Hello all I would like to resurrect this thread, the main goal is to discuss the best way to run a lister type engine for extended periods unattended.
My situation is as follows:
I have a 6/1 in a detached garage that has been treated to reduce sound. I have a layer of 5/8 drywall on top of that is homosote and on top of that is another layer of 5/8 drywall. The second layer of 5/8 drywall was not my choice, it wad done to meet fire codes. The mechanical noise is almost nothing when over 10ft away from the building. The exhaust is directed into a buried 30gallon drum by a 2” black pipe. The outlet of the buried drum goes into corrugated black plastic pipe and is a downhill run for at least 50 ft. At this point the noise issue has been taken care of.
Fuel is wvo run through a makeshift bag filter then stored in a 16 gallon plastic tank. The oil is then gravity fed through a 10 micron wound string filter and onto a 5 micron string filter, each costing about $3.00 from Mcmaster.
I have been experimenting with different operating rpm, I ran the engine at 380rpm and was able to produce 1500w at my inverter (this is after generator, line and interface losses) for 51 hours without stopping. The only problem I was able to detect was that the belt attaching the engine to the gen started to wear and there was a fine black dust on the side of the generator. I concluded this was due to some slipping on the pulley, which is only 5” in diameter. I do have an idler pulley to create more belt to pulley contact, but even with this it seems to be slipping, and it is already tighter than I would like.
I am considering having another pulley made, this time 6” which will allow me to run the gen at about 475-480 rpm
I am running the engine at a lower speed, primarily because it makes less noise, which will allow me to run it 24/7. If I do run it 24/7 the gen room is always warm and I don’t need additional diesel or hands on time for the start up/ shut down fuel switch over. Running the engine 24/7 will make oil changes and other maintenance chores more frequent, but at the lower rpm I think I should have an adjustment factor. A bypass oil filter is an obvious upgrade I will be adding, to help extend oil change intervals.
My most pressing concern is how to protect the engine from self destructing if there is a problem. I am looking into some electromagnets that can be used to hold open fuel, compression, and air intake. If power is lost to the string of electromagnets all three will turn off, releasing whatever they held open(on) I believe I need high engine temp. oil level and something that will react to over speed. High temp and oil should be straight forward, but over speed may require some creativity. Any suggestions?
Also please point out any problems with running the engine at a lower speed.
I plan to gather data on fuel consumption vs load and rpm to determine the optimal running rpm based on fuel consumption.
Any other suggestions on anything I left out is appreciated
any insight form others running long hours would be great
Scott