Author Topic: Video of current setup  (Read 26860 times)

overbore

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Re: Video of current setup
« Reply #15 on: December 31, 2018, 07:58:58 PM »
Just as a comment: I operated a motorsailer with a copper ground plate and a ground wire system but both were finally connected together. It was abir different lash up in that we had an isolation transformer to keep shore power from adding faults and problems to pure ship-based power (110V).
overore

BruceM

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Re: Video of current setup
« Reply #16 on: December 31, 2018, 09:43:47 PM »
Yep, transformer isolation is a wonderful thing unless you do something stupid and ruin it as the MEN grounding abomination does.  Dark ages engineering.




ajaffa1

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Re: Video of current setup
« Reply #17 on: December 31, 2018, 10:18:09 PM »
Thanks Bruce, that`s what I was expecting but the drawing shows things differently (see picture). My ST5 head is a 240 volt only model so U3, 4, 5 & 6 are not present, please also note the indication of shaft rotation.

Bob

BruceM

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Re: Video of current setup
« Reply #18 on: January 01, 2019, 12:09:14 AM »
Nothing different from my ST-3.  It will work fine CCW as well, no changes to wiring configuration needed.  That's not true for some skewed rotor or brushless designs but the ST's are quite primitive, with plenty of "ratcheting" visible on the AC waveform.  It's no Marathon gen head waveform, but you didn't pay for that, either.  My 5 step sine inverter has lower THD than my ST-3.

I'm not sure why they have that little rotation symbol (CW) on there.  I note it is not specified to run CW only, nor is CW specified.  This is the same diagram used for all the ST heads, and having been inside 4 of them so far, there is nothing to cause a problem for CCW operation and both mine and my neighbor's ST-3s run CCW.   







ajaffa1

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Re: Video of current setup
« Reply #19 on: January 01, 2019, 08:55:53 AM »
Thanks Bruce, I`ll still check things with a meter before wiring it up to the AVR or house.

Bob

John (Boston)

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Re: Video of current setup
« Reply #20 on: January 04, 2019, 01:01:53 AM »
Hello Everyone,

Sorry for the delay...  Not enough computer time  :)  To answer a few questions…

Moving the genset…
I moved the genset out of the basement in pieces (it's a "walk out" basement).  The little Kubota carried the pieces to the shed on a carry all (on the 3 point hitch).  I left the Listeroid assembled during the move.

It was quite a move, done alone, in a bit of a hurry, right before a big impending snowstorm.  Widespread power outages were predicted and I wanted to get the genset operational beforehand.  The power DID go out briefly and I got to run the house on Listeroid power for like a half hour  :)  You just know it would have been out for days if I wasn't ready.

The hardest part was getting the Listeroid up and over the door threshold (which is like 5 or 6 inches high).  It was cold and had snowed, which didn't help any - see last answer, below  :)

About the frame…
Actually, I had nice tires on the rear but it proved to be too bouncy so I removed them.  This is why there is a lunette ring at the generator end of the skid.  With the tires on there I was able to pick up the nose using a trailer mover (with the Kubota) and pull the genset around the yard.  Worked very nicely, except the bounce when it was running.

So I removed the tires and put back the dock bumpers as seen in the video.  Those are rubber truck dock bumpers under there, at three locations.  They were fairly inexpensive, not too squishy, and prevented the frame from digging up the basement floor.  I used three points of contact for stability.  The frame rails are from a rear clip of a Deuce-and-a-Half which I bobbed.

Rotational direction of the ST5…
The fan is straight bladed.  I didn't want the radiator plumbing over the generator and I didn't want the belt on the cranking side of the engine, although that flywheel is smooth.  I had a bugger of a time getting the belt to track on the other, grooved, flywheel.  So, I put the generator on the valve side of the engine, causing it to turn counter clockwise.  Electrically speaking, it really doesn't matter which way it turns.

Wiring...
I wired the two stator coils in parallel for balanced loading at 120 volts.  I did not bond one side to the frame.  Instead, I brought them both out, along with a ground (which goes to the frame).  One of these lines is deemed "hot" at the transfer switch and feeds the branch circuits.  The other line passes through and make its way to the main service entrance panel, where it is connected to the house neutral.  This gives the generator its reference to neutral.

The frame ground from the generator goes to the ground bar at the service entrance panel.  The service entrance ground bar is connected to the water pipes and to the lightning protection system, which has six ground rods at the perimeter of the house, driven ten feet into the ground.  This gives the generator its reference to ground.  I wired it this way to prevent having a loop in the neutral.

Because the generator gets its ground and neutral reference from the main service panel, running it "local" (not plugged into the house) causes it to have no ground and no neutral.  In "local" mode we'll just say it has L1 and L2, which are 120V apart.

Bare feet…
No, not an ironman - that's for sure…  Ha Ha…  Although, I will say that the feet are pretty tough by this point.  I live my life totally barefoot and have been doing so for over eight years, due to a back problem.  I was essentially crippled and couldn't do much of anything - barely could walk at all.  Today I hike on the toughest of trails, I run, and I once again can play with heavy iron things :)

Yeah, no tropical critters here - but I do have to watch for frostbite.  I hate winter but the feet stay bare.  Snow makes things a bit difficult for me at times.

-John (Boston)
Metro 6/1 (genset)
Cummins 6BT (89 Dodge truck, bought it new)
Cummins 4BT (91 Oshkosh bread truck)
Kubota D1005 (B2320 tractor)

BruceM

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Re: Video of current setup
« Reply #21 on: January 04, 2019, 03:26:34 AM »
John, If your power service is WYE, with a neutral wire without high voltage insulators on the distribution line, this is seriously problematic when the neutral/ground of the service is stuck in the earth around the home as you indicated.  Wye distribution lines in the US use the insane multiply earthed neutral (MEN) grounding scheme. 

Everything works just fine, but since the distribution neutral is connected to your secondary winding neutral, there is no transformer isolation, and so when the house safety ground is connected to the earth, especially a low impedance connection, neutral current will flow along the grounding path. This can cause substantial ELF magnetic fields, 10- 100x normal.  Your situation of rods all around the house would likely result in that range.

Avoiding a hard connection of the neutral to earth at the home is the solution, as is done in Japan, Finland, France, and elsewhere. In your case, since you already have a good grounding system, you might consider using the T-T grounding system used elsewhere which would then use your earth as the safety ground, with no ''hard'' connection to the power co. neutral.  This can be done if your grounding system is quite low impedance, though if you had very high current appliances I would suggest putting them or their sub panel on an RCD breaker.

There are several other alternatives.

Some people are happy assuming the power co. is your friend, and believe their purchased "science" saying ELF magnetic fields are harmless to health.  I'd be glad to help a forum member who was a bit smarter than that and values the health of himself and family. ELF fields are readily measurable with an cheap meter.
 


mike90045

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Re: Video of current setup
« Reply #22 on: January 04, 2019, 05:21:24 AM »
....... I didn't want the belt on the cranking side of the engine, although that flywheel is smooth.  I had a bugger of a time getting the belt to track on the other, grooved, flywheel. ....
-John (Boston)   

How did you get the belt to track ?   I never could, so I used some heavy 10 mil tape and increased the center circumference of of the fly wheel, making it a "Crowned Pulley" and it's tracked perfectly for years now.
https://www.lockhaven.edu/~dsimanek/scenario/crowning.htm

ajaffa1

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Re: Video of current setup
« Reply #23 on: January 05, 2019, 07:36:44 AM »
I have had similar problems with belts not tracking properly. I used to put the drive pulley in a lathe and machine a crown on it or alternatively built up a crown with Sikaflex, let is set overnight and then turn that into a crown with a very sharp lathe tool. I`ve used this trick a couple of times to resurface  the wheels on small band saws with good results.

Bob

BruceM

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Re: Video of current setup
« Reply #24 on: January 05, 2019, 11:11:33 AM »
Clever fix, Bob.  What Sikaflex product do you use?


ajaffa1

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Re: Video of current setup
« Reply #25 on: January 05, 2019, 10:11:46 PM »
Hi Bruce, think I used black Sikaflex-11FC last time.

Bob

BruceM

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Re: Video of current setup
« Reply #26 on: January 06, 2019, 12:58:17 AM »
Thanks Bob.  That's an interesting water cured urethane material I haven't seen or used before.  Thanks for the tip!

dieselspanner

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Re: Video of current setup
« Reply #27 on: January 06, 2019, 09:13:05 AM »
I can't remember the numbers but Sikaflex literally holds the boat building industry together. Their products aren't cheap but they do what it says on the tin and are extremely durable in a salt water environment

They also do - or maybe did do - a clear liquid called Sika 5 that when mixed with pure cement causes it to harden in less than a minute. It's really useful when you have to deal with water seepage in concrete cellars or cracks in vitreous pipes.

If the pressure was more than the mix would seal we used to put a short length of pipe over the leak, connected to a suction pump, bond the pipe in place then wait five minutes, disconnect the pump, and cap it off, not a lot of use for flat belt alignment 'tho!

Cheers
Stef
Tighten 'til it strips, weld nut to chassis, peen stud, adjust with angle grinder.

BruceM

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Re: Video of current setup
« Reply #28 on: January 06, 2019, 01:24:55 PM »
I love learning about new materials and applications.  Thanks, Steff.

dieselspanner

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Re: Video of current setup
« Reply #29 on: January 06, 2019, 02:49:11 PM »
It's the upside of Ade's attitude to topic management!

As Glort  (sort of) said, a few days ago, when you log on here and there's a few posts it's quite cheering, you know you're going to learn something, even if you didn't need it, couldn't use it, never wanted it and can't see the point of reading the post anyway.

I don't even mind if they are taking the piss out of me - you know who you are, Johndoh

The anally retentive that would like everything under a different topic can always skip ignore or delete the bits they feel are irrelevant........

Thanks again Ade.

Cheers
Stef
Tighten 'til it strips, weld nut to chassis, peen stud, adjust with angle grinder.