluation of what it may need.

Looks tell a lot but sometimes they don't look all that good but work fine. Sometimes they look good but have serious problems that would be costly to repair.

Get it running.....try to stabilize it....see if it has normal AC output....Go from there...