This Onan 30OEK propane-powered generator has been in service for 39 years at a transmitter site where the power goes out often. It has a lot of hours on it. The hour meter stopped working about 15 years ago, but the hours back then were 1097.
In addition, the main shaft seal started leaking oil about 10 years ago, creating an oily blowback mess every time the generator ran for more than a few hours. The block heater went bad, the battery charger overcharged then exploded the battery splashing sulfuric acid all over the housing and engine block.
The last power outage was the final one. It ran for a few hours then faulted. When the local engineer tried to restart it, it was never able to get to speed and was misfiring badly. Below appeared a large and spreading puddle of engine oil.
As this station is one of the major money makers for the owner, a replacement generator was obtained.
Cummins RS50 50 KW Propane powered generator
This is larger than the old generator. The good news; now the AC can be put on the generator to keep the room cool. In the past, the backup cooling fan was used when on generator power, which sucked dirt, bugs, and pollen into the room.
It will also have considerable headroom for any additional loads that may be installed in the future.
The generator in place and leveled
We had to enlarge the opening for the radiator and put in some steel angle for the lintels.
Exhaust piped outside with the radiator air
The first start run and load test went well. I ran it for about 30 minutes under full load, enough time to burn the paint off the exhaust manifold. Seems like a pretty solid unit. With the power conditions at this site, it will get a lot of use.
After a bit of reflection and a few good conversations over the New Year’s Holiday, I decided that I should continue my work on this blog. I would like to thank all those that have stuck by and waited. I have received numerous emails and messages offline, all of which have been read and appreciated.
Since the abrupt stoppage last July, which was absolutely necessary for me, many things have happened within the business. Fortunately, during the hiatus, I was still taking pictures. After sorting through them, here are a few interesting things that happened:
WROW-AM Steel mounting poles on antenna array field
This project required many steel mounting posts to be driven into the ground around the AM towers. I don’t even know how many, but I would hazard a guess of over three hundred. Each one of those mounting posts was hand-dug down a depth of 6-10 inches to look for ground wires. Where ever a ground wire was found, it was moved out of the way before the post was set.
WROW-AM ground wire moved out of way
Basically, the solar array covers about 1/2 of the antenna array field. All of the steel mounting hardware is tied into the ground system, making, what I am sure is a pretty large above-ground counterpoise.
WROW-AM solar panel mounting hardware
View from the south looking north:
Solar Array installed on WROW antenna array, Glenmont, NY
View from the north, outside of the transmitter building, looking south:
Solar Array installed on WROW antenna array, Glenmont, NY
Power company interface and disconnect:
Solar Array utility company disconnect, Glenmont, NY
The utility company had to upgrade the transmission lines to the nearest substation to handle the additional power produced by the solar system. All in all, it was a fun project to watch happen.
At a certain studio building, which is over 150 years old, the roof needed to be replaced. This required that the 3.2-meter satellite dish and non-penetrating roof mount be moved out of the way while that section of the roof was worked on.
3.2 meter satellite dish
Dish was ready to move, and all of the concrete ballast was removed and taken down from the roof. The roofing contractors constructed a caddy and the entire dish and mount were slid forward onto the area in front of it. Since the front part of the roof was not reinforced to hold up the satellite dish, we did not ballast the mount and the XDS receivers ran off of the streaming audio for a couple of days until the dish was put back in its original position.
3.2 meter satellite dish ready to move
A couple of other studio projects have been underway in various places. Pictures to follow…
One of our clients sold their radio stations to another one of our clients.
There has also been a bankruptcy of a major radio company here in the good ol’ US of A. Something that was not unexpected, however, the ramifications of which are still being decided on in various board rooms. One of the issues as contractors is whether or not we will get paid for our work. All things considered, it could be much worse.
Learned a valuable lesson about mice chewed wires on generator battery chargers. I noticed that the battery charger seemed to be dead, therefore, I reached down to make sure the AC plug was in all the way. A loud pop and flash followed and this was the result:
Arc burns, right hand
My hand felt a bit warm for a while. The fourth digit suffered some minor burns. There is at least one guy I know that would be threatening a lawsuit right now. Me, not so much… All of the high voltage stuff we work on; power supplies that can go to 25 KV, and a simple 120 VAC plug is the thing that gets me.
The return of the rotary phase maker.
Rotary phase maker, Kay Industries T-10000-A
Mechanically derived 3rd phase used when the old tube type transmitter cannot be converted to single phase service.
Those are just a few of the things I have been working on. I will generate some posts on current projects underway. Those projects include a 2 KW FM transmitter installation, another studio project, repair work on a Harris Z16HD transmitter, etc
Pictures of a backup power systems replacement evolution at one of our clients. The old generator was a Katolight 45FGH4, circa 1990. The new generator is a Cummins Power GGHE-1503557 60 KW 3 phase. Unfortunately, when the Katolight generator was moved from the previous studio location in 1998, it was never installed correctly. The 500-gallon propane tank was undersized, the gas tubing was undersized, etc. We fixed those items, but the damage was done. After running too lean under load a few times, the head gasket blew and there is oil in the antifreeze and antifreeze in the oil. It is a Ford straight-six engine, and sure, we could rebuild it, but why bother? This is a major group of stations in a very lucrative market, it makes much more sense to replace the entire unit.
Katolight Genset hooked up to the crane, ready to moveGenerator lift
In addition to the head gasket problem, the load on the generator has increased. Since the old generator was installed in 1998, two more stations have been added to this facility. That means another air studio, another production studio, more computers, servers, air conditioning, etc. Thus, the new generator is rated for 60 KW.
Cummins Power Generator deliveryCummins generator lift
After the GENSET is placed, connections for remote start, battery charger, block heater, and AC power output are made. We were able to reuse the existing conduit and cable, thankfully the electricians used 3/0 AWG cable for the AC power connections to the transfer switch.
Cummins Power generator in place
It appears that they have dropped the Onan name, but not the color, completely.
Never a good mix, unfortunately, it usually turns out bad for the mice and sometimes the equipment. This is an Onan GGMA 20 KW propane generator installed in a rural area, not that the location matters that much. Mice will find what they perceive as a safe secure spot to hold up for the winter.
Onan GGMA20 propane generator
Unfortunately, the mice decided that the generator cooling fan was a good place to make a nest. It probably was until the generator started, then the mice had a quick lesson in centripetal force.
Mice and generator
This will require some additional maintenance in the springtime when I change to oil. By that time, the carcasses should be mostly dried out and easier to deal with.
Onan generator mice
The mice are generally a nuisance, getting into ATU’s, transmitters, electrical panels, spare parts boxes, etc. Once in place, they begin to breed and reproduce. The gestational period for a mouse is 21 days, which means populations rapidly increase creating further problems. If left alone, mice will chew through electrical insulation, control wires, cardboard boxes, packing material, and so on. They tend to carry diseases like hantavirus and bubonic plague.
I don’t usually agree to using poison to get rid of pests, it tends to linger in the environment and accumulate up the food chain. However, judicious use of some type of poison is usually the only way to effectively get rid of a mouse infestation.
Wherever possible, make sure that all openings and holes into equipment and buildings are sealed up. Do not kill snakes and other predators, who will assist in keeping the mice in check. Employ traps and wear gloves when removing dead mice and mouse parts. Beware of fleas.
