Generator help

Hey guys,

I've got an Allpower 3500 inverter generator (Chinese Honda wannabe).

hxxps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q37pU8wYEBQ

Engine runs great. My problem is that it doesn't always produce power. Sometimes you start it and it works great, usually when I start it will run for several minutes and then finally the LCD display comes on and it produces power. It will take a good load no problem. Sometimes it works great for hours, other times it will provide power for awhile and then stops, wait awhile with the engine running and it will provide power again.

I opened it up and reseated all the connectors, inspected the wiring, etc. Didn't help.

Anybody have some ideas why the inverter is flaky?

I had a generator that would produce power when it felt like it.
Autopsy showed a connector wasn't plugged in all the way and would make contact only some of the time.
Once I snapped it into place it worked 100% after that.
Other than that I can't think of anything.

Loose connection, crack on pcb land or bad solder joint. Sometimes there hard to find.

How old is it??? And do you know how many hours on the generator?

It could be some flaky circuit breakers, with the generator off try cycling the beakers several times ON/OFF, this may clear up some dirty or flaky contacts.

The other possibility is that the stator or brushes on the generator is going bad, if that's the case it's a trip to the repair shop.

do a search on the net for the exact model number.
Others may have the same problem.

First thing I tried :no: no luck.

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Originally Posted by zelig

do a search on the net for the exact model number.
Others may have the same problem.

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It's only got about 40 hours on it. It's about 5 years old.
There are no circuit breakers. If it overloads it cuts power and there is simply an alarm reset button - not a breaker.

I have inspected all the wiring and connectors inside, I am considering cutting out the connectors and soldering the wires together to eliminate the possibility of bad connectors.

It has an LCD control panel with some SMT components on the PCB and one of those flimsy mylar ribbon cables. So as Staticrider said it might be a bad solder but I can't see anything and I don't want to start heating up the solder on SMT.

The inverter module is sealed in epoxy so no serviceable parts there...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dogdayz

It's only got about 40 hours on it. It's about 5 years old.
There are no circuit breakers. If it overloads it cuts power and there is simply an alarm reset button - not a breaker.

I have inspected all the wiring and connectors inside, I am considering cutting out the connectors and soldering the wires together to eliminate the possibility of bad connectors.

It has an LCD control panel with some SMT components on the PCB and one of those flimsy mylar ribbon cables. So as Staticrider said it might be a bad solder but I can't see anything and I don't want to start heating up the solder on SMT.

The inverter module is sealed in epoxy so no serviceable parts there...

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Did you check the drop cord socket and the wires to it.

More than likely your armature and brushes are dirty.Clean them with electrical contact cleaner and a find scuff pad.

Sounds possible, I'll take a look but it might take some major disassembly. :bawl:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by runamok

More than likely your armature and brushes are dirty.Clean them with electrical contact cleaner and a find scuff pad.

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I did some disassembly only to find it's a brushless generator.

If all this did nothing to stop the problem then it may be time for a new one.
If it just has overload sensing then the circuit used for that is flaky, maybe you can get a new PCB for that, it may or may-not fix the problem.

That's the problem with stuff today, it's designed to be thrown away and not be fixable in the field.

I switched over to a brand that no one has heard of, very reliable and their customer service is reachable by phone.

Take a look at these by Tillotson.

Code:

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https://www.electricgeneratorsdirect.com/power/tillotson-generators.html

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I would agree with you if it didn't work at all but it bugs me because when it is producing power it will work great for hours. Usually when I start it I have to let it run for about ten minutes or so and then it suddenly puts out power. This will happen if I start it cold or hot. Sometimes it will go offline again and then after awhile it is fine again. Nothing worse than trying to diagnose intermittent problems. It could be something simple that I haven't found yet or it could be something in the sealed inverter in which case it is better to junk it.

I actually have four generators: a 900w, 2400w, 3500w, and an old reliable noisy Homelite 4800w. The 4800 is my backup for the house. The 3500w that I'm having the problem with is fairly quiet and I use it for my camping trailer, I need the 30 amps to run the A/C.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Terryl

If all this did nothing to stop the problem then it may be time for a new one.
If it just has overload sensing then the circuit used for that is flaky, maybe you can get a new PCB for that, it may or may-not fix the problem.

That's the problem with stuff today, it's designed to be thrown away and not be fixable in the field.

I switched over to a brand that no one has heard of, very reliable and their customer service is reachable by phone.

Take a look at these by Tillotson.

Code:

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https://www.electricgeneratorsdirect.com/power/tillotson-generators.html

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Have you any way of checking the stator field when power goes down? This type relies on a powered field to produce current. If the field has no voltage you will never get any power out.

Strip it to where you can get to the board and run it. When it's not outputting voltage spray the board with heat from a hair dryer. If it responds then you can trouble shoot further.