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3KW MEP-16D problem, need advice

Gunwriter

Gunwriter

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Tornado Alley south of Fort Riley, KS
I have a 3KW diesel gen set, MEP-701A which has been repowered with a new Yanmar diesel engine, and could use some help.

I bought it over a year ago and it has been sitting. I finally decided to see what's actually wrong with it today. So I pulled most of the noise suppression kit off.

1. Battery is dead, so used my handy dandy slave cable off my M1009 CUCV. CUCV was not running.
2. It has oil.
3. It has fuel.
4. It has 392 hours on it and appears to be in otherwise excellent condition.

If you turn the knob to start it fast, it will begin to start, the DC Breaker pops and it
shuts off. If you turn it at a normal rate it just pops the DC Breaker.

I noted that it has a solenoid on the side of the engine which operates the throttle.
When you go to start it, this opens the throttle but as soon as the DC Breaker pops
it closes. However, I did note that if you manually hold the throttle when starting the engine fires right up and runs (even though the DC breaker pops). The gen set gauges also indicate it is producing power.
Let go of the throttle and it shuts off.

I rechecked the oil after running it and it appeared a bit foamy. So I'll need to change that if I can get it working properly.

I cannot see anyplace where a wire might be shorting out against anything.

If anyone could show some mercy on me I'd appreciate it. The only manual I have seen simply says to send it in for repair if the DC Breaker pops.
 
KsM715

KsM715

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Shoot, being this close to you I wish I could say I could help you, but I have yet to deal with gensets yet. (but I want one, and its the only piece of OD the wife would like to have around the place)
 
Speddmon

Speddmon

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Does that particular generator have a fuel pump or is it gravity fed?? Something is making the DC breaker trip, and that in turn makes the fuel shut-off solenoid drop out (The part you hold to make it run if the DC breaker is tripped). It sounds like the generator portion is working fine, you just need to find the problem with the DC circuit.

Find all the things on the set that are operated by the DC and troubleshoot them one at a time until the DC breaker stays in. I would start by disconnecting the wires from the solenoid and keeping them isolated from things around them and see if it trips the breaker again. Once you eliminate the problem part, the breaker will stay in. Then it's just a matter of replacing the offending part.
 
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Isaac-1

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try ebay, they often have odd size airpax, etc. breakers for relatively low prices.

Ike

p.s. try searching on klixon breaker on ebay I spot a couple of 7.5 amp push/pull ones.
 
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islandguydon

islandguydon

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MEP's are my speciality, I would say to make sure the unit is properly grounded at the skid and check all connections and look for a wire grounding out on some steel.

Don
 
D

derf

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Do they have tank pumps? I think they have a shutoff switch in the tank but no pump.
I have one that was in the middle of a Yanmar conversion when it went DRMO.

I also have a complete MEP-701A for parts.
 
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Isaac-1

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I am not sure about the Yanmar conversions, but the Onan powered MEP-016B has a mechanical fuel pump to feed the engine from the onboard tank, and a 24V Facet Purolator Gold-Flo series pump with a military fitting on it for the transfer pump that refills the onboard tank from an external fuel connection.

Ike
 
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derf

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Isaac-1 said:
I am not sure about the Yanmar conversions, but the Onan powered MEP-016B has a mechanical fuel pump to feed the engine from the onboard tank, and a 24V Facet Purolator Gold-Flo series pump with a military fitting on it for the transfer pump that refills the onboard tank from an external fuel connection.

Ike
Click to expand...

That is what I see. The wires going into the top of the tank are for the low fuel shutdown and to turn on the transfer pump. Both are float operated, I think.

I have a copy of the USMC MEP-016B to MEP-016E conversion manual. It shows a new electric pump that goes between the tank and the Yanmar injector pump. It also retains the auxiliary external electric transfer pump to fill the tank from an external source.

Here is the pump it lists:
http://saturnsurplus.com/miscpage/24fuelpump.htm
 
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I

Isaac-1

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The electric transfer pump should also only run if the run switch is in the Aux Run position, not the standard Run position for onboard fuel tank only use.

Ike
 
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derf

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The 016B schematic shows relays K3 is low fuel shutdown and K4 is fuel level relay.
I assume K3 shuts down the unit when the fuel gets low and K4 shuts of the auxiliary pump when the on board tank is full.

Here's the advice part:

If that is a standard E conversion and disconnecting the connector on top of the tank stops your breaker from popping, then look at the wiring and switches in the tank, and the relays they drive. Those relays should in turn drive pumps. Look closely at the two pumps, the transfer pump and the auxiliary pump.
The transfer pump goes between the on board tank and the motor. The auxiliary pump goes between the tank and an external source of fuel.
I think the Yanmar will suck fuel without the transfer pump, but I am not positive and if it does it might not do it in extreme conditions. The Yanmar is generally gravity fed with the tank above the injector pump.
 
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D

derf

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Gunwriter said:
really appreciate all the help and advice.

one question, why would the solenoid which controls the throttle stop working when
I disconnect the block on the tank?
Click to expand...
Low fuel shutdown. If the fuel gets low the motor will surge and RPMs will go up and down erratically. That would be bad for many kinds of loads that the gen might be powering. It could damage both the gen head and the things it is powering. An abrupt shut down is better than running out of fuel.

Also, Diesels don't like to run out of fuel. If they get air in the fuel system it can be hard to purge. The Onan powered 701 and 016 have a little manual primer on the mechanical transfer pump.
It was probably spec'd by the military that all gen sets have low fuel shutdown.
 
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