Generator Maintenance May 05, 2020, 10:44:26 am I brought our coach home from storage yesterday so that I can perform the various maintenance tasks in our driveway. It felt good to drive through the Santa Ynez Valley in the Springtime! I also took some simple pleasure paying so little for gasoline (we didn’t fill up after the Morro Bay get-together).Now to my question... I’ve read the Onan genset manual and find only instruction for an oil change and muffler carbon-blowout at the 21 hours / one year since new time point. I was surprised to see no mention of an oil filter. Am I missing any other service items?Thanks,Warren
Re: Generator Maintenence Reply #1 – May 05, 2020, 12:13:28 pm Warren,Air Filter, Carbon muffler blow-out, Spark Plug, Oil. That’s it AFAIK. That’s all I’ve ever done. Kent
Re: Generator Maintenence Reply #2 – May 05, 2020, 12:14:22 pm Quote from: WhiteElk - May 05, 2020, 10:44:26 amNow to my question... I’ve read the Onan genset manual and find only instruction for an oil change and muffler carbon-blowout at the 21 hours / one year since new time point. I was surprised to see no mention of an oil filter. Am I missing any other service items?That's it. After this, changing the oil every one hundred hours or once a year. Your Onan does not have an oil filter. You can remove the air cleaner and knock out any loose dirt.The best thing you can do to maintain your generator is to run it once a month for minumum of a half hour when the temperature is above 40 and for longer in cold climates. Run the generaror under as much load as possible, turn on the A/C or run a couple electric heaters, depending on the outside temps.The monthy run does several thing, gets the oil hot, boiling off any moisture, keeps the fuel in the carburator fresh and, most importantly, heats the generator's winding and drives out moisture, that can cause the winding's insulation to slowly break down.Larry. 2 Likes
Re: Generator Maintenence Reply #3 – May 05, 2020, 03:49:20 pm Thanks Friends. I have been exercising the generator at least monthly, having noted this advice on this forum when I acquired my first Lazy Daze. I do note that in the Onan manual, replacing the air filter is indicated at 150 hours and spark plug at 450 hours. I didn’t see an accelerated interval for severe conditions and had planned to clean both items rather than replace. Do you recommend replacing both annually as an extra preventative measure?Thanks again.Warren 1 Likes
Re: Generator Maintenence Reply #4 – May 05, 2020, 04:31:56 pm Quote from: WhiteElk - May 05, 2020, 03:49:20 pmI do note that in the Onan manual, replacing the air filter is indicated at 150 hours and spark plug at 450 hours. I didn’t see an accelerated interval for severe conditions and had planned to clean both items rather than replace. Do you recommend replacing both annually as an extra preventative measure?Unless you operate the generator in very dusty conditions, the 150-hour air cleaner change interval is fine, regardless of time.As suggested, you can remove and inspect the air cleaner, lightly tapping it dislodge any loose dirt and debris.Since our generator has less than 300 hours of run time, the 17-year-old spark plug is still in good condition and in use.I carry a spare plug and air cleaner, as well as extra oil.The oil in our LD's generator gets changed more frequently than 100 hours, due to low run time, 90% of which has occurred in our driveway during the monthly runs. Disliking listening to generators, while camping, we rarely run it, depending on a good size battery and solar panel system for most of our power needs.Larry 4 Likes
Topic: Generator Maintenance (Read 171 times)
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Topic: Generator Maintenance (Read 171 times)
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