Been gone a while, just checking in...

Happy New Year, everybody,

I didn't drop off the face of the Earth. I just finally got sorta retired and haven't been running the old Cats all that much. A year ago my snow pusher broke down, a 1940s Scoopmobile H. I said, "No big deal. The snow will melt down in a few days." It didn't. Six weeks later I started the D7 and broke out three feet of ice that had been snow, opened a back road into the place so we could get out for groceries as our ice road turned to slush and then muck.

Then there's the famous induction generator plant that I built with the aid and advice of many of you, for which I am most grateful. The D2 5U engine is just purring along, never gave me any problems whatsoever. But i have a bit of advice if anyone wants to attempt such a job as this:

Buy the motor for the induction generator large. First, if you are a bit oversize on the HP rating, you will get better efficiency by working in the middle of the power range rather than the maximum end. As you increase RPM, each increase will yield a little less kW going out, until the increase is nil. At that point, you generate heat, and the days are numbered for your generator head.

The data tag on a newer electric motor is not to be doubted. In fact, if you are running at max amperage, there will be 0.00 safety margin because as a generator there is not even a momentary letup. 100% output 100% of the time. When the pig tail on a winding gave up, the good Cat engine had enough power to keep 'er spinning while molten copper leaked out of the vents! You don't want that. Go large enough that you can operate at about 85% of rated max amperage.

You need to clean the waste veg oil for fuel if you are going to use it. WVO contains starch that can plug a filter every single day. That plays hob with your cost of operation. Buy a centrifuge, as folks on this board recommended to me. It is absolutely the only way.

I've been running for three years as cogeneration--the heat is as important as the electric output, and is actually about 60-65% of the power potential of your fuel. The diesel has performed flawlessly. I'm one year right now into the new electric motor, a $1,150 lesson on motor loading!

All of the crap about carbon and injector coking that came my way turned out to be just that--crap. The exhaust is piped out the side of the white-painted barn. There is no soot anywhere around it. Wipe your finger around the inside of the exhaust pipe, there's just a greyish ash and very little of that. I pulled an injector after a year of operation. No buildup on the tip at all. Looking into the pre-cup it was clean. Veg oil is a damned fine fuel and you don't have to be a chemist to make it.

So, thanks again to all who helped me build my contraption. It has been successful, but more important, I proved a point or two and learned a lot. Kindest regards to all at ACMOC,

Jack

Good to here back from you, and the update on the generator

thanks for the update on how things are going. that was a neat project that you did there and i can see how things would work better at 75-85% rather than 100%. what HP is the new motor you are using?

I increased from a 25 hp to 30. I would consider going even larger, perhaps 40 hp but the draw for starting the diesel would be even greater and that shows on the electric bill under max draw. Also, the price tag goes up fast when motors get bigger.

The motor I wound up with is USA made and completely copper wound. I am told that my 25 hp had aluminum winding. I don't know, but that was copper dripping out of it. The pigtails had to be replaced twice before the third failure was catastrophic.

i had to buy new. There was no time to shop around. I would like to have found an old style, very heavy, short frame motor. The winding was built for up to 50% overload on ones I have dealt with in the packing houses, and the short, open frame makes a better cooling unit.

Good to hear from you again, timbo.