Homemade Inverter Generator Load Test Long Run- Burning Some Oil

After running for about 30 minutes there was some blue smoke blowing out of the crank case vent. I'm not surprised since this engine is over 40 years old. Probably needs a new set of rings. Be sure to watch all the videos of this generator.

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• alternator
• generator
• 12vdc
• 110vac
• inverter
• Tecumseh
• H70
• gas
• power
• powered
• 1500
• watts
• hp
• horsepower
• battery
• charger
• delco
• remy
• xantrex
• burning
• oil
• motor
• engine
• ac
• dc

[Townsonbck]

Does your alt get hot when your drawing heavy loads. I had a 94 amp delco si 12 and started smelling thw alt just running a toster oven!

[AlternativePowerMan]

@Townsonbck  It gets warm but not hot. I am using shaft drive, which means the cooling fans are turning the right way.

[jbgrant2]

Thanks for sharing your work. I'm in the process of rigging a second-hand modern tecumseh enduro 6.5 to a 200 amp police car alternator ($40 on ebay). I'm expecting 2.0-2.4kw. I have a 3000 watt pwm pseudo-sine inverter to harness it. I will use a 50 amp hour car battery to smooth the power demand. The overall cost is extremely low, and the end product should be very useful. Planning to use pulleys to run the engine at 3200 rpm (max is 3800 for motor), alternator at ~4000. Thanks!

[AlternativePowerMan]

@jbgrant2 A good rule of thumb is to multiple engine HP with 500 to get power (in watts) capability. Thus a 6.5 can make 3250 watts. In my design the engine is only for high-power demand, and/or rapid battery charging. Eventually I will buy a large deep cycle battery, and only the battery will be used for low power backup power....my fridges and Internet/computer. When the power comes back on I can use a regular 110VAC/12VDC battery charger. If I want to use a grill then I run the engine. :-)

[AlternativePowerMan]

The problem in the first video was that the engine governor was broken, and I had the throttle set too low to prevent damage in case of some sort of load disconnect scenario. Once I fixed the governor that cured the engine bog down. I am actually consider building a multi-high-output-alternator design using a 16HP engine and multiple inverters. Would be nice to find a 220VAC inverter, with 100VAC outputs. Thanks for feedback.

[AlternativePowerMan]

Its a 24SI and it should be around 120 amps at 3600 RPM. I don't plan on running it at max for long periods of time. I do plan on getting a very large amp hour deep cycle battery for the primary source of power which can also work in supplement with the alternator, and be charged with AC charger or the alternator.

I think I will pick up another frame, and put a the battery in that and mount the inverter on the side. Some wheels might be nice too.

Thanks! Can you vote a few stars? :-)

[carpenterty]

Thanks for the video! This video and just a few others gave me the inspiration to build my own. I had a hard time deciding on a coupler or pulley system. I decided pulleys just so I could play around with the different ratios,but in the end I went with a 1:1 ratio anyhow. Good job keep the projects coming and I will do my 30 min load test in the next week.

[rboos]

Nice job! I can't wait to see it with a larger capacity battery, like a 150A - the inverter would draw less amps from the alternator and minimize the load on the engine. From the 1st vid I had the impression that the current draw was bypassing the battery... That's why the engine's rpm was slowing down while you were turning the furnace on... thx for the vid!

[SSD99]

APM-

I REALLY like your set-up. Especially the alternator w/pad-mount. How many amps can you get with the alternator spinning at just 3600rpm? Also, what type is it? It looks like a 27SI, but I can't be sure. Do you nplan to integrate the battery & Inverter into the frame? If so, can't wait to see the whole thing together. Again, NICE job!

Steve