Ask Me Help Desk - Generator Fluctuating Voltage

Part 1
I have a 5kw 120/240v generator that powers my boat. A phase goes to the battery charging side of the inverter charger and B phase goes to the House Power side of the inverter charger. When the generator is running, I get a large voltage fluctuation from 108v to 127v and this causes the lights to fade in and out. I can’t image what it is doing to the flat screen TV’s and other electronics, but the lighting issue is just plain annoying.

Part 2
When the generator is turned off, the inverter / charger automatically switches to invert mode, this transfer takes about 1-2 seconds. When this happens the lights flicker, which I can live with. What I would like to eliminate is that the TV & Satellite box shut off, and have to go through the whole “I just got plugged in for the first time” set up mode.

So I’m looking for a solution that will “A” balance the voltage and “B” store power for a short time during transfer. I thought of a UPS, but I would need a really big one, and when I’m not there for days and days, the batteries would go bad quickly. Any thoughts on, maybe some sort of capacitor?

1. If the fluctuating voltage is new it may be due to worn brushes or a faulty voltage regulator. The most often emplyed fix is to use a "motor-generator".

#2. The motor-generator fixes #2. A small UPS sizd for sensitive electronics would work too. The inverter needs to switched to invert mode at the time it's turned off, not based on mains voltage.

If my numbers are correct converting to DX with a bridge rectifier and a cap you could use something like this: http://www.cibattery.com/tccpower/pr...lmore/1654.pdf

Which is 1 KW.

What the "clean power" generators are doing is creating an inverter stage after the generator to maintain the voltage, frequency and wave shape. Hammond Manufacturing has the formulas for various filters.

You have both space and weight restraints.

What else that can help you is a IR remote that can make and send macros, so set-up can be a breeze. Sort of a home automation system for a boat.

Must be a nice boat.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nordic58

Part 1
I have a 5kw 120/240v generator that powers my boat. A phase goes to the battery charging side of the inverter charger and B phase goes to the House Power side of the inverter charger. When the generator is running, I get a large voltage fluctuation from 108v to 127v and this causes the lights to fade in and out. I can’t image what it is doing to the flat screen TV’s and other electronics, but the lighting issue is just plain annoying.

Part 2
When the generator is turned off, the inverter / charger automatically switches to invert mode, this transfer takes about 1-2 seconds. When this happens the lights flicker, which I can live with. What I would like to eliminate is that the TV & Satellite box shut off, and have to go through the whole “I just got plugged in for the first time” set up mode.

So I’m looking for a solution that will “A” balance the voltage and “B” store power for a short time during transfer. I thought of a UPS, but I would need a really big one, and when I’m not there for days and days, the batteries would go bad quickly. Any thoughts on, maybe some sort of capacitor?

The Inverter Charger that I have is:
Xantrex Technology Inc. - Recreational Vehicles - Freedom 458 Inverter/Charger - Product Information

The generator is a:
http://www.westerbeke.com/brochures/...%205.0-4.2.pdf

So, for one, it's voltage regulation of +-5% is out of spec.