Yamaha EF3000iSE Inverter Generator (Part 2) - No Power Output Repair?

[@jcondon1]

Released this one a day early! User error. Better get those Ads up if I have any chance of a part 3.

[@wjl1988504]

We have used the kzbin.infoUgkxOTeIs0vv4_9B5hsmnLsk9r930uDQLu_Y for probably 30 hours with our camper and it’s been great! The noise level is really only noticeable when running the AC and other appliances like the microwave, hair dryer, or coffee pot. It’s not huge like other ones and it has wheels so even at 90lbs, I can move it!

[@chox2001]

A good thing came out of this video. The guy de potting is an honest genuine guy. Maybe put him on your list of trades you can trust. The video had so many twists and turns It added to enjoyment. The thinking time in between videos gives you time to re think. That’s amazing how it gave you more ideas. Im a big fan you are in my opinion the best generator surgeon I have seen.

[@alansmith4734]

30:26 An Electrical Tape Tip that I learned from South Main Auto: When applying electrical tape in a confined area, simply unwrap the length of tape that you intend to use off of the roll of tape and wrap it around a small 1/4" socket. Wrap the tape around the wire, off of the 1/4" socket.

[@MrHugawa]

I watched Eric do that a few times, good tip

[@TKevinBlanc]

Great idea. Thanks for spreading the word!

[@markae0]

If you have any experience with electrical tape, you know it falls off over time leaving sticky behind. You should only use tape for safety during testing to prevent a SC, in the long term , like a year, the tape is almost certain to come off.

[@SteveNeighbor]

Great tip - that would also make it much easier to stretch the tape as you are applying it. (Essential for it to stick for a longer time.) Heat shrink, of course, is always better when it is an option.

[@lynpatnat]

A small zip tie around the two wires you taped will hold the tape in place. Double shrink and offset the join is my preferred way to to it but I'm sure you already know that as you are doing a great job of thinking this job through. Keep up the good work.

[@mdunbar04]

Don't worry about being monetized for your hard work and great Video content. I would watch a few adds in order to have a great weekly James Condon video.

[@imouse3246]

I get the impression that he doesn't want to stay down that rabbit hole permanently.

[@brad9529]

Leave the adds on, you deserve the financial reward for your work, it would be silly to not put adds on all of your videos. More adds and more videos please.

[@terrydouglas2777]

Get money from the adds, it doesn't matter to me since I pay KZbin's $10 extra per month to watch add free an alot of other people I'm sure does the same thing I do. Great video, it seems like you left us on a cliff hanger an we are waiting for part 3 to get posted. I can't wait to see what you find out fixing that problem and solving the mystery of the low power inverter. Hopefully it will get fixed soon so we can see what it was. Great video James. I've learned alot from watching your videos buddy.

[@vegasfordguy]

I bought this same generator used on Craigslist about 10 years back. It started, ran great and made power, but about 5-10 percent of the time it would all of a sudden start running terrible, sounded as if it was being choked. I tried just about everything, never figured out why it would randomly act up. I made my money back, but wasn't the flip I thought it would be. I've never had a Honda give me any trouble except for bad fuel in the carb. Your videos are excellent! I watch all of them. I'm impressed that you torque everything! 👍

[@JasonW.]

I've had a Honda engine do that when the auto choke wax plug goes bad and starts choking randomly, all the time, or never choking at start.

[@victis88]

Thats usually the temp sensor, it was fixed on later yamahas

[@zrkn1]

Your level of patience is amazing, and that's all I will say.

[@haneyoakie14]

I learn more from my failures than from my successes. Perhaps a viewer has a dead one of these and will contact you. Many KZbin channels would not post a video of anything other than 100% successful projects. I appreciate your content showing the problems and the strategy to overcome them, including the ongoing issues because we struggle too. Your content give us better quality because we are going to face these problems too. Thank you

[@timd1833]

Something about your videos that give me the feeling of accomplishment, even tho you are doing all the work. Being older and chronically ill, I don't mess with this sort of thing anymore. Thumbs up!!!

[@jcondon1]

Thanks

[@maadsalemislim]

i like that you speak loud clear everybody can understand you and learn thanks for your videos

[@homesummy8034]

This explains why there were ads in this video when there are usually no ads in your videos. With the end goal to make enough money from KZbin to cover the cost of the inverter module, I gladly will wade through the ads to help out. I echo the others who have posted here in hopes for a part 3 with good news. Best of luck James! As usual, your videos are a pleasure to watch. I routinely look forward to Thursday mornings (well, Wednesday this time), to watch your newest post. Tony

[@xLTxVEGAx]

I don't mind if you monetize your KZbin videos. You've provided you time and expertise to all us viewers, so if watching a few advertisements means that you get to properly repair equipment I'll be more that glad to do so.

[@wildefox1478]

It's unfortunate those damaged wires are what caused damage to the inverter module, nice work James, I hope to see a part 3!

[@BlondieSL]

And that is exactly why there should be a law against companies epoxying electronics. Of course, they do that so that people can't fix the device (well, not easily) and might fork out $TUPID$$$s like we saw there. It's a big job to get all that black epoxy off, but it is doable. With the 2 wires shorting, if you are able to get to the electronics, it's probably not too difficult to fix. It could be as simple as a diode (or several) or even MOSFET(s).... or any other part. The other issue, however, might be that even with removing the epoxy and getting to the components, that some if not all components may have their part numbers and info scraped off. Again, Governments should put a ban on this practice and in fact, there is talk in the industry about it. Anyway, I hope that you get it fixed without spending all that money.

[@putraadriansyah8082]

@@BlondieSL it's not always bad to epoxying modules like that. The epoxy serves as a protective case for the module from heat, vibration and moistures inside the unit. Yes it make repair harder to be done but epoxying electronic modules isn't always a bad thing. I see no problem using epoxy in this use scenario. There's always a way to undo and redo the epoxy..

[@Roy_Tellason]

@@BlondieSL No reason to get any government involved here, you know that this company does this, so if you don't like it you always have the option not to buy their product, plain and simple. They reason they do this may be what you say, or it may be for environmental reasons as others have said. And the bit about scraping part numbers off is a chinese tactic. Yamaha is a Japanese company, and they're not known (to me at least) for doing that.

[@CT-vm4gf]

@@BlondieSLWhen they didn’t epoxy them people complained about moisture getting in and causing corrosion. Also vibration. It’s a case of damned if you do, damned if you don’t.

[@cliffcollins4124]

Nice joint on the pilot light, just a little trick I use, is to put the tape on before the heat shrink. Works well, and the tape cannot undo with time, heat and engine fume

[@tomschmidt381]

Wow what a repair saga. Hopefully the ad will bring in enough to purchase a new inverter module. It would be nice to see it running after all the work you have done so far. Watching this makes me thankful our backup generator is old school. Hopefully all that I will ever have to do is replace brushes.

[@aprilsteel9466]

well I think ts now out for parts so it won't be running again?

[@Balsamancnc]

Hi James, that output on the scope is actually straight up half wave DC but because you have the scope set to AC the scope "centers" whatever wave form it sees around zero. Switch the scope to DC and you will see the wave form is actually all positive (or all negative). You are correct, there are some blown transistors in there.

[@jcondon1]

Makes sense. Thanks.

[@sgtJOOSEcapeS]

To me it's all mind boggling, James does it better than the manufacturer do 🤯....

[@FliesLikeABrick]

James thanks for circling back to this project. One suggestion, if you did end up repairing this and had a bad inverter left at the end... or if you parted this machine out and have a bad inverter in your hand --- For special (rare and/or expensive) parts like this that are beyond your capability to repair, consider putting the failed inverter on eBay for some cheap price, with all your diagnostic observations and conclusions shared. Someone else may have the means to diagnose, repair, or use the bad inverter -- or can learn from it in the process of drying to de-pot and repair it, so it's worth putting it on eBay cheap instead of in the waste/recycling stream. My $0.02 -- a lot of people could be doing this with broken items, that other people may see benefit from repairing or learning on. The goal being to divert the waste out of a waste stream, rather than it being something you/I would expect to make money on selling for repair.

[@JUSTDREAMFREE]

I was so hoping and praying for part 3! Please don't give up James! Captain Picard's famous words: Make it so number one.☝️🏁🏅💐👍

[@eduardedwin3431]

Whatever critter that lived inside that nest had a very comfortable life. That 'bed' looks comfy.

[@electromech7335]

You helped me. I now no longer want to "upgrade " to an inverter generator. I use my cheap generator to run a 12 v power supply to charge 100 amp hrs agm battery and use a pure sine inverter.

[@FarmCraft101]

Here's a tip. A spring loaded center punch is a nice way to pop out those stubborn float pins, even better to blunt the punch a bit.

[@tiredoldmechanic1791]

I had to check my calendar to make sure it's Wednesday. I'm so accustomed to your videos coming out on Thursday.

[@stevenmerley8596]

I have a horrible delemma. I bought new a Yamaha EF3000iSE/B. Great generator... I thought. As back up for a storm, I ran it occasionally for couple years to make sure it's ok. I installed a hour meter to track usage. It's got a total of 8! hours on it. The other day hooked it up to a light load to make sure all ok when "all of a sudden"... lost AC, engine still running fine. AC would not come back, so I took it apart and two tiny capacitors on the "control unit" or inverter, blew up out of the black potting material that's in the large pan of the heat sink. The whole inverter unit is $1200 to $1700... more than 1/2 price of a new one. James you commented in one of your excellent videos, that you knew someone that could remove the potting material so that the control unit could be repaired. Could you give me his name so I could send this unit to him? Of course the Yamaha shop will do nothing even with only 8 running hours on this generator.

[@Kevinrichardsonministries]

Thank You... Thank You.... THANK YOU for teaching me to stay as far away as possible from Inverter Generators.... and Thumbs Up on the Great Video.

[@markae0]

Great demonstration of the 60HZ fan not working while the heating element still heating up!

[@P_RO_]

Game well played James. And ads or not, I'll be here; you're worth it. Not sure about depotting without a schematic; you usually lose markings or overheat components. What I'd try is cutting the caps out and tying into the remnants with new ones for a test. If it works, carefully clear the potting to allow the new ones in, and epoxy. Probably going to need to hunt down another inverter though, and I'm very leery of used electronics like this. I think the best business-oriented approach would be to part out what you've got, possibly repurposing the engine into some other project (go-kart?). Whatever happens here isn't going to be at normal profit margins, and even breaking even will be tough. Best of luck to you anyway!

[@guataco]

The Yamaha saga is very interesting. Good luck.

[@davecc0000]

I like your business model. You avoid monetizing every one of your videos, and judiciously apply the monetization as needed, like this situation. Happy to watch a few adverts for your benefit. Cheers!

[@larrykelly2838]

Doc., can't wait for plan C. This is a tough one at least for me. Thank you for these informative videos.

[@somerandomguy3868]

I have to say thank you for such a detailed video of this project, not that it matters but I'm in agreement about not parting things out, it's a shame Allen is too busy to have a go at repairing the module, but I do understand your reluctance to sell something that has had that level of repair, thanks again and I'll be looking forward to the next video of this project

[@jameskrivitsky9715]

Thanks James, for the effort to this point. I have still learned more than when I saw there were two parts . I recently bought a smaller GenMax gen/ inverter which I plan to do the break-in and complete check-up before I gift it to my sister for emergencies or camping. I hope Allan gets caught up and returns the un-potted module with repairs completed. I am willing to wait for PART 3 with some more educational results.

[@jcondon1]

There will be a part 3

[@BrucesShop]

You had me through the whole video. i just want it to produce AC. Thanks again for your patience.

[@jcondon1]

It wants to make AC!

[@kenmitchell3784]

Your videos are very good, your thought process and calming voice as you leads though one problem to the next. The patience were I would have cut my lost and taken it back to were you got it end the first place. Thanks again and looking forward to part III

[@meme2287]

Great technique with the two pegs and plastic. I'll remember that when I next need to solder two wires in a restricted space.

[@Willy12927]

Really enjoy watching you demonstrate your diagnostic skills.Too bad a lot of shops now days don't have techs as competent as you.

[@BlondieSL]

Not only the lack of competence, but an abundance of desire to rip people off!

[@tristanschaper281]

I felt like I was sitting right there with you, with the same curiosity and nervousness of whether each solution would work! I love how you pieced these clips together over a long period of time, working and waiting on parts, especially sending out the inverter board and waiting for it to come back. The suspense was killing me, even though it was only seconds on the video! That Yamaha EF3000iSE was one of the first larger inverter gens, going back about 10 years ago. Yamaha and Honda owned this market 10 years ago. That EF3000 was very expensive! Unfortunately they are quite rare, as I don't think they sold too many of them. That also means that waiting on used parts to show up on Ebay may be a long waiting game, I hate to say. I'm very curious to see what the un-potted inverter board looks like, and if it can be fixed. The challenge with trying to buy "new" OEM parts, is they are so expensive, as the dealers who stock those parts, paid a lot of money for them, so they don't want to take a loss I'm sure.

[@Sev_Auk]

Not paranoid at all James :) The more and more that I solder butt splices like that, the more I double up on the shrink tubing for each wire. Especially when the two connections are going to be touching each other and vibrating all around. Good choice! :) Thanks as always for the content. I've never owned a generator, but I've watched damn near every video you've made and I feel like an expert in generator repair now, haha. Cheers, Sev

[@Marcelo-56]

10:15 When the engine oil is really bad, I recommend changing it first using a cheap common oil, run it for about half an hour and then (while still hot) drain it to the last drop and then add the new oil recommended for that engine. (the first oil is to clean the lubrication circuit)☝

[@markae0]

Like washing your very dirty hands, you have to do it more than once.

[@compzac]

Thats generally what i will do as well for cars ive bought from the side of the road or from auctions, usually they have been abandoned or just neglected and tend to have absolutely trashed oil systems... around here our dollar stores will sell oil that is past its sell by date, but you can buy the shelf and it costs about as much as a good quality 5w-20 5 quart jug, then i will pop the used oil and a crappy filter, napa or fram brand in, run the car for maybe a day of driving usually about 2-3 hours run time, then put good quality store brand oil and wix filters. I think with small engines it tends to matter less since they tend to run splash systems not oil pumps so the lubrication circuit is pretty rudimentary theres usually not the tiny little passages through the cranks or cams like a pump system will have

[@additudeobx]

add about 2-3 ounces of ATF in with the oil change and the cleaners in the ATF will do a good job in 30 minutes.

[@SteveNeighbor]

Ordinary oil (for cars) will have detergents that help clean. Engines without an oil filter, of course, should always be (re)filled with non-detergent oil.

[@jameshedrick605]

I do the same thing

[@brianvinh7777]

Thank you for not giving up….

[@oldroscoe2590]

I'm loving your videos. We don't have enough power outages here to have generators showing up in the bone piles very often but I've gotten a few that came my way and your videos have made it possible to trouble shoot them and get most them working again. I'm trying to think of reason to justify buying the oscilloscope you have listed,

[@browsedeweb8834]

This was a great video...like all the others you do. Amazing editing. I'd like to see you do more inverter generator repairs, but I realize they are more expensive to buy and fix. I was blown away when you said you could get $900 for that model if it was fixed. They are selling cheaper inverter generators now out of China for about that price...like the new Genmax models. I'll stick with my Honda EU7000is, which I converted to run on natural gas. Keep those videos coming...your channel is my favorite on KZbin.

[@Fester_]

I enjoyed that. A ' Who dunnit ' video with a still unknown ending. I looked for parts in Northern Ireland but no joy, sorry. Thanks again.

[@MrJav69]

Monetize your videos brother unless your mad of money or something.i will still watch every single one of them.and thank you for the help

[@kellyherald1390]

You removing the connector and soldering the wires directly reminds me of the suggested fix for Honda Goldwing 1200s. The connector for the 3 stator wires would overheat and eventually short out destroying the stator - expensive to repair. The solution was to just remove the connector and solder the wires directly before it damaged the stator.

[@jonminer9891]

Hi, James. Some little animal was quite a homemaker. Good to see another successful lesson.Thanks for sharing! Stay healthy!

[@RustyNail5856]

WOW James, This is a hard one . i wish you the best on getting the part you need. keep up the good work.

[@ron827]

Love your clothespin "third hand" and I know you will succeed.

[@KaldekBoch]

James that peg based wire holder is ingenious. Also I say don't part it out - spoof the booster signal!

[@AZVIDS]

👍👍👍just looked up perseverance in the dictionary and it had your picture!👍👍👍

[@jamesgianola9176]

I do love your attention to detail!

[@ken.outside]

I think you should do a part 3 - and include both boards. The repaired one to show someone what might be required to do a DIY repair and then add the new board for resale purposes. I guess someone that is desperate enough may even buy your repaired board for a lower cost. You may still even break even...probably worth giving it a shot.

[@aprilsteel9466]

When its dead be smart enough to just give up on it.

[@jwsystems]

Nice work troubleshooting as always, hopefully you'll make enough to get an new module in soon. I also hate to part out equipment unless it must be done. I am a big fan of using Seafoam for really nasty engines. I put in about 2-3oz per 20oz of fresh conventional oil (I use Walmart generic 10w-30), run it for 20-30 minutes. It always amazes me how much nasty comes out and then put in your fresh oil.

[@philoso377]

At least we learn one of important failures from James, is insulation on cables rubbing on metal part leading to shorting and overloading the stator windings, that diy owners of this model can investigate and apply fix to prevent same thing happen. The wave form test suggesting there’s a break down of electronic parts beneath the cement. Can I offer you a free diagnostic of this module? If I didn’t damaged anything further in process I can unearth and test potential damaged piece and further with a repair attempt, keeping you in the loop. I’m a former product developer EE. If interest lets continue off line.

[@TheBandit7613]

James, I've had two Yamaha inverter generators, one had 2500 hrs when I sold it and it was perfect. The other one I only have 800 hrs on it and I'm still using it. We camp a lot. However, a friend who lives in Arizona off the grid, uses his Yamaha and it's got 18,000 hrs. You read that right. Yes it's totally beat up from sitting outside in the sun and rain. That has to be some kind of record. It's only had maintenance done.

[@jcondon1]

They are well made. Not sure how many hours this one has, but would suspect a lot.

[@YukonHawk1]

Holy cow.

[@Jim-ie6uf]

I'm impressed!!!! Too bad about the ad parts. Part 3?

[@vanguy9780]

Amazing ! Been watching your great vids for some time now and really appreciate them. I think this is the first time I've seen there was something you couldn't fix or least fix it cost effectively. Keep up the good work and the videos. Also appreciate your ethics.

[@TaaviTuisk]

Yeah, would like to see it run again.

[@jcondon1]

Thanks Taavi!

[@67mlb67]

Always great videos James and thanks for your help with the grounded neutral. I converted it over to floating and everything is good.

[@tubemember21]

That extra surge from the battery is an ingenious idea. It's like a hybrid generator in a sense. Crazy to see it on something so "old". Hopefully you can make your money back through ads and and parting out.

[@martyb3783]

Very interesting video. Sometimes you have to make the hard choice. I hope it works out. Frankly I am not sure I would want a genset with a depotted inverter. By the way, I love your clothespin/emery board wire holder. Genius.

[@compzac]

honestly i hate inverter generators full stop whether they are new or not, the inverter is always the part that seems to fail and its always the royal pain in the ass part to get, so what i tend to do is buy a standard generator and if the stuff im powering requires the smooth AC power with fixed frequencies i just use an off the shelf inverter system connected to the low voltage side, it works just as well and if the inverter fries itself, well meh go buy another, they are cheaper and you can use them in other places like hooking them to the battery of a car for power when camping or something, what kinda amazes me is that, generator companies dont seem to like that happening and outwardly try to avoid it being allowed to happen.

[@martyb3783]

@@compzac I mostly agree with you, but the advantages of an inverter are not just clean power, and great frequency control, but I hate having a generator running at full speed, usually 3600 rpms, for a small load. Eventually the reliability of inverters will get better and cost will go down.

[@bobadam7021]

Plan D Youve got some reach now, maybe put up a community post looking for another inverter. Plan E reach out to The Post Apocolyptic inventor and try for a collaboration video. Saving things like this is right up his alley.

[@jcondon1]

Hopefully plan C works.

[@shawnmrfixitlee6478]

We all owe you for the great shares James ! I hope you can get enough to get this one going .. Very nice generator ..

[@bobbybeaver4423]

I have to say, your clothespin wire holder wins today's Official Mustie1 Award for Creative Solutions. And I am likely to fabricate my own soon.

[@hamop3]

You could have used liquid tape to fix it also. Great job on the joining of the wires back. My only method to join wire back also.

[@eddyane67]

Hi. I have a similar condition with an inverter generator branded Kipor, At the first the engine was unable to work at stable RPMs. I disconnect the stepper motor from the throttle and ik keep generating for a while, after several days the inverter stopped to work. The replacement module costs, as you know, almost the generator costs. Thanks for your video. It was useful for learn a lot of tips and know that im not alone with this issue in the world. ;-)

[@ddblairco]

I am here for the long run, see you time for the update. thank you

[@cjbowes998]

Since you've gone this far, I would check the rectifier module. Perhaps the fets aren't getting enough drive voltage. I would also recommend buying a vacuum to suck out the oil, much less mess and you do it often enough that it makes sense.

[@rayshutsa6690]

Thank you James for a great video. I like your attention to detail. Also you will not give up on fixing something . I do learn something from each video. I enjoy your channel and content.

[@v-g-z3689]

Now this is an exciting series! Really keen on part 3 :)

[@pappyjdialvl1899]

👍👍☝️😎✌🏻… Imo..this is one of the best KZbin channels! Your explanations are concise. The videography feels like I’m standing right there. I recommend watching; ICWELD channel, for help with your welding skills. Great video! 👍

[@brainimplants]

Hi. I have an EF3000iSE manufactured Feb 2004 that just failed. It's nearly identical to your Oct 2002 model except it has three circuit breaker switches on the front panel. One for the DC and the other two for the AC receptacles. First thanks for the videos those were helpful for me to tear the machine down and test it out. My inverter model 7WL-80 (120v) went completely dead with no AC out. No obvious signs of trauma. Shortly prior to it's death the AC did seem to falter a few times. Here's my test results maybe it helps someone out. 3 ph ac coils 0.8 ohms orange wires maybe 0.2 to 0.4 ohms blue wires maybe 0-0,1 ohms At normal non-eco engine speed: 3 ph ac coils 286 vac rms orange wires 28.5 vac rms blue wires 25.9 vac rms dc output i think was 28 vdc At low idle speed: 3 ph ac coils 112 vac rms orange wires 12.x vac rms blue wires 11.x vac rms dc output around 12 vdc I might try ripping out the caps and measure the DC bus. The potting is thick and hard/rubbery. It's a real shame because this unit is clean and runs perfectly otherwise. If my time was unlimited it would be fun to make an arduino throttle control and use some other cheap inverter.

[@alwayssomething3259]

I always love your videos! I have always tried to break every repair down to the smallest part myself great to see others do the same. I wish I was in your area as I have a built in RV generator that quit, it’s an old brushed Powertech 7500 diesel. Only makes negligible voltage bouncing erratically all over between about 6-24 volts and only milliamps. I tried a regulator but man what a pain to get to! I wish I knew the wire colors as well as you since you can only get one hand in there and prettymuch watch on a mirror or camera. Either way thanks for your videos I’m sure it’ll come in handy if I can figure out how to get this thing out

[@Ram14250]

Hope you can get it running with power. Funny thing is, Yamaha's seem to suffer from bad boards/inverter modules more frequently than Honda's.

[@carlitomadrona6211]

It happens to me every time, waiting for replacement parts and failed upon testing, its a learning process ..❤

[@YukonHawk1]

Wow ....very good challenge on this one. I hope you make enough money to cover your costs. I really enjoyed this one. A lot of intricate things going on. Loved the way you methodically solved each challenge. Would it help to view the video tens tone so you make more money 🤑🤑💰💰. Great job.

[@googacct]

If you can get the module back, put it up on ebay along with shipping costs and let me know. At the very least I would be interested in continuing the depotting operation just see what is underneath.

[@JmyHDK]

Hope to see this genset run again. A note on the depotting. I saw Mr. Carlson from Mr. Carlsons Lab depot an old potted transformer (which held broken capacitors inside the potting), and he did it by heating the entire thing up using an old oven. I'm not saying this can help in your case but maybe it's worth a try :)

[@VidelicetMoi]

Cool saga. The Inverter Travails.

[@er1073]

I agree with WildeFox. Thanks for sharing your video and knowledge James. Ed

[@paymart04]

Hi James, I've watched many of your videos and this one is just as good as always. I love that you show "real" repairs and if something goes wrong, it's not edited out. I do have one question. In many of your previous videos you repaired "standard" generators whereas here it's an inverter generator. What is the advantage or disadvantage between the two or is it just a case of "electronics" getting into everything these days.

[@billiehydrick6417]

Thanks 👌 😊 from Grovetown Georgia enjoy your videos

[@Farm_fab]

Liquid tape is great on abrasions like you had, but yours was in need of the surgery that you performed on it. My employer uses liquid tape on cords as the company they contract with only allows one cord repair, not including cord ends. This has saved him lots of bucks over the years. We only used this repair if only the outer jacket is damaged, not the inner.

[@wernerfritsch6436]

30:25 I usually put two layers of heat shrink tube on that solder connections. A shorter piece as inner layer and a longer one as outer layer. The heat shrink material is more resistant to heat, moisture, vibration, and electric field strength than tape. 45:45 So did you.

[@MrKidi39]

These videos have me at the edge of my seat hoping for a win!

[@deangentles4966]

Hi james love your total enthusiasm mate with this gene Hope you do well on the money side I think if it was me it would be heading for the parts bin But looking forward to part 3

[@jcondon1]

That would be the smart option. And it might come to that. Lets hope enough people suffer though the commercials.

[@leebartholomew4737]

James thank you for these videos. They have helped me a ton. Hopefully i can get in touch with you in regards to a generator im working on to get some advice with. Its an AI-power Yamaha 2000i.

[@2manytoyz123]

My Yamaha EF2400iS generator has a lot of similar components. It’s also an inverter generator, with a large inverter module. But it also has a 25A bridge rectifier block that’s external to the module. If you lost a diode in the rectifier, that would explain the flattened sine wave. These are are common item, and I keep a spare for my generator. If you’ve not already checked it, give it a look.

[@gnuorder]

That's what I was going to point out. I think he said the cable was shorting out to the rectifier. A blown diode would cut half the wave to the inverter. That is at least worth checking out as it is easier to replace with common parts even if potted.

[@oldsranch]

Always something to learn from your videos. Thanks again!

[@michaelnelson912]

Oooo such a tease! I almost want to offer to pay for the fix to see it work! (almost…)

[@jcondon1]

I hope the new inverter works. It would be an expensive mistake.

[@tedheierman1181]

Yes, please proceed to part 3 and get the module to show it was really the problem to begin with.

[@jcondon1]

That's the plan. Hopefully I am right.

[@seymourpro6097]

Based on the burnt wire shorted to case, my suspicion is that something is off spec in the actual generator. The Inverter is probably fine BUT when fed with only part of three phases it can only output part of the sine wave. When you have a whole box full of bits for the inverter circuitry then you will have spare parts to look through.

[@geoffreymichalisko8994]

Your idea about the missing phase is incorrect. These units could run on one phase, they would just have reduced power. The sine wave is produced in the inverters circuitry not the supply voltage.

[@barthanes1]

That third hand is genius. Two clothespins and a popsicle stick, why didn't I think of that?

[@KuntalGhosh]

I haven't finished watching the video but i would like to tell u that , the sinewave could be clipping due to bad capacitors aswell. The capacitors smooth out the ac coming from the stator after it had been rectified. And if the capacitor is bad there would be ripple on the output and depending on engine speed that ripple and rms voltage would change. The output looks like when u clip an audio amplifier. Basically hitting the rail voltage and so it has no more room to go up. But one thing odd is that the clipping is only coming in the high side of the wave if there was issue with rail voltage it should happen on both the sides cus this is a full bridge inverter not a half bridge. It has only one rail voltage which is obtained from rectified 3phase ac. I love trouble shooting these hard to locate electronic faults.

[@KuntalGhosh]

By bad i mean if the capacitor has high internal resistance..which can not be measured by normal multimeter. It requires a specific low resistance meter that seends out ac to measure. LCR meter.

[@melkiorwiseman5234]

Replacing the capacitors should be tried anyway. In my experience, electrolytics are often the cause of problems.

[@KuntalGhosh]

@@melkiorwiseman5234 the smaller ones should be replaced first before trying on the larger ones . As those caps are much more expensive and replacing them is a destructive process in potted pcb unless they can depot the pcb and desolder the caps. I really want this inverter to be repaired cus i have a eu30is and even though it works fine now u never know when it will go bad. I have previous experience with inverter air conditioners..where the inverter board goes bad after lightning or just randomly with age. Or rat infestation.

[@chrisdevitto4340]

James don’t give up yet. Get that epoxy off the board and track down that short. There are many videos of people who track down shorts without schematics. Sorrin at electronics repair school is a good example. You might try putting the board in your ulatrasonic with heat and some Branson EC. I usually use hot air to remove the epoxy under fill on boards. Once that is removed I’ll bet the damaged component becomes obvious. Track down the power rails, use a cheap linear power supply and find that shorted component. Go to mouser replace part then find a way to re epoxy the board. I know easier said than done but heck I’d give it a go and it would make a good video.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

Too bad the inverter unit didn't work. Its tough to de-pot the pcb. Without a schematic its difficult to repair. Great video!!

[@jackpatteeuw9244]

Agree ! I have never seen a successful de-pot and repair.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@jackpatteeuw9244 companies also formulate the epoxy resin to melt at a very high temp to where it can damage the PCB to prevent tampering, repair, and copying of the circuit design.

[@jackpatteeuw9244]

@@Bassguitarist1985 The one attempt I saw several damaged the PCB ! No chance of repair after that !

[@jcondon1]

Thanks Gary. Was hoping that eBay inverter would fix it.

[@Bassguitarist1985]

@@jcondon1 me too. Who knows you might get lucky again and find that correct inverter unit at some point

[@vk4uh96]

Great work. While I understand the “economics” didnt make sense I would really liked to have seen the module de-potted and an attempt made to repair the electronics. From a learning perspective

[@ecaparts]

Possibly replacing the bad capacitor on the inverter board may fix the problem. After the 3 phase AC from the stator is rectified to DC, the 2 caps may be wired is series, to store the smoothed DC voltage which is reconstructed in to a 120v 60hz sign wave. Some inverter modules will have one capacitor used for the ‘high’ or positive component of the sign wave and the other for the negative. It may be worth a try and perhaps some diode measurements on the AC inverter out can narrow down a shorted MOSFET. Good luck!

[@loucinci3922]

Well, what do you know about that? Lights on - good fix. No fan...hmmm...clipped sine wave? Keep after it. Thanks for sharing.

[@knockywigglesworth1909]

Look at the capacitors for clipping. The mosfets control switching. Only other thing possible would be a failing comparator. But best guess a failing cap.