Generator won't start up correctly

Hi all,

I have an FME DIESEL GENERATOR DIGITAL INVERTER SINE WAVE which I have used for over a year, and was working fine until last week.

Battery is ok, fuel level is ok, but I get this strange screeching sound when I start it up. Here is a video of the problem :
MVI 0130 - YouTube

Any thoughts on this ? Does the sound sound familiar ?

Thanks for your help !


Cheers

 

Will it go ahead and start?

 

Sounds like it's cranking as it should, just not starting... or am I missing something? I don't hear a strange screeching.

 

Hi there,
Ye it does crank up (timidly) but never starts.

And yea the sound isn't as high in the video as it actually is. But it is a screechier sound than it was last week when it was working fine..

 

Have you tried jump starting it or making sure the battery voltage is proper? Does this unit have a glow plug?

 

Battery voltage seems fine : 12.52V for a 12V battery, which if I'm not mistaken means it's charged to about 80-90% ?

I don't know what a glowplug is or if the unit has one, is this easy to check ?

Sorry - I don't have a user manual and can't seem to find one on the Internet

 

Just going by battery voltage doesn't tell much. A bad battery can read 12.5 volts. The reason the battery comes to mind is that sometimes when a starter is overamping (as in the case of a weak battery or too much load), the starter motor can make an electrical squeal. If it has a glowplug, there will be a "wait to start" light or indicator of some sort and a wire going to what may look like a little spark plug near the top of the engine in the vicinity of the injector.

 

Ok I charged the battery upto 14.5V and the symptoms are still exactly the same. However, I forgot to mention the following :

There is a small LCD panel which is supposed to go on when you switch starter to "ON", and it doesn't any more. Also, the ON/OFF button under that panel feels broken (there are not 2 states any more, it's like the spring underneath is broken or something) (see images here : image1 ; image2)

I honestly don't know what that button is for, and I have never used the panel. Could it be linked ??


there doesn't seem to be a glowplug

 

That looks like a Chinese job. Everything considered it's something that would have to go to a shop to get worked on and the chances of finding one to fix it may be a problem.

The screeching you're referring to would likely come down to the generator or the starter. You may get lucky and have that issue be the starter, but if it's not starting plus you're seeing some electrical things, the problem may be a little broader.

A diesel used to be somewhat a mechanical injection that lasts forever, give or take a day. But the electronic types that are automotive in design are a fully electronic pressurized system feed with sensor/solenoid controlled injectors. There's just so much technical stuff there it gets outside the DIY group. You throw in questionable quality and you may have a throw away generator.

 

Try loosening the nut that holds the injector line on the top of the injector and then crank the engine again. Does diesel fuel come out at that spot?