Kentucky Ice Ball

[SHIPCHIEF]

I see in the news there are over half a million homes without power. An Ice Storm has hit the region.
Is anyone from this forum in that area? How are you making out?
Listeroid Generator running?
Local observations?

[harv_44]

  Hello Shipchief

I live in north central Ky and yes it's been a pretty rough week but could have been a lot worse.
I live out in the country so we are pretty self sufficient and we do have a 20/2 listeroid but of course it was down at the barn where I work on it.
I did use it to run the well pump for water and it done very well. I have orders from the better half it's to be moved to the house and a shed built for it.
Works fo me

I had a screamer setting out in the yard to run furnace and lights and we have a fireplace and plenty of wood.
We usually have very good electric service so this has been the longest period of time I can remember it being out.
(4 1/2 days) some nights in the single digits   
I think what hurt more than anything was it was so wide spread. Only one bulk fuel plant open in the county I live in and it was running off generator power.

What amazed me was the way everybody took it so good naturedly.If you could help your neighbor you did and everything went as well as it could.
There were a few tragedies ,people running gasoline gen sets in the house.
still a lot of people out of power but the weather warmed up today and things are slowly getting back to normal.

                                             God bless, Harv

[SHIPCHIEF]

Great!
I love hearing about people pulling together during adversity.
The Mrs. here is a true believer after we had a 5 day power outage. the 25/2 didn't have a good governor, and I hadn't installed the 'mod', so I had to adjust it fairly often, but it kept all the household running. Well, with the exception of the stove/oven. They turn on the element(s) and turn them off so often I couldn't keep the governor adjusted. Now that's all in the past with the new springs and geometry of the governor lever.
Good Luck Harv
Scott

[harv_44]

   

 The governor has called in the national guard and they are delivering food and fuel to the western part of the state which was hit extremely hard by the ice storm. I believe the newspaper said it was the first time Ky has called out all the national guard for a natural disaster.

 Scott, it always nice to have Mama on board when you do a project like these. Then when she fusses about me spending time working on it I'll tell her it was her idea.

 Sounds like you're way ahead of me on your listeroid. I am very interested in your governor modification since I too have a twin and would like to run the house with it.
Did you design it yourself or did you buy it already made? If it has  been discussed already I apologize but I couldn't find it in the search.



                                         Thank You Harv

[Roark]

Harv_44:  "...I have orders from the better half it's to be moved to the house and a shed built for it.  Works for me..."

(Laughing!).  Isn't it INTERESTING how these things go from being a social embarassment ("... he's just addicted to that danged engine, Vera, I tell you it's just not natural!...") to being a flat-out necessity?   

BTW:  If you think SWMBO'd is thrilled by this, just wait until the teenage daughter realizes she can run a blow-dryer, curling iron and boom-box off it while charging her cell phone and iPod!  (Yep.  Looks like ya shoulda got the Triple and the 20KW head.  LMAO!!!)

Roark

[SHIPCHIEF]

Harv; The Governor mod was sold as a kit for a while, then the kit maker started encouraging DIY'rs to make their own.
Basically, you get various springs from where ever you find them, and stretch, cut combine, them. The adjuster nut is removed from the governor arm. The spring end is mounted to the governor arm in such a way that the arc of the governor arm end freely swivels on the end of the tension spring. Usually a cotter pin is used for this. The spring is hooked to the eye of the cotter pin. The pin passes thru the gov arm and the end is split to hold it in place, yet free to rotate.
Now the other end of the spring is positioned so that the spring is at a 90 degree angle to the governor arm.
The speed adjuster nut / bolt assembly is at this end of the spring. now your hand won't be so close to the flywheel when you adjust it.
My first try had the engine RPM hunting a little at NO LOAD. I applied load thinking it would smooth out; Nope! It hunted really bad, just as the wife got home  "Hey Honey, that's really smoking!"  The original spring is too short, My first try might have been too long?
A few spring changes later, it's nearly perfect. From No Load 63 Hz to full load 58 Hz is OK. Maybe I could get it even better, but I'm on to another project for now....
You can do it....probably takes about an hour if you have a good selection of left over bits and pieces from other projects.

[harv_44]

     Sorry it took me so long to respond. My company sends some of us to to a convention in Las Vegas every couple of years and it was my turn to go and I thought I would have to stay home because of the power
     outage but power was restored just in time.


         Roark, yes it is amazing how it goes from being a time wasting obsession to something no civilized human should be without.
The only trouble is right now it's about 1/8 mile from the house and cell phone reception is intermittent so if she wants something she has to come and get me.
If I move it to the house it will just be a yell out the back door.


    I've already been through the teenage daughter thing (twice). Now I have a teenage granddaughter. revenge is sweet


 I hope people learn from this and are prepared a little. Hurricane Ike came through here last year and knocked out power (for some up to two weeks) and everybody run out trying to find and buy a generator.
A week later Craig's List was full of them for sale. I guess they didn't think they would need them again and guess what it's Deja Vu all over again.



   Scott Thanks for the info on the governor modification. Right now it runs smooth but I haven't had enough load to tell what it is going to do. I would make a WAG and say the well pump doesn't have over 10 to 12 amps
on startup and less on run. When I plugged it up it didn't even bump the governor. I would like to get a good load on it to make sure the cooling system is going to be adequate and so on.
"Hey Honey,that's really smoking" My wife's saying is usually "honey is it supposed to be doing that".


   Seems almost everybody's power is back on so all's well on that front.


                                                                 Harv