Your Caterpillar standby generator set is designed to offer a very high level of reliability. This degree of reliability is dependent, however, on the quality of the maintenance it receives, including regular recommended maintenance and frequent inspections. Fortunately, the quality of maintenance is something you can control. Here are some tips to help you get the level of protection you expect from your emergency power system.
LOW BATTERY VOLTAGE
By some estimates, battery-related issues are involved in 90% of cases where standby generator sets will not start. This could be caused by numerous factors, including battery charger malfunction, bad battery cells or possibly theft of the battery.
LACK OF FUEL
Simply put, the engine will not start if you run low on fuel. To make matters worse, on engines without a fuel priming pump, starting is more difficult after you run out of fuel, often requiring removal and fill of fuel filters.
START SWITCH NOT IN AUTOMATIC POSITION
If someone does work around your standby gen set, they take it out of the auto position as a precaution. But do they switch it back to the auto position when finished? This is the root cause in a surprising number of cases when generator sets fail to start on demand.
LOW COOLANT TEMPERATURE
Starting a cold engine is not easy, and it can negatively impact engine life. That is why most standby generator sets have jacket water heaters installed. Jacket water heater malfunctions can cause starting problems.
RECOMMENDED MAINTENANCE AND INSPECTIONS
With regular recommended maintenance and frequent inspections of the items listed above, you can be confident your generator set will start when you need it.
WANT TO KNOW MORE?
Contact your Stowers Commercial Engine Product Support Sales Representative for more information on scheduled maintenance and regular inspections for your generator set.
your location
call us
contact us