Generator in a B28

[fonsim]

Good afternoon

I'm planning to install a power generator in my B28 but I wonder where to install it? I see that some people installed it in the middle of the engines. Could i see some pics of it? Any suggestions?

Thanks

[Yannis]

May I ask what you need the gen for?
What loads do you plan having and for how long?

[Kevin]

I have seen pictures of it installed between the motors and outside the motor where the batteries are commonly located. The common downfall seems to be the lack of space. It makes maintenance far more difficult, to the point that it does not get done in some cases. I have seen photos of some that have more rust than paint visible.
I know Conchy Joe aka Troy was installing one on his 28 but have not heard the results. He would be a better source since he has done it. He is on here but have not seen him post in a while.
He might have moved to the Bahamas!

[Yannis]

Kevin,

Didn't Troy sell his B28? I don't know why I have this impression.

[Tony Meola]

Fonsim

Search under members and you can find conchy Joe's email and send him a PM.

[Kevin]

Yannis,
Not sure if he sold it. I have not spoke with him in a long while. The years are going by at a rather fast pace for me at this point.
Thought about selling mine, but it would be a loss financially with the market and type of boat. It owes me nothing and costs very little to maintain.

[Yannis]

Kevin,

Fast or slow pace, don't sell. You'll start yelling at your family members more often as you'll have nowhere else to "depressurize" !!
Sell if you immediately substitute with something else.

[fonsim]

Yannis,

I need the generator to run the a/c (12,000 btu) and the battery charger.

[fonsim]

Fonsim

Search under members and you can find conchy Joe's email and send him a PM.

Tony,


Did he have a generator set up?

[Tony Meola]

Sorry I don't remember. I am working off a mobile device right now. I will take a look around the forum Wednesday night when I get home and see if I can find anything.

[Yannis]

Fonsim,

I agree that you might have a real-estate problem fitting a diesel gen anywhere.
I would inquire about gas gens (somebody here said Honda s 2000, but there are also Yamahas etc). I once saw somebody have a small gas gen fit into an old cooler (which was insulated and therefore contained much of the noise) tied down on the swim platform; I assume that running an a/c requires a lot of gen time.
Where are you located? Are you sure that fans won't do the job for you?

[fonsim]

I'm in Puerto Rico that the lowest temp in the night is 78F. I need an A/C . I have a Westernbeke 4.5kw but I think is too much and is like 300lbs. But I think that at least I need 3kw generator to run at least(battery charger and a/c) Anyone have this configuration in your boat?

[Tony Meola]

http://bertram31.com/newbb/viewtopic.ph ... 578#p68578

Fonsim

Here is the link to one of Conchy Joes post on Generators. Send him a PM he will answer if he is still around. If you click on his name it should bring you to a spot to send him a PM.

[fonsim]

Thanks!

[JH_B28]

Fonsim,

I also am from PR and have a B28. My Mase IS2500 gen was installed between the engines and it ran a 10,000 btu A/C and a small refrigerator. I believe its better for maintenance compared to either of the sides. A friend of mine has a northern light 5kw to port and is a pain for servicing. I think the weight in the center also helps with the rolling.

I am almost 3 years into a full re-build, so if you need anything, just let me know.

Regards,

[Yannis]

George,

I also have a '73 B28, with Yanmars too.
Your 4lh-ste's are 230hp, while my 4lha-stp's are 240-250hp.
Why does Yanmar make two engines that are called differently with only 10hp (or 20) apart?

[JH_B28]

George,

I also have a '73 B28, with Yanmars too.
Your 4lh-ste's are 230hp, while my 4lha-stp's are 240-250hp.
Why does Yanmar make two engines that are called differently with only 10hp (or 20) apart?

Hi Yannis,

I asked myself the same thing when I bought my boat. I think that there is a thread where someone answered that question, dont remember if it was Bruce. Anyhow, I believe the difference in HP was due to the difference in fuel between countries. When the american made 4lh (4LHA), hence the "A" in 4LHA, was rated or "dynoed" it yielded a 10 hp difference in comparison with the japanese (4LH). Although they are the same engine, there are some components that are different in the 4LHA such as the oil cooler, air cooler, exhaust manifold and turbo (waste-gated).

Maybe one of the pro's will chime in. Please correct me if I am mistaken.

Regards,

[Yannis]

Hey George, thanks. You may be right. But like you're saying, let the pros give us the correct answer.
Since your boat+engine configuration is so close, let's compare a few numbers. I cruise at 2700-2800 rpm doing 22-23 knots (not miles) and burn 2.6-2.7 liters per nautical mile. Are you any close to this? (2.6 X 22 = 55-60 liters per hour)

Fonsim, I sent you a pm a while back, did you get it? Thanks.

[Tony Meola]

Yannis

I think some times it is due to parts available and the method for testing HP. They all do it. Cummins has the 250/270/260. As I understand it, for them it is the fuel pump that does it.

Some if is forced by the EPA. Take Cummins, mostly truck engines, and they need to meet certain EPA requirements so they need to tweek the truck engine to get their, and that tweek moves over to the marine market.

Too many variables in todays world to figure out why it happens so often.

[Yannis]

Yes Tony, you may be right.

As George says, and it's very easy to confirm by looking at them, there are a few obvious differences on these two models (coolers, manifolds etc) that make so that you think they are completely different engines. My 4 lha's are announced simultaneously by two different hp capacities - 240 and 250hp - depending, if I remember correctly, on the temperature of the fuel used during the test!

[Bill Fuller]

I don't consider myself an expert but I have a pretty good understanding of these motors.
So, to start with, all of the 4LH "S" motors are rated to produce the exact same HP under the exact same conditions.
I have always looked at the 4LHA motors as an upgrade over the older 4LH motors. Different after cooler (charge air coolers), oil coolers etc.
But still producing the same "230" HP. The 4LHA-STE and 4LHA-STP are the exact same motor and produce the exact same HP under the exact same conditions.
Also, the various HP differences are all about marketing and trying to be able to publish the highest possible HP numbers.
First you have SAE HP vs. Metric HP, SAE is the common standard in the USA.. Then you have the motors using a different ISO standard to measure the output on the motor.
In this case they can gain 10 HP by using a different ISO standard, ie, a different temperature for the fuel.
The bottom line is that the 4LH-STE, 4LHA-STE, and the 4LHA-STP all produce the same HP under the same conditions.
Under ISO-3046/1 they all are rated to produce 227 SAE HP.

Hope this helps clarify things a bit.

Bill

[JH_B28]

Hey George, thanks. You may be right. But like you're saying, let the pros give us the correct answer.
Since your boat+engine configuration is so close, let's compare a few numbers. I cruise at 2700-2800 rpm doing 22-23 knots (not miles) and burn 2.6-2.7 liters per nautical mile. Are you any close to this? (2.6 X 22 = 55-60 liters per hour)

Fonsim, I sent you a pm a while back, did you get it? Thanks.

Hi Yannis. I bought my boat almost 4 years ago and only used it about 6 months...I have been rebuilding almost everything from the liner up since. Sadly, it has taken all this time because I am doing all the work, together with my father, and due to other circumstances like a new apartment, marriage, blah blah :). So I would love to compare my old numbers with you but they are very unreliable... bad turbos and the props were slightly bent and out of pitch. Anyhow, I will be running (some day) 1.44:1 twindisc gears with the 18" 4 blade bronze props re-pitched to 17. I had them re-pitched to 17 as a starting point. Probably will purchase 3 blade 18x18 or 18x19 medium cup nibrals in the future.

What are you running?

[JH_B28]

I don't consider myself an expert but I have a pretty good understanding of these motors.
So, to start with, all of the 4LH "S" motors are rated to produce the exact same HP under the exact same conditions.
I have always looked at the 4LHA motors as an upgrade over the older 4LH motors. Different after cooler (charge air coolers), oil coolers etc.
But still producing the same "230" HP. The 4LHA-STE and 4LHA-STP are the exact same motor and produce the exact same HP under the exact same conditions.
Also, the various HP differences are all about marketing and trying to be able to publish the highest possible HP numbers.
First you have SAE HP vs. Metric HP, SAE is the common standard in the USA.. Then you have the motors using a different ISO standard to measure the output on the motor.
In this case they can gain 10 HP by using a different ISO standard, ie, a different temperature for the fuel.
The bottom line is that the 4LH-STE, 4LHA-STE, and the 4LHA-STP all produce the same HP under the same conditions.
Under ISO-3046/1 they all are rated to produce 227 SAE HP.

Hope this helps clarify things a bit.

Bill

Bill,

I think that was an excellent explanation. Thanks for clarifying.

[Yannis]

Thank you Bill.

George, I have no idea about the props. Next time I go down I'll check to see what they are.

[fonsim]

Fonsim,

I also am from PR and have a B28. My Mase IS2500 gen was installed between the engines and it ran a 10,000 btu A/C and a small refrigerator. I believe its better for maintenance compared to either of the sides. A friend of mine has a northern light 5kw to port and is a pain for servicing. I think the weight in the center also helps with the rolling.

I am almost 3 years into a full re-build, so if you need anything, just let me know.

Regards,

Thanks for the advice. Let me now if you need anything too.