Chainbreaker
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I might need help... I'm starting to HOARD MEP's! Here's "my story", a bit long... but it might help explain how I developed my "MEP-itis" syndrome. Though I fear I am I too far gone to be helped but it might help others steer clear... maybe! 
It all started ~10+ years ago with my having stumbled across an online video of a SS member "Sewerzuk"s YouTube video running his MEP's (MEP-004's, MEP-003a's & MEP-002a's. Since I had just experienced a 12-hour power outage the day before without any back-up source the fuse was now lit on my purchasing my first MEP generator for home backup power. I searched Sewerzuk out and found his # & called him & discussed my needs. Based on his recommendations I did some load calculations for my home & also learned of Steel Soldiers from him which was also very helpful on my final genset selection. Initially I was gung-ho on getting myself a MEP-004 with the "dog house's" on top that Sewerzuk had running on video. Just loved the sound of that beast! But I began calculate fuel consumption & parts availability and came to my senses that I didn't need a MEP-004 . At the time the MEP-802's & MEP-803's were very rare birds on the surplus market.
However, based on my load calculations & our lower altitude of 500' ASL I was on the borderline and could go with either a MEP-002a or MEP-003a depending on whether I needed such luxury items as Hot Tub, Air Conditioning or Clothes Dryer available (we have propane stove & water heater) during an interim power outage. I decided based on our local situation those luxuries really weren't necessary during our typical pwr outage duration. So based on the MEP-002a's better fuel burn rate & simplicity of 2 fewer cylinders it was "just the ticket" required to cope with the next power outage. BTW, I later discovered we could run our washer & dryer & keep the Hot Tub from freezing in winter, if I managed other loads properly (temporarily shutting off some breakers) to prohibit potential overloading. I also later read of one SS member's posts, who had a business located at some remote Caribbean resort, having put 22,000+ hrs on his MEP-002a running it every day saying it just wouldn't quit with proper servicing.
I searched Craigslist and located a very well-maintained PU 751/M Power Unit (1987 MEP-002a on a M116A2 trailer) only ~1200 hours on it complete with bows and pristine cover on it. I made the drive to Federal Way Washington & paid the man & proudly towed my "new to me" #1 Genset home. Little did I know how important this genset would be & my luck in locating it & purchasing it. Sometime afterwards a really bad ice storm hit & we were without utility power for several days with lines & power poles down in the County. My wife was so happy that I had the foresight to invest in a good diesel generator that just purred along outside the house keeping the power on during that extended outage. WAF (Wife Approval Factor), was now a done deal!
Then the following year I learned of the: "Two is One, One is None" mantra. Seemed to apply to generators very well. So that planted the seeds of doubt... "What if"... during an outage I were to run into a mechanical or electrical problem that I didn't have the parts or time to fix by relying on a just a single Military genset? Yikes, we could find ourselves in a cold dark house without running water on 2x well pumps nor sewer services on 2x pumped septic systems! Thus, I began another search shopping for #2 Genset & found another nice low hour PU 751/M Power Unit, a 1991 MEP-002a. OK, I now felt more secure and relaxed with a backup to meet the "two is one, one is none" rule. That exact situation did occur during an extended outage when Genset #1 lost AC output power due to T1 transformer failing in the Control Box. This required me to roll in Genset #2 to restore backup power that evening just before dark while I searched & diagnosed the problem (broken lead wire on T1 transformer) that had to be located & ordered while it was down.
However, during the next outage I would need to take the new spare house genset the 700' downhill to the Barn & Shop. It's necessary to power up our 2nd electrical service entrance which runs well water for our 4 horses & barn/shop lighting + shops pumped septic system. I didn't like the idea of putting both generators into service during the next outage & then having no backup unit in case either unit malfunctioned. Having two in-service generators ups the ante for a potential failure.
So, off to find backup #3 Genset. I found another MEP-002a unit at a bargain price on its skid that needed some work to get it running so I purchased it. Wasn't too hard to get running so voila I now had a dedicated barn genset & my 2 is 1 pair of gensets could remain up at house! However, if one of the 2 gensets quit that were necessary to keep the compound powered up at both service entrances I would roll in the #3 spare genset. So, at that point I would end up with a 1 to 1 ratio of working gensets per service entrance. So now the "1 is none" scenario could be at play due to 2X utility service entrances on property!
Now off to find a #4 Genset to preserve the "2 is 1, 1 is none" ratio at each electrical service entrance on our compound. I found another PU 751/M Power Unit, its another nice 1991 MEP-002a on its M116A2 trailer. However, it needs a lot of disassembly to replace all the wiring that had been cut & stolen for its copper value. So far, that unit has been on my To-do list but has sat in our barn covered with a tarp with little progress other than procuring a complete wiring harness & stator to eventually effect its resurrection. Unfortunately, life & other priorities seem to get in the way. But having this #4 generator up & running will get me back to a Two is one, one is none safe backup ratio for each utility service entrance.
Now... if you own a MEP-002a or -003a you will understand that certain parts are becoming scarce over time as supply dries up. So, to keep my now 4x MEP-002a gensets functional I should have some key spare parts on hand to be able to vet my stable of MEP's as necessary. Are you still with me? OK, so I have been procuring glow plugs, filters, gasket sets, a type II starter spare, control box, fuel hoses piston rings, injectors, fuel pumps etc. etc. over the years as the spares list grows. Though I recently came to the conclusion: you can't truly predict all the potential failures to determine which spare part that you might need down the road. I mean... what if one of my IJ pumps, valves, bearings, oil pump, gen head, etc. etc. bite the dust your looking at $$$ even if you can find the part you need.
OK, I did it... a couple weeks ago I went on the search & located & bought #5 Genset. Another 1991 MEP-002a, but its sitting in a M416 trailer. Genset & trailer need a little work & generator needs a load test, but it runs. I paid less than $1K for Genset with the M416 trailer. I found out that the M416 trailer is apparently coveted among the "overland expedition" types, Jeep crowd, etc. Lots of people convert them into Expedition type camping trailers. Hmmm another future project...?
Anyway, I'm now sleeping soundly not worrying about the "two is one, one is none rule" anymore. I think I finally got that covered in spades!
I now understand how Hoarders & Preppers get started down that winding road!
It all started ~10+ years ago with my having stumbled across an online video of a SS member "Sewerzuk"s YouTube video running his MEP's (MEP-004's, MEP-003a's & MEP-002a's. Since I had just experienced a 12-hour power outage the day before without any back-up source the fuse was now lit on my purchasing my first MEP generator for home backup power. I searched Sewerzuk out and found his # & called him & discussed my needs. Based on his recommendations I did some load calculations for my home & also learned of Steel Soldiers from him which was also very helpful on my final genset selection. Initially I was gung-ho on getting myself a MEP-004 with the "dog house's" on top that Sewerzuk had running on video. Just loved the sound of that beast!
But I began calculate fuel consumption & parts availability and came to my senses that I didn't need a MEP-004 . At the time the MEP-802's & MEP-803's were very rare birds on the surplus market.However, based on my load calculations & our lower altitude of 500' ASL I was on the borderline and could go with either a MEP-002a or MEP-003a depending on whether I needed such luxury items as Hot Tub, Air Conditioning or Clothes Dryer available (we have propane stove & water heater) during an interim power outage. I decided based on our local situation those luxuries really weren't necessary during our typical pwr outage duration. So based on the MEP-002a's better fuel burn rate & simplicity of 2 fewer cylinders it was "just the ticket" required to cope with the next power outage. BTW, I later discovered we could run our washer & dryer & keep the Hot Tub from freezing in winter, if I managed other loads properly (temporarily shutting off some breakers) to prohibit potential overloading. I also later read of one SS member's posts, who had a business located at some remote Caribbean resort, having put 22,000+ hrs on his MEP-002a running it every day saying it just wouldn't quit with proper servicing.
I searched Craigslist and located a very well-maintained PU 751/M Power Unit (1987 MEP-002a on a M116A2 trailer) only ~1200 hours on it complete with bows and pristine cover on it. I made the drive to Federal Way Washington & paid the man & proudly towed my "new to me" #1 Genset home. Little did I know how important this genset would be & my luck in locating it & purchasing it. Sometime afterwards a really bad ice storm hit & we were without utility power for several days with lines & power poles down in the County. My wife was so happy that I had the foresight to invest in a good diesel generator that just purred along outside the house keeping the power on during that extended outage. WAF (Wife Approval Factor), was now a done deal!
Then the following year I learned of the: "Two is One, One is None" mantra. Seemed to apply to generators very well. So that planted the seeds of doubt... "What if"... during an outage I were to run into a mechanical or electrical problem that I didn't have the parts or time to fix by relying on a just a single Military genset? Yikes, we could find ourselves in a cold dark house without running water on 2x well pumps nor sewer services on 2x pumped septic systems! Thus, I began another search shopping for #2 Genset & found another nice low hour PU 751/M Power Unit, a 1991 MEP-002a. OK, I now felt more secure and relaxed with a backup to meet the "two is one, one is none" rule. That exact situation did occur during an extended outage when Genset #1 lost AC output power due to T1 transformer failing in the Control Box. This required me to roll in Genset #2 to restore backup power that evening just before dark while I searched & diagnosed the problem (broken lead wire on T1 transformer) that had to be located & ordered while it was down.
However, during the next outage I would need to take the new spare house genset the 700' downhill to the Barn & Shop. It's necessary to power up our 2nd electrical service entrance which runs well water for our 4 horses & barn/shop lighting + shops pumped septic system. I didn't like the idea of putting both generators into service during the next outage & then having no backup unit in case either unit malfunctioned. Having two in-service generators ups the ante for a potential failure.
So, off to find backup #3 Genset. I found another MEP-002a unit at a bargain price on its skid that needed some work to get it running so I purchased it. Wasn't too hard to get running so voila I now had a dedicated barn genset & my 2 is 1 pair of gensets could remain up at house! However, if one of the 2 gensets quit that were necessary to keep the compound powered up at both service entrances I would roll in the #3 spare genset. So, at that point I would end up with a 1 to 1 ratio of working gensets per service entrance. So now the "1 is none" scenario could be at play due to 2X utility service entrances on property!
Now off to find a #4 Genset to preserve the "2 is 1, 1 is none" ratio at each electrical service entrance on our compound. I found another PU 751/M Power Unit, its another nice 1991 MEP-002a on its M116A2 trailer. However, it needs a lot of disassembly to replace all the wiring that had been cut & stolen for its copper value. So far, that unit has been on my To-do list but has sat in our barn covered with a tarp with little progress other than procuring a complete wiring harness & stator to eventually effect its resurrection. Unfortunately, life & other priorities seem to get in the way. But having this #4 generator up & running will get me back to a Two is one, one is none safe backup ratio for each utility service entrance.
Now... if you own a MEP-002a or -003a you will understand that certain parts are becoming scarce over time as supply dries up. So, to keep my now 4x MEP-002a gensets functional I should have some key spare parts on hand to be able to vet my stable of MEP's as necessary. Are you still with me? OK, so I have been procuring glow plugs, filters, gasket sets, a type II starter spare, control box, fuel hoses piston rings, injectors, fuel pumps etc. etc. over the years as the spares list grows. Though I recently came to the conclusion: you can't truly predict all the potential failures to determine which spare part that you might need down the road. I mean... what if one of my IJ pumps, valves, bearings, oil pump, gen head, etc. etc. bite the dust your looking at $$$ even if you can find the part you need.
OK, I did it... a couple weeks ago I went on the search & located & bought #5 Genset. Another 1991 MEP-002a, but its sitting in a M416 trailer. Genset & trailer need a little work & generator needs a load test, but it runs. I paid less than $1K for Genset with the M416 trailer. I found out that the M416 trailer is apparently coveted among the "overland expedition" types, Jeep crowd, etc. Lots of people convert them into Expedition type camping trailers. Hmmm another future project...?
Anyway, I'm now sleeping soundly not worrying about the "two is one, one is none rule" anymore. I think I finally got that covered in spades!
I now understand how Hoarders & Preppers get started down that winding road!
Last edited:
, to celebrate yet another purchase and another when it was running properly and yet another when it passed load testing and...
