Generator gives voltage but devices don't work.

Hey all.

So I have an old but new in box Generac 5kw pull start generator which is out of warrantee.

It is a european unit but i planed to use the twist lock which i have an adapter wire which allows use of 2 120v standard U.S plugs.

The European outlets give out 220v and the twist lock 110v outlets give 110v with no load and 220v with load.

Even though i am seeing voltage nothing works when plugged in.

I should note the hour meter does not come on either.

What could be my problem?

 

That would be 5kw.... not 5,000,000 watts.

That doesn't make any sense.

Do you have the exact model number of that unit ?
If it was made for Europe it would be 220-230v only and 50hz.

 

Yes i am sorry i meant 5kw its a gp5000 model number 0062180

And yes it is 220-230 50hz

I was lead to believe the twist lock might still work.

 

No.... I just looked up the schematic. All outputs are 230v. There is no neutral for 120v.

generac-power/portable-generators/0062180-gp5000

 

Wow I didn't want that to be the case, even so thank you for finding the answer for me.

One last thing, i know people don't do it in the U.S but over here it is very common to use a twist lock 220 into the dryer plug in the house during sever power outages.

Will this not work either because it is 50hz?

 

Operation of anything will be impaired. Depending on the item it could be damaged. Assuming it goes to an inlet not a receptacle at the house and an approved interlock or transfer switch is used that is okay but 120 volts is not normally used in the EU so no way for the generator to provide it.

In the U.S. you have two ungrounded conductors that provide 240 volts and a third grounded conductor (transformer secondary center tap, AKA neutral)that is used with either of the ungrounded conductors to provide 120 volts. In the EU you have just two wires. A grounded conductor and an ungrounded conductor that provide 220 volts. No way to obtain 120 volts.

The 50hz will adversely affect motor speed and the lack of a 60 hz reference signal may affect older electronics such as CRT displays that rely on it.

 

You are correct and a very dangerous method.

 

Looking at the wire diagram it does have NEMA L14-30R twistlock outlet. However, neutral is not connected. Therefore, 110V will not work.

The voltage you measured is between what and what? Neutral on twistlock outlet is not connected to anything, thus it is floating. If you measured voltage across one of the hot and neutral, it will give you false reading. Probably that is why you get 110V, but when you put a load on it, it does not work.

You mean using suicide cord? (male on both ends of the cord.)
Technically, that will work, but very dangerous. You still cannot use 110V(120V) since there is no neutral from the generator.

Frequency only matters on AC motors and whatever device that utilizes sinewave from the utility. (Microwave oven, analog AC clock, etc..)

Using a 220V to 110V (or 120V) transformer is probably the easiest way for you to utilize your generator.

 

Ok thanks for the knowledge it makes sense when you say there is no neutral.

 

Actually there is a neutral*. One neutral (grounded conductor) and and one hot (ungrounded conductor). The voltage between the hot and neutral is 220 volts.

*While not defined in the NEC the neutral is what we usually call what the NEC calls the grounded conductor.

 

yes the issue is those windings are center tapped... There is not much you can do with that gen AFAIK...

You could up the governor to get to 60 hz and see what the voltage is... The exciters do strange things though and voltage may go down... dont know. Then you have the whole plug issue and no nuetral... Two hots basically @ 110v...

So you cant wire a 3 to 4 wire to it for 240v I would assume..

Best bet is to get a convertor of some sort.... But may be expensive... best to buy a US gen and forget about it...

Covertors are 1000 bucks...



500VA 110v, 120v 60Hz to 220v, 230v, 240v 50Hz converter | GoHz.com

I may be wrong in above statements... electricians will chime in

 

In order to even think about getting +/-120v out of it you would need a center tap connection for neutral. Not sure how well the regulator would work if the 120v were unbalanced.