How many members are running on MEP generated power right now..?

[rivercreek]

At my mom's place out in Doddridge County, WV (AKA BFE). MEP 701A going strong since last Friday. Power still out... Happy trails and enjoy the melodic drone and diesel fumes - lets all be thankful that we have them!

 

[steelypip]

Yeah, mine's due for its first oil change after the two-day outage (already had some hours on it from test runs over the last year). I figure I'll get it good and hot on the new load bank I'm cooking up (involving retired baseboard heaters), do my droop test, and then do the change.

I should probably throw in a big THANK YOU to speddmon and others who have been a source of knowledge and inspiration on the MEP-002A/003A generators. I was the hero of the day when we had AC going on the hottest day of the year so far, but I couldn't have done it anywhere near as easily or confidently without the support here at SS.

 

[Isaac-1]

Why is it I suspect that Storeman is out of the used MEP generator sales business at the moment as he lives in VA.

Ike

 

[Speddmon]

My spin on the "Visa" commercials



Cost of an MEP-003a generator...$598.16

Enough Diesel Fuel for a 7 day power outage...$420.29

Being able to live life normally...PRICELESS




By the way, still no utility power.

 

[storeman]

Not quite in the "right now" category but I was on my MEP-003 from about 2300 Friday till this AM at 0600. Never missed a beat and had both central AC units running plus 2 refrigerator/freezers and a straight freezer, all the lights I wanted and also the electric oven to cook a pizza. Never saw the % load go over 80. Hertz was steady to within 1Hz when checked with a separate fluke meter no matter the load. Best $1K I ever spent.

With all that checking, when did you find time to eat pizza?

 

[storeman]

Why is it I suspect that Storeman is out of the used MEP generator sales business at the moment as he lives in VA.

Ike

Ike,
I have sold one of mine at my flea market to a local guy but have done no advertising to sell the rest (other than my avatar). Every time I think I'm ready to offer something, I find I have something else I want to tinker with, even though it passed a load test. Guess I'm a slow learner, like JBK.
Jerry

 

[fireman5199]

My MEP-002A powered a friends house for 30 hours and then a Wildlife Hospital/Shelter for about 10 minutes till their power came back on. Their reaction when I pulled in with it was worth the 45 min drive. I just told them I had a generator for them to use I think they thought it was another little Honda 2kw that they had 4 of. I got lucky and didn't need it myself but after this the lil lady hasn't complained about it anymore and I think it is one of the best investmenrt I have ever made.

 

[Isaac-1]

Hey, don't say too much bad about the little Honda inverter units, they are real work horses for their size, and just sip fuel. There is a guy that lives in the wilds of Alaska that is a regular on the Smokstak Onan generator board, he has a neighbor a few miles away that has one of these little Honda's with several thousand hours of run time on the clock.

Ike

 

[fireman5199]

Oh no I'm not saying anything bad about them at all. I actually want one for camping and smaller/quieter operations. Just for the size difference, they were a little surprised.

 

[Speddmon]

WOOHOO...FINALLY got utility power back!!!!!!

Here are some stats for you MEP information junkies out there

MEP-003a, running an average home 1250 square feet, gas stove and gas water heater. 3 ton geothermal heat pump, well pump, electric clothes dryer, TV, computers, lights and such. Pulling an average load of 30%.

Total power off time...7 days almost on the nose, 168 Hours

Total MEP run time...161 hours

Continuous running time (Minus 20 minute oil change)...155 hours without as much as a hiccup

Average fuel consumption...0.636 gallons per hour

Total fuel used...102.375 gallons

Total fuel costs...$420.29 ($420.29 was the total amount I spent on fuel, $336.11 was the total value of the fuel consumed)

 

[DieselBob]

WOOHOO...FINALLY got utility power back!!!!!!

Here are some stats for you MEP information junkies out there

MEP-003a, running an average home 1250 square feet, gas stove and gas water heater. 3 ton geothermal heat pump, well pump, electric clothes dryer, TV, computers, lights and such. Pulling an average load of 30%.

Total power off time...7 days almost on the nose, 168 Hours

Total MEP run time...161 hours

Continuous running time (Minus 20 minute oil change)...155 hours without as much as a hiccup

Average fuel consumption...0.636 gallons per hour

Total fuel used...102.375 gallons

Total fuel costs...$420.29 ($420.29 was the total amount I spent on fuel, $336.11 was the total value of the fuel consumed)

Glad to hear your back on the grid... Nice info. Seems like I need to consider a spin on filter setup.

With all that checking, when did you find time to eat pizza?

Didn't spend much time checking. Had the meter connected to an outlet next to my recliner in the living room. When I would hear the little momentary rpm change when the AC would kick on or when the oven heated all I needed to do was look over to the meter without even getting up...

 

[amolaver]

i need to thank isaac-1 for his amazingly quick diagnosis of my 003's unexpected shutdown (fairly certain it was the overheat safety). i was unaware of the engine air intake heater baffle (not the proper term, but not sure what its official name is). a small knob sticks out of the air filter canister on the intake side of the engine, immediately above a hose that runs from the exhaust manifold / shutter enclosure to the air filter canister. putting the knob in the lowered position (horizontal / parallel to the ground) closes off the hose from the air filter canister, keeping the hot air from around the exhaust manifold from being drawn in as the intake charge. raising the knob (pointing mostly up) allows air from around the exhaust manifold to be drawn in as engine intake air.

i didn't know what the knob did, but mine was set to cold weather mode and caused my 003 to shutdown. once i closed the baffle (by moving the knob down), 003 ran like the proverbial train through multiple 100+ degree days. with just a little care as to when we used appliances (all electric house - heat pump, water heater, well pump, range, clothes dryer, etc), it happily powered everything and kept the family cool and with water. happy wife, happy life

a big thanks to everyone here who patiently answered questions day after day!

ahm

 

[Poccur]

Picked up a military 20kW Fischer Panda from an auction a few weeks back. It is missing linkage from the actuator to the throttle arm. Power went off Fri night, got up early, found it was still off. Set the speed with a piece of string and tensioned it with a bolt to lock it. Hooked the fuel lines up to the heating oil tank and ran till Sun night when the power came back on. One shutdown for water in the fuel. Sweet...

 

[homecomfort]

mep-003, what a life saver, after Sandy struck, no power for 5 days, at everyone elses place that is. first time use, ran great, lots of capacity, rarely used more than 30%. love that brute, best few hundred $ I spent in a long time. thanks everyone for your advice.

 

[storeman]

Sweet, aren't they? You meet a lot of new friends when you are running a MEP, most of them needing coffee and a hot shower.

 

[coyotegray]

Right now it will cost me about $45 or so to run the 002 for a day or X2 that in the summer for the 003 to run AC.
Just a decent hotel would be more than that, if you can find one in a power outage with power and a vacant room. Then there is food, inconvenience, the time and cost to drive back and forth, etc..
So, anyone needing to justify one to a spouse, it's easy...

Personally, I just take the "Its easier to ask for forgiveness than permission " approach..

 

[Isaac-1]

That may work for one, or even two, but when you get to number 3 or 4 it is a little more difficult, I think my last $400 MEP ended up costing me about $1,500 in land scaping around the house.

 

[DieselBob]

Once again the 003 to the rescue. We were off the grid again for about 12 ~ 14 hours because of Sandy. Started up the MEP and lived life as normal, for here anyway. Just a FYI, I had replaced the fuel tank cap a while back because the original was so rusty on the inside I didn't want the rust flakes ending up in the fuel tank. Well about 4 hours into the run I started to notice a very slight miss every now and again but it didn't seem to hamper operation according to the voltage and frequency meter. I figured it was a good time to top off the day tank and do a visual to see if I noticed anything amiss. Imagine my surprise when I turned the fuel cap and couldn't get it off. After needing both hands and a considerable effort there was a loud sucking sound as the vacuum in the tank was released and almost at once the slight miss disappeared. Evidently the vent valve in the new cap isn't working correctly because it was in the open position. Just remember to check the simple things first.

 

[homecomfort]

I loved the auxiliary fuel pump on my 03. hooked up to the 275 oil storage tank in cellar, with 3/8 copper tube and extra spin on oil filter, full of fuel, never had to worry about day tank going dry, as sensor maintains 3/4 tank consistently. low rpm almost lulls you to sleep at night, as opposed to the screamin' 3600 rpm gas jobs. MEP, what a great machine. not as worried about inevitable next power outage.

 

[DieselBob]

I loved the auxiliary fuel pump on my 03. hooked up to the 275 oil storage tank in cellar, with 3/8 copper tube and extra spin on oil filter, full of fuel, never had to worry about day tank going dry, as sensor maintains 3/4 tank consistently. low rpm almost lulls you to sleep at night, as opposed to the screamin' 3600 rpm gas jobs. MEP, what a great machine. not as worried about inevitable next power outage.

Sure, go ahead and brag about your big tank....