20kw Generator

American Patriot 1960 · Aug 23, 2023

I need a 20kw single phase, 60hz diesel generator, I prefer the newest available model or the 1 right before it unless you more knowledgeable people have a reason why I want an older unit.

I would prefer water cooled unless (again) you more knowledgeable people have a reason to go air cooled.

It will be sitting outside so an enclosure is necessary.

What model generator am I lookimg for?

Thanks in advance for any and of all your assistance!

Scoobyshep · Aug 23, 2023

American Patriot 1960 said:
I need a 20kw diesel generator, I prefer the newest available model or the 1 right before it unless you more knowledgeable people have a reason why I want an older unit.

I would prefer water cooled unless (again) you more knowledgeable people have a reason to go air cooled.

It will be sitting outside so an enclosure is necessary.

What model generator am I lookimg for?

Thanks in advance for any and of all your assistance!

What are you powering? Is it a 3 phase or single phase load

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DieselAddict · Aug 23, 2023

Unless its a 3 phase load, there isn't an option in that power range for a retired military unit in the current gen or one gen back.

If you go back a couple of generations you can pick up a MEP004 (15kw) or MEP005 (30kw) that CAN be converted to single phase. The conversion isn't as simple as switches. Its truly a conversion that requires a bit of expertise.

American Patriot 1960 · Aug 23, 2023

Scoobyshep said:
What are you powering? Is it a 3 phase or single phase load

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I knew I forgot something! House. Single phase 60hz

DieselAddict · Aug 23, 2023

Not really a good fit for a retired military generator.

One option would be to buy 2 of the MEP1040 10kw generators. They can be run in parallel. A pair of those at auction would run $12-$15K

Scoobyshep · Aug 23, 2023

American Patriot 1960 said:
I knew I forgot something! House. Single phase 60hz

Bigger things aren't really made for single phase but some of the older ones can be modified are sure you need something that large?

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Digger556 · Aug 23, 2023

Do you really need 20kW for a house? Are you all electric?

A 10 kW unit will run most houses with A/C. For those with high efficiency A/C's, like me, you can run the whole house on a 5 kW unit.

You can't just say "I want the big one to run everything" because all mil sets are diesel and you need to keep them loaded above 50% to prevent wet stacking.

American Patriot 1960 · Aug 23, 2023

Scoobyshep said:
Bigger things aren't really made for single phase but some of the older ones can be modified are sure you need something that large?

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Well.... I know the military units are well under rated. I could probably go with a 15 that could handle ocassional brief (AC start up) spikes higher to about 18-20.

Does that help?

98G · Aug 23, 2023

I can't imagine needing that much genset.

I have one that size (23kW). I can run my welder and my plasma cutter both wide open at the same time, 3 guys using grinders, and still have enough left over to power my entire house.

Do you plan to run your oven, your dryer, your water heater, your furnace, and your AC all at the same time with every light on and all appliances running? If so yiu may load it to 75%

A little bit of load management and 5kW would probably run everything, except maybe some of the larger AC units. 10kW really should be more than plenty unless your needs are really outside of the norm.

In all seriousness, go add up the amperage draw of everything you'd ever plan on running at the same time...

Scoobyshep · Aug 23, 2023

American Patriot 1960 said:
Well.... I know the military units are well under rated. I could probably go with a 15 that could handle ocassional brief (AC start up) spikes higher to about 18-20.

Does that help?

I have a 004 at home and it's overkill. I did the zig zag conversion to it and last load banking it ran 72 amps for 4 hours.

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Digger556 · Aug 23, 2023

American Patriot 1960 said:
Well.... I know the military units are well under rated. I could probably go with a 15 that could handle ocassional brief (AC start up) spikes higher to about 18-20.

Does that help?

18-20 kW inrush would be consistent with an older 3.5 - 4 ton A/C unit. Locked Rotor Amps (LRA) on startup would be around 80 amps and running wattage would be 4 kW-4.5 kW. That would be equivilent to a 4hp air compressor.

To put this in perspective, here is a video of a 10 kW, MEP-803a, starting a 3.7hp compressor.

The compressor kicks in at 0:08. You can see a 10 kW handles it well. The instantaeous inrush on startup was 186 amps, but that only lasts milli seconds and then it drops to 15.9 amps (3.8 kW)

Additionally, I've started this same compressor with a 5 kW, MEP-802a. Not recommended, but it will do it.

Also, you can (and should) buy a soft starter for your A/C if that is your biggest load. It will greatly reduce the amount of generator you need to run your house.

DieselAddict · Aug 23, 2023

American Patriot 1960 said:
Well.... I know the military units are well under rated. I could probably go with a 15 that could handle ocassional brief (AC start up) spikes higher to about 18-20.

Does that help?

The issue is the modern military units at 15kw and above are 3 phase only. No conversion possible. You have to go back to a MEP004 to get a 15kw unit that can be converted to single phase.

kloppk · Aug 23, 2023

Actually, it is possible to convert a 15 kw 804 to single phase. It's just done a bit differently than a 12 wire gen head conversion. A few people have done it and can pull 15+ KW.

Digger556 · Aug 23, 2023

kloppk said:
Actually, it is possible to convert a 15 kw 804 to single phase. It's just done a bit differently than a 12 wire gen head conversion. A few people have done it and can pull 15+ KW.

Guyfang · Aug 24, 2023

There is a 23 KW gen set that is more or less just a MEP-004A.

98G · Aug 24, 2023

Guyfang said:
There is a 23 KW gen set that is more or less just a MEP-004A.

That's the one I have. I like it a LOT. I thank you for the TM!

87cr250r · Aug 24, 2023

If you drive your AC motors with a variable frequency drive you need 0% excess power to be able to start the motor. Direct online starts require 50% excess available and soft starter land somewhere in-between. VFD's are cheap!

Tinstar · Aug 24, 2023

The bigger the generator, the more fuel it burns per hour.
Not a big deal for short outages, but for the long ones, it adds up.

My 5kw MEP-002A runs everything I need and is very fuel efficient.
I always have at least 400 gallons of off-road diesel on my Ranch, so I'm set for the rare longer outages.

Digger556 · Aug 24, 2023

87cr250r said:
If you drive your AC motors with a variable frequency drive you need 0% excess power to be able to start the motor. Direct online starts require 50% excess available and soft starter land somewhere in-between. VFD's are cheap!

All true, but this requires equipment to have 3-phase motors and most residential A/Cs have single phase motors. You could swap the condensor fan easily, but the compressor is still single phase.

Newer, high SEER, A/Cs are already inverter driven. (Which is great)

American Patriot 1960 · Aug 24, 2023

Scoobyshep said:
I have a 004 at home and it's overkill. I did the zig zag conversion to it and last load banking it ran 72 amps for 4 hours.

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What is the zig ,zag modification?

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