My generator is an Onan 7.5 KW. On our last trip, I had the air conditioners on and my wife turned on the incandescent lightbulb over the stove. It was flashing on and off. Is this a sign the generator is going bad?

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Originally posted by Richard_Muise:
It was flashing on and off. Is this a sign the generator is going bad?

I noticed you said flashing. Like a turn signal bulb? on-off-on-off?

Or, as I suspect, was it more like "Surging on and off"? Brighter-dimmer-brighter-dimmer?

If it was getting brighter and then dimmer (at the same interval) it could be your gov setting on the engine.

It’s also normal for your lights to dim when things that use a lot of electricity (such as your air conditioner) are first turned on or when the compressor kicks back on. Frequent dimming may (for you, more likely not) indicate a bad connection in the wiring.

How is it with only one a/c unit running? What other load factor did you have on?

With my coach it surges on occasion and I've noticed it with the a/c lugging it down or when the refrigerator kicks back on.

Take a voltage reading at an electrical outlet and post back here. It really doesn't sound too bad on the surface but more info is needed.

And yes, your generator "Could be" going bad or one of your a/c unit may be drawing too much power.

Bill N.Y.

quote:

Originally posted by Richard_Muise:
My generator is an Onan 7.5 KW. On our last trip, I had the air conditioners on and my wife turned on the incandescent lightbulb over the stove. It was flashing on and off. Is this a sign the generator is going bad?

Was this a 12 volt bulb? I am presuming it is. Do you have a DC meter installed? Can you connect a multimeter to read the 12 volt dc range?

What kind of a charger/converter do you have?

Does the light flash if the converter is disconnected?

Does the genset seem to run at a constant RPM or does it seem to surge?

I recommend that everyone who has a generator buy a Kill A Watt and leave it plugged in. It will always monitor volts and frequency, and will measure amp consumption of whatever is plugged into it.

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Does the genset seem to run at a constant RPM or does it seem to surge?

well had this surge problem this weekend till gen died 3 cyc diesel onan trying to search for answers clues or answers tks bill

Some gensets need a bit of a load for the governor to settle down, expecially if it's a bit sticky.

well added ac with tv and vcr still started to surge after about 15 min..

well genny now wont even power the microwave!no popcorn for wife ! could this be regulator? also fixed the gen shutting down lose wire! no ac tv and vcr works but tv blinks blue? and comes back any ideas ?