Damned generator

[Terry Cox]

None are tripped.

Do your three breakers connect to a main breaker like ours? That would be one reason for no Genset voltage. Our Genset has a power box mounted on the side of the generator. That box has a small, easy to miss, mini breaker button. Took me awhile to locate it, but the engine manual identified it.

Also, if not already done so, trip and reset each of the three beakers. They may not look like they have tripped, but may have been.

 

[FastOlson]

Sounds like good and experienced advice. Once the positive side is demystified and back in service, it might be good to also trace out the negative side. Remove --clean up-- and re-secure all connections. I have sometimes overlooked that path back to the battery when trouble shooting.... forgetting that those weary electrons need a decent road back home.

Also, on a twenty year old craft, do not assume that all the OEM circuit breakers still work 100% of the time. Failure is rare but not unheard of.

 

[JamesG161]

Clay Found the issue, it was behind is Switch Panel. The PO had disconnected the Red Genset DC cable.

Problem solved....

Jim...

 

[shemandr]

That damned PO guy again! If I ever get my hands on him ... "To the Moon...PO guy!"

 

[Clay Smith]

Problem solved like I was saying from the start it was either a secondary start battery or a terminal block hidden somewhere. So after all this time chasing the problem with a multimeter and Jim’s help walking me through the issue. it turns out to be the generator is jumped from the main engine starter solenoid to the generator starter solenoid and had been disconnected.I finally just started pulling on the cables and finally found that the previous owner had the cable barried under the engine where it was impossible to see unless you start pulling on that particular cable. The problem was so simple I’ll kick myself in the butt many times before I get over it. I guess that’s the way it goes sometimes. So there are four cables that are hooked onto that main engine solenoid. It was not an easy task to get all four cables on and the nut started. Which was probably the reason why the previous owner (now deceased) didn’t reconnect it. Why he buried it so deep who knows. Anyhow thanks to all who gave their input on possible causes. And a great deal of thanks to Jim who has been a mentor of sorts since I started looking for my first sailboat!

 

[Terry Cox]

The problem was so simple I’ll kick myself in the butt many times before I get over it.

Nonsense, Clay. Problems always seem to be complex until they're solved. At least you didn't spend $650 on what seemed to be a complex problem that turned out to be a broken plastic inline connector that cost all of $0.50, like someone I know. Job well done. Feels great, eh?

 

[dLj]

So there are four cables that are hooked onto that main engine solenoid. It was not an easy task to get all four cables on and the nut started.

That sounds like too many cables attached to the same connector. I think you need a bus bar...Or someway to have less connections on that connector...

dj

 

[dLj]

I finally just started pulling on the cables and finally found that the previous owner had the cable barried under the engine where it was impossible to see unless you start pulling on that particular cable.

I had a somewhat similar problem with the circuit to my propane on/off switch. It started as sometimes the stove solenoid circuit would just shut down. A real pain in the middle of cooking... Then in a few minutes it would start working again. The problem kept getting worse. I finally just had to tear apart three panels to be able to find where the danged electric lines ran. After tearing apart major parts of my wring loom I finally found the culprit. Someone had put an inline fuse - behind everything where you couldn't see it or get to it - and the fuse holder was simply failing. Fuse hadn't blown. Why there was a fuse there on a fused circuit? Go figure...

The problem was so simple I’ll kick myself in the butt many times before I get over it. I guess that’s the way it goes sometimes.

Nonsense... The problem may be simple, but finding it can be a major pain in the a$$....

Why he buried it so deep who knows.

The curse of boats with many PO's and a long history...

dj

 

[JamesG161]

Jim’s help walking me through the issue

Team effort!!

Clay ended his day calling me on phone and said "Jim, listen to this "

Clay then starts up his Pristine New [90 hr run time] Generator to let me hear the Diesel engine quiet noise.

That made me smile...

Jim...

PS: @jssailem and I discussed the issue and he gave me the big Clue on our next step.