Generac / Carrier Standby Generator Won't Start Blank Display

[@HVACRSurvival]

I should have caught this in the editing process... I misspoke when I said "it has no governor". I should have clarified that it doesn't have a electronic speed control for a governor.

[@mikedillon6233]

Nice job! I'm an electrician, and electrical contractor and I run across these old ones too!! That was a logical well explained troubleshooting method and I'm very impressed with your troubleshooting ability. Thank you for your help I learned quite a bit!

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thanks Mike, I really appreciate that coming from a electrician🤜🤛👍👍

[@theekidd2053]

Thanks for taking us along this service call, the electricians in my area love selling the Generac units but don’t service them. I’m used to servicing diesel units so your videos really help me out with these small Generac units

[@HVACRSurvival]

I know that feeling, we can't get anyone to take the class and get recertified so I keep getting stuck on them. I use to like working on them but I'm sick of it thanks to the crap weather that they always seam to fail in...

[@Digital-Dan]

Nice narrative style. No stopping to describe things, just narrating the work as you go. Enjoyable.

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thank you I appreciate that! My feeling is they should have some training or knowledge about it before they touch it.

[@tnt666tnt]

these are my favorite videos. Love my generiac 11kw. my basement would be under water with minuets without the sump pumps. gives me ease of mind. Great video as always man

[@HVACRSurvival]

Glad you like them!

[@hartsfire5706]

I love Generac as every time i get called i know i am going to get to install a new Diesel generator and all the free scrap. these things are just junk. love the video good job in fixing this thing.

[@goobermcgoobs7589]

Love the generator vids man they are helping me learn these things and all the quirks you have experienced with them.

[@HVACRSurvival]

Glad to hear it!

[@LRBennettInc]

I had a Carrier unit with the same issue recently and replaced the charger but I always learn something watching your vids thanks!!

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thank you for the feedback🤜🤛👍👍

[@mafosa8519]

That’s a real gem! Just needs modern electronics!

[@thesilentonevictor]

Great work Rick on this one you know your stuff 👌

[@Guillotines_For_Globalists]

I had a battery from a 2009 era Generac explode at my feet as I was diagnosing. Somehow I wasn't injured at all with the exception of some acidic splatters on my shoes and key fob. Apparently around this era it was common for the chargers provided with Generac generators (this one in particular was installed in the unit rather than at the disconnect) to OVERCHARGE the battery and boil out the electrolyte. So that final time when I attempted to manually start the generator, a spark ignited the entirety of the hydrogen gas that filled the battery, as there was no electrolyte to fill the space otherwise. KABOOM! Scary $hit. I contacted Generac and they had a local Generac dealer come by and replace the battery and charger free of charge. They denied my request to replace my shoes and key fob though. This was back in October 2018 I believe.

[@HVACRSurvival]

You're not in the minority. See it a lot in the older generators.

[@Guillotines_For_Globalists]

@@HVACRSurvival I thought fore sure I was blinded. Opened my eyes and was in awe that I was unscathed.

[@Eddy63]

These type vids are interesting and well done ... Thx for posting ...

[@blueboat9581]

Glad mine tests itself every week

[@Ted_E_Bear]

Great video, Rick !

[@sambiscits6711]

I live in Northern California, and we have numerous power outages four times a week because of forest fires or the possibility of forest fires. Two years ago, I bought a Generac Generator. One of the best investments I've made takes about 15 seconds after the power has failed, then when the power is restored, you're not even aware of it. It's seamless.

[@HVACRSurvival]

Some Generac are great and never have a problem. I believe the more it runs the better it will hold up, these generator that I work on usually only have 30-90 hours on them and they end up failing in a major way.

[@throttlebottle5906]

did you properly reconnect the rubber intake hose? I may have missed it, you did it off camera or it's still loose. hopefully not #3 DOH!

[@HVACRSurvival]

Did it off camera.

[@johnstark4723]

lol, I was wondering the same thing 😅

[@bearchow1929]

It's a miracle if a Generac starts.

[@HVACRSurvival]

🤣👍

[@berylwhite2983]

As always you did a great job! You have nightmares about taking screws out? It seems like to me every video I see you are taking out at least 10 or 15 screws! It may be a little bit less but it sure seems like that's more what you do than anything else. But you do a good job of it. I would recommend you to anyone...

[@HVACRSurvival]

No dreams about screws but thank you for the vote of confidence.

[@tbelding]

It seems like no matter who makes the device, anything needing service has too many screws. The last really nice computer system that I saw was an IBM PC (with MCA architecture, no less). You could COMPLETELY disassemble everything, including pulling the motherboard, without tools. Of course, that architecture failed, and nobody else was willing to build anything that way again.

[@dalebabbitt6185]

Lots of good information, thank you!!!

[@HVACRSurvival]

I appreciate you checking it out!

[@johnwalker890]

Good job Rick.

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thanks John!

[@seymourpro6097]

For an emergency unit required to start itself with no mains that charger needs backup! My first move would be to fit a small solar panel (say 5 watt). Yes many modern hyper-clever chargers switch off after a time (about 24 hours) and only come on again when disconnected and reconnected. Use a time switch and a relay to break the mains line and the 12v line, and remake the contacts after a pause.

[@garydyben2896]

i NOTICED THE SAME THING!

[@HVACRSurvival]

The charger is not intelligent, Its a generic constant charger that can charge from milliamps up to 1.5 amp. The reason Generac put the charger in the transfer switch is so it will always have power and doesn't need a switching relay like they use to long ago. The location that it is receiving power is always powered...either by the utility or the generator because its on the load side with the house.

[@rupe53]

Long time Generac tech here... that intake tube falling off can be better secured by filing a few notches in the plastic where the hose clamp grabs. I generally put the extra tooth about 1/4" - 3/8" from the end so it's centered on the clamping area. You should also adjust the valves and change the plug. What happens is when things are a bit off (tight valves?) you get an intake cough on cold start, and that's what blows the hose off. Second thing is related to that charger... new aftermarket chargers automatically shut down after so many hours. (some kind of new federal law for energy saving) What happens is you are fine till there's an outage. (normal battery float charge) When you have an extended outage and that charger is supplying field current, board power, battery charge, and gas solenoid, (within its rating) the aftermarket unit will shut off after 24 - 36 hours, meaning the battery will go dead and the gen will stop. The reason this happens is the charger thinks there's a battery malfunction, because under normal situations (and a properly sized charger) the battery should be fully charged within 36 hours. The correct part for this application is rated for continuous duty WITHOUT shutting down.

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thanks for sharing all that info👍👍

[@Hubjeep]

Do you have any experience with Kohler units? My mother has a 20K, 3,600 rpm unit. Burns a quart of oil in just a few days!! My friend with the same unit says the same!

[@HVACRSurvival]

@@Hubjeep I went to a class at there factory for the Lennox generators they were making but I'm not a really familiar with them like Generac.

[@rupe53]

@@Hubjeep .... no real experience with the newer ones (less that 5 years old) but I did service and install for around 25 years and the general rules are the same. The high speed units do wear faster and some of them never break-in properly due to going right up to speed from a cold start. Consider this: Every 24 hour run period is like driving from Boston to Key Westy (non stop) which is over 1,600 miles. At that engine speed it would be similar to driving your car at near 80 mph. A bit rough on the equipment, eh? Now consider how often you should change the oil under those conditions. The book will say around 100 - 200 hours (after initial break-in of 50 hours) with plug changes around the same time. This is for NORMAL use. They will also call for a valve adjustment at similar intervals. Is there any wonder why there's oil consumption every 2-3 days? I mean, if a car used a quart every 4,000-5,000 miles would you consider it a lot?

[@Hubjeep]

@@rupe53 Thank you for the perspective! Her generator is about 10 years old. My generator is a 30 year old 12KW Onan diesel, 1,800 RPM unit, 4-cyl, air cooled. It uses basically no oil, takes 6 quarts. Runs off the home heating oil, half gallon per hour. Loud, but is a tank. I also have a Lister Petter 8kw 1,800 rev air cooled in a light trailer as a backup.

[@archuka1]

Thanks for the video and some tips !!

[@HVACRSurvival]

Your welcome 👍👍

[@gordbaker896]

Nicely Done.

[@SchwaAlien]

I’ve just moved to an island and it turns out the general store I’m working at has one (8kw Generac) as well as the house I’ll be living in so it’ll be interesting to get to know how they operate and what goes wrong when they don’t.

[@HVACRSurvival]

Have fun😉. Test it before you need it is the key

[@24electricservice]

Great videos!

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thank you!

[@jeffsignore7953]

Love your videos! My only question would be why not shut the generator breaker off in the main panel instead of pulling the fuse? Is there some benefit that I’m not seeing? Thanks Rick you da man!

[@HVACRSurvival]

Because when you kill the power that way you can cause the clocks to loose time and it create a concern with the customer. When I do it this way it switches over and it only blinks the power and generally wont cause clock or computer issues.

[@jeffsignore7953]

@@HVACRSurvival Makes sense! Although I would still have the customer shut down their computers and electronics just to be safe. I wouldn’t want to take a chance of them loosing something they were working on. You have no idea how much I appreciate your knowledge! Thank you so much for sharing it!

[@rakmanyt]

After the battery is run down, checking the water level would be a good thing.

[@mrfrenzy.]

That battery is officially dead anyways. This is not an uncommon cycle - an old battery with a shorted cell almost kills the charger through overheating, then you put a new battery on and the charger dies in short order. The poor new battery sits without charge for days or weeks and gets badly sulfated so it needs replacing again.

[@danbell1733]

👍 thanks Rick great vid

[@bigchew3149]

i do a lot of commercial wiring & some residential from time to time But ia have always liked learning about generators & auto transfer switches ..i also use a Fluke 87 tester (mainly) I also have a Klein MM700 that i like prety good to But i think Fluke is just better imo !

[@HVACRSurvival]

Thanks for sharing

[@thepubliceye]

Good work, did you put that hose back on?

[@HVACRSurvival]

Yes I did, sometimes I don't record everything because I get focused on fixing it then forget to recap what I did.

[@donbangert]

It clearly has a governor and the choke is on the air inlet in the air box.

[@HVACRSurvival]

Your correct👍👍. I should have said the electronic servo governor. Obviously it has a mechanical spring governor.

[@notyoung]

I can't imagine paying $$$ for a $20 battery charger when a solar charge with a 20 watt solar panel and a small PWM controller is less than $50. As long as it gets 30 - 60 minutes of sun (not skylight) a day, it should last forever. But I also don't pay ridiculous amounts for replacement UPS batteries ($50 for a 12 volt, 4.3AH battery?) when I can build my own from new surplus LiFePO4 cells for less than $3 each delivered and an under $5 BMS. You can cheap if you want; I prefer frugal ;-) I would also probably build a 12 volt LiFePO4 starting battery so it will be the last one I ever buy but I've been doing DIY electrical electronic things for many years, When I enclosed the carport on a previous house, I got the city permit, did the work, called the city inspector who looked it over and has one question: Are you an electrician? No, but the electrical codes are very straight-forward and I did plan to sleep in that house ;-) My immediate backup power is a small solar-charged system good for 8+ hours, depending on the season - but I'm not getting a generator out of the shed out back in a thunderstorm or digging through 7" of snow at 30F the get that generator. There's a proper transfer switch for essential things: fridge, furnace, limited LED lighting. I tend to use things until they're worn out (previous riding mower was 17 years old when I replaced it) so I'm always interested in older generators.

[@IFIXCASTLES]

Good job!!

[@markbarber1920]

Shouldn't that battery charger have some type of inline fuse the way it is wired directly?

[@HVACRSurvival]

I know a lot of them have automatic overload protection built in. I recently bought one for my portable generator and it has reversed polarity, short protection, 5 stage charging, over charging protection and was $18. This one I believe was well over $130. I haven't seen the prices for a while.

[@markbarber1920]

@@HVACRSurvival I meant the 120 volt input for the battery charger?

[@throttlebottle5906]

@@markbarber1920 the fuse it hooks to the top of inside the transfer switch panel is the fuse just for it.

[@markbarber1920]

That makes sense I was wondering about the fuse thanks

[@jaypaul8167]

The battery chargers are always a problem. If the voltage goes over 14.2 volts after full charge, the battery will fry. Most chargers will not disconnect after battery is 100 percent. There are two voltages to notice. 12 volts is what you will read at dead. 12.5 through 13 is what you will read with the charger running al 2 amp rate. Two different voltages to be concerned with or without the charger. Usually about 1 volt apart. But over 14.2 volts with charger on is the max the battery will take, then off. Should turn on during charge at 13.5 volts or so.

[@HVACRSurvival]

Your correct on all accounts 👍👍

[@robertferreiro3466]

Thank you

[@smallengine]

How much did you charge them for that battery charger?

[@HVACRSurvival]

I'm not sure, we billed it out.

[@watermanone7567]

Did you ever fix the hose that was not properly connected to the gas supply? Thanks for a great video.

[@HVACRSurvival]

Yes, I forgot to show it in between repairs.

[@solarindependentutilitysystems]

Happened All the time so I prefer solar far better, most got stolen anyways lost 3 here in the past few years Chased one person away just in the past few months, so now chained and wire went up

[@grayrabbit2211]

Gener-junk. I still spec 1 or 2 Honda EU series generators for standby use. Even when completely neglected, they still start every time.

[@eleventy-seven]

No propane version. My 3000i has lasted 20 years. The carb needs work due to E10 rotting it out but it still runs.

[@liam3284]

No governer? how can it work at all?

[@HVACRSurvival]

I should have corrected that with a title. I meant a servo controlled governor. Its just a mechanical governor that gets out of range as time goes on and the springs get loose.

[@dougking7592]

Generator’s, I have been working on one that cranks fires and goes back to crank it does not run, have not figured this one out the problem is I don’t work on generators every day got the schooling if you don’t use it every day its tough to remember

[@HVACRSurvival]

You're absolutely 2000% correct. That's why I don't like working on them anymore. I feel your pain!

[@rupe53]

Most likely a fuel problem caused by the fuel solenoid not fully opening or the demand regulator sticking. You can take it apart for inspection or you can ask the factory to supply an entire regulator / tank assembly under their voluntary recall from a few years ago. If it has the black tank, they were prone to rusting out, which causes an air leak. (and sometimes a gas leak) The factory may suggest that an authorized dealer do that work, but it should be no charge under that campaign. Be prepared with the mod / ser # information when you call.

[@robertboykin1828]

Those types of fuses should be load tested.

[@USA-GreedyMenOfNoIntegrity]

12.8 is fully charged.

[@harrydickson4575]

👍👍👍

[@mikes7047]

generacs are built to keep generator companies in business. As someone who has installed a couple hundred generators ( not one single generac) servicing these turds keeps us too busy.

[@KarlGetts]

I'm probably going to get an 1800rpm diesel generator

[@HVACRSurvival]

Diesel is nice if you loose power a lot and if you got the money. Generac is large only because they make a affordable standby generator, you will see more Kohler and Cats in the industrial world than you will see Generac, for a reason...

[@stephwaylonwells3218]

👍

[@HVACRSurvival]

🤜🤛👍👍

[@davidm7824]

I would love to have a Generac generator, but the cost is outrageous. $2000 for the generator and $2000 for installation. That is $4000 and I can't afford it!!

[@thefathvacguy6341]

Ahhh the ole junky charger....ive replaced a bunch of those

[@HVACRSurvival]

I hated using the older block style. 👍👍

[@thefathvacguy6341]

@@HVACRSurvival I had on fail and was sending over 30vdc to the battery... Cooked battery almost caused it to blow

[@steveblake8766]

235 thumbs up

[@mikefrost3744]

Boy I would like you to explain to fluke ruff voltage. Just because it a clamp do not mean it built to a lower stander. A fluke is a fluke every other meter are not as good as a fluke. You my disagree but fluke is the industry standard. Used by all trades and tradesman!!! From Texas Master Mike Frost 95381 look at the UL and spec on the meter.

[@HVACRSurvival]

This Fluke 902fc and even my Fluke 376fc do not have the resolution that my Fluke 87V has, they are not as high resolution and do not have the sampling rate the 87V has. That's a proven fact, that doesn't mean they are crap and not good, there not built for that is all I'm saying. They give you accurate amperage and rough voltage with a one decimal place resolution. The 87v can pick up a reading in 200 micro seconds in high res mode.

[@matt21124]

Choke is on the airbox

[@HVACRSurvival]

I forgot, you're right. I don't work on but a few a year now.

[@matt21124]

@@HVACRSurvival I service 8-10 a day. Feel free to reach out with any questions!

[@HVACRSurvival]

@@matt21124 that's got to be draining. 😁

[@sandasturner9529]

Now I have another reason not to get a general home standby generator

[@HVACRSurvival]

Get a nice portable inverter. I have a 8kw normal and a 3k inverter. Bother generac, no problems.

[@monkeyman2174]

Liability on a charger. What are you smoking? LOL

[@HVACRSurvival]

You're right people and insurance companies don't look for someone to blame so they can get out of paying for a claim 👌. 😂

[@monkeyman2174]

@@HVACRSurvival I understand but if replacement meets specs and has I think it is proper UL rating then you are good. I would be pissed to know I got overcharged for a charger. LOL

[@karaors8970]

👍🤳🛠️🇹🇷✋

[@edwardlacson2592]

Geneside

[@gabrielskinner4550]

There ain’t no gas it….

[@throttlebottle5906]

Genericack . lol

[@shine-cg9uf]

❄🇺🇸👍💪🙏🙏

[@joehead1294]

Ankle monitor on the wrist, eh? Easy on those close-ups. You scared my dog. Just kidding. I don't have a dog. Hope you put that hose back on secure. Hard to trust a lead-acid battery once discharged to zero.

[@HVACRSurvival]

That's a "Whoop" monitor, it's a professional training monitor like a Fit-Bit. My daughter got it for me for Christmas and paid for a years worth the monitoring. I'll get something cheaper once the subscription is up.

[@joehead1294]

@@HVACRSurvival Nobody gets out of this life alive. Nice try though. Thumbs up for the daughter.

[@makinbac0n]

Generac sucks. Poorly made junk. I have had to rely on those unreliable machines. They were junk 10 years ago as they are today. Though proper and regular maintenance and service it should always be functional. Many of the service calls in these videos are due to lack of maintenance. Thanks for the vid. Generac still sucks.

[@HVACRSurvival]

The older ones were not reliable but the newer ones aren't too bad.

[@makinbac0n]

@@HVACRSurvival Thats ok. I still like your videos. ;)

[@tbelding]

Customer has a 20+ year old one that seems to run fine. All of its problems were related to the transfer/trigger side, not the actual generator. They were the mainstay for colo facilities in the late 90's.

[@HVACRSurvival]

@@tbelding those were a lot different design than these I believe.

[@tbelding]

@@HVACRSurvival - Probably. I think the one at my customer is 15KW. Runs A/C, partial warehouse and office lights, server room, and half the office power.

[@xNYCMarc]

FYI about not liking LPG/propane generators that don't have chokes. Um, they don't need them. That's why they don't have them. Chokes are for gasoline. They do absolutely NOTHING for gaseous fuels. Do you "hate" diesels? They don't have chokes either. It's absolutely asinine to say you don't like something just because you don't properly understand it. Your lack of understanding isn't the engine's fault. It's your fault.

[@HVACRSurvival]

These do have chokes! Who doesn't have a firm understanding here? 😏 I'm not a full time generator mechanic if you didn't notice... I work on HVACR equipment and used to do a lot of these cheap junk standby generators at a previous company because "electrician's" and "plumbers" around here are not able to do more than twist wires together and glue pipe. So no I don't work on diesel. If all I did was generators I would go nuts.

[@xNYCMarc]

@@HVACRSurvival Engines that were designed for both liquid fuel and gaseous fuel will have chokes so they can run on liquid. An engine that is ONLY designed for gaseous won’t have one. I’m an engineer, not a “technician”. I design the engines that you repair. So please don’t tell me that I “don’t understand”. It isn’t true. Thanks. What I certainly DO understand is that you said you “don’t like generators that don’t have chokes” because they “rely on everything being perfect in order to start”. That isn’t true and that’s what I was commenting on. Gaseous fuel doesn’t need to be “richened” to start a cold engine like liquid fuel needs.