another 002A DC Voltage regulator question

[justacitizen]

had a little ice storm this week and had to get the 002A out of the shed. it has been running perfect in every way until now when i start it up and check the battery charge all is fine at 26.2 volts for about 10 min then it creeps up to 33 volts. could this be a ground issue? or is the DC VR toast? Thanks

 

[Ray70]

I'm leaning towards an issue with the DC VR as it warms up. 33VDC is getting a little too high for your batteries to be happy, they want it more in the 28V range maybe 29 tops.

 

[justacitizen]

yes 33v is to high. what has me puzzled is it regulates perfect for a short while then creeps up to 33 and then will creep back down a little.

 

[Guyfang]

Do you have a battery charger hooked to the set? Solar charger? Maybe something extra hooked to only one battery?

Might also be a loose wire. The DC VR is hidden, and never gets looked at unless it is on the fritz.

 

[justacitizen]

nope nothing else hooked up to the battery. the only anomaly would be the batteries are both AGM type. i will pull the shroud and check connections first but i think i have one of triple jims DCVR setting in the spares cabinet so i may just switch it out. just thought it kind of strange that it will regulate for a little while just fine before it creeps up.

 

[Ray70]

Electronics can often do strange things as their components start to warm up a bit... might be an indication of something that's about to fail completely.

 

[Guyfang]

AGM are cool to run in your set. Most if not all were AGM by the time I started contracting in 2004, and the rest were changed in the next few years.

 

[Triple Jim]

The charging system of an 002A or 003A puts out only about 7 amps. When the battery needs some charging, it can effectively be the regulator. Then when it is fully charged and stops accepting much current, a faulty regulator can make the voltage rise above normal levels.

Another normal result of the low current charging is that with a good regulator and good batteries that need charging, the voltage can take a couple hours to reach the 14.xx regulated voltage. We're used to automotive system that can put out 50 or more amps and make the battery voltage reach the setpoint immediately.

 

[Guyfang]

This is one of the reasons we always ran gen sets for several hours under load, to make use the battery's were really up to snuff. Bring the set to its normal operating temp. To look for seeps, that will not show up in a half hour run.

 

[justacitizen]

The charging system of an 002A or 003A puts out only about 7 amps. When the battery needs some charging, it can effectively be the regulator. Then when it is fully charged and stops accepting much current, a faulty regulator can make the voltage rise above normal levels.

Another normal result of the low current charging is that with a good regulator and good batteries that need charging, the voltage can take a couple hours to reach the 14.xx regulated voltage. We're used to automotive system that can put out 50 or more amps and make the battery voltage reach the setpoint immediately.

i think this must be the case. after heating and then starting the engine the batteries are basically accepting a charge and then after a minute the voltage rises.
Thanks for the discussion

 

[justacitizen]

well i took the cowl off so i could get to the DCVR and saw something new to me. the DCVR looked like a military unit but it had a few extras hanging off of it. i disconnected it and it had p pretty gold label that said southern automotive on it. so the DCVR must have been an aftermarket. i removed it and replaced it with one of triple jims i had on the shelf and now it's perfect. thanks triple jim for making a quality part!!! i think now all four of my gens have your regulator on them. i need to order another for a spare.

 

[justacitizen]

something interesting about the former installation was the addition of maybe a resister between the 24v supply out of the regulator and grounded to the buss bar frame mount. what was that for? not to worry it is gone now.

 

[Ray70]

Was it a silver cylinder about 2" long and 5/16" diameter with a black wire coming out of each end?
One wire attached to the mounting screw on the end of the terminal block?
If so, that was a factory installed capacitor.

 

[justacitizen]

no it was a white box about 1.5 inches square with one black wire out each end. it was attached on one end to the mounting screw of the terminal block and the other end to the 24 vdc lead out of the terminal block where the DCVR connects and the 24 VDC regulated current flows to the control box. i probably is a capacitor though. what is it's purpose?? i removed it with the old regulator and installed triple jims new unit without it.

 

[Guyfang]

I believe its for RFI. Radio Frequency Interference.

If you havent tossed it out, take a picture and post it.

 

[justacitizen]

that's what i thought but wasn't sure. i still have it. if i can figure out how to post a pic i will. Thanks

 

[justacitizen]

that's what i thought but wasn't sure. i still have it. if i can figure out how to post a pic i will. Thanks

 

[Guyfang]

Yes, that is a capacitor. But what a honker!! It worked. But way too big. But it worked. In truth, you can not find fault with it.

 

[justacitizen]

yes it's huge. do you think i need to have it installed? i don't remember if my other sets have one or not. they added a diode as well. i think

 

[Guyfang]

Well, you might hear funny noises on your radio or TV without it. Maybe Triple Jim will chime in. He may, or may not have included one in the Regulator.

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