Hfl generator issue

John100156 said:
Hi Dave, I just replied to your PM but for the benefit of others that have this type of generator:

Yes, the capacitor is the one in the box that sits on top of the generator housing.

Assuming you have not tripped the mains isolator/MCB off, that normally sits close to the generator and isolates the 240v supply from the generator, then hopefully the capacitor has just lost its charge.

You are correct, there is no AVR on the 6kVA it is self exciting.

With the generator not running, you just need to flash 12Vdc across the capacitor, it will spark a little, but don't worry about that, no more than one second should do it.

The capacitor is in a closed loop with the rotor/armature winding, when the capacitor is charged, it should remain so, unless for some reason it becomes discharged of course, which it can do if one of its cables gets wet or earths out. Simply put: When you start the generator, the small voltage across the capacitor is sufficient to generate a magnetic field in the armature winding which it is connected to, which it rotates, it induces a field in the stator (main) winding, this is turn induces a larger magnetic field in the armature, and so on until the main winding reaches its maximum voltage output 220-240Vac.

What worries me is, if water has penetrated the winding casing, then you may have shorted-out the main winding which could have burned out. Lets hope that's not the case, but if so, I can tell you how you can remove the stator/main winding without taking the entire generator/motor unit out. Wish I knew that before my one went....!

Anyway, try re-energising the capacitor first, leaving the wires connected to it polarity is not important as its a closed loop, if you're not confident, please have an electrician do it, or at least have someone with you just in case.

Do take care, but it is a very simple thing to do and the 6kVA really is a simple and very reliable generator.

Best of luck.
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My 6kVA has been working on and off. Fixed it with a bad cable connection to the battery. Then..it started making large clunking noises coming from the generator not the mitsy engine. Any ideas? Is it worth fixing on an old tatty generator? If I can get the parts that is..thanks Justin
 
Not sure.

If its the same as my old 6kV, its internals are very simple. The rotor connects directly to the crankshaft, so if its knocking, I assume its a bearing, the rotor may be hitting the stator or something? You can leave the rotor connected to the engine and remove the stator, if you have enough room. I have some images of the internals, let me know if you need me to post them up.

My stator winding burnt out, so I stripped it down and had it rewound in Southampton, run tested it in my garage and all worked great first time. Simple to operate, but a back-breaker to get it back in the engine room of my last boat, Sealine F43...
 
Hi John,

Just sat on our boat and suddenly no 240, although the engine carried on running fine. Actually when I say suddenly the TV flickered once and came back to life and then within 10 sec went off for good. I checked back to the terminals in the control box on top of the engine and still no volts. I noticed a fuse on the side of this box, which when checked had blow. It is a 1.25" 1A, but I cannot work see what it protects.
I do have the manuals, in various languages and for many different configurations, but there is the problem - I cannot be sure which is mine. I though I had found it (12V control, 240VAC etc) but then noticed it was for Ford/Cummins not Mitsubishi.
We have a 6KVA set.
Any chance of getting your manual please as this will help tremendously. And any thoughts appreciated. It is getting late in the evening so I will check the Cap tomorrow now

Thanks, Chris
 
Yes, no problem at all. I had a nightmare getting hold of a manual and ended up getting it from HFL Germany, whom scanned an English version for me, which cost me £26 IIRC!

Just PM me your email address and I will send you a link to download both the HFL and Mitsy manuals, the file size is large. I sent to someone else on the forum just last week!

If the fuse has blown, you may just need to flash 12v across the capacitor for a second, once you have established and rectified what caused it to blow, hopefully just fatigue! The capacitor holds its charge normally and is used to excite the rotor field until it gets moving.

Once you have the manual(s) and if useful - just pop a small contribution into the RNLI coffers as you like....
 
Just click the envelope at the top and you will see a box come up, at the bottom you can click start a new conversation (PM)

That way not everyone will see your email address just those you send a PM to.....
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Hi John,
i've just bought a 2002 Moody 54 with an HFL Marriner, which of course doesn't start... can you please send me the manual. mike AT wn.co.nz
Merry Christmas.
Cheers
Mike
 
Hi John.
Just got a Fairline Sq50 from 1996 with an HFL generator. Unfortunately all documentation are missing…. Would it be possible to get a copyright of your manual sent to my email? nilsmikal@hotmail.com
In advance, many thanks for your support!
Best regards
Nils
 
John100156 said:
Hi,

No problem, you can have a copy of my manual with my notes, plus the Mitsy engine manual.

I will send you a link so you can download the file direct.

Let me know once downloaded please.
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Hi John

Just like the other guys in this conversation, I'm a bit stuck with my HFL h2w6m1c 6kW generator that won't turn on, probably because of the electrical wiring. I searched and searched the net without results. Looking for a manual, you seem to be the saviour of many! It would be very nice of you if you could once again share what you have.

Thanks.

Geraud
 
Hi yes, of course, no problem I had huge trouble many years ago tracking down a manual. If you PM me your email address, I will send you a link to my server so you can download the HFL and Engine manuals which I scanned in PDF format.

If the Genny has been disconnected, or left/unused, for a long time you may just need to flash the rotor winding to re-charge the capacitor. It is a relatively simple process described in the manual IIRC.
 
Hi John,

I also havethe 4kva HFL and I am struggling with wiring the control panel in, particularly where the prime button wire goes on the generator. Would you mind if I grab a copy of the manual? Thanks heaps.
Ian
 
boatingdave said:
I've seen various threads re these generators but not a lot of info out there. I have a circa 1995 hfl 6kva built in diesel generator. Sometimes, getting less often, it runs ok. However, most of the time it runs for a few minutes and then does a 'fault' shutdown. It does this even if it is electrically isolated from the boat i.e. all switches off. Bizarrely on occasions if the main engines are running it helps. This may be a red herring but thought it worth the mention. I don't have any further info on the unit and there is some black 'dust' from a rectangular port at the base of the unit if that helps? Anyone have manuals for these generators so I know what to test and what parts need to be changed in a service.
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Are you running it whilst sailing? We’ve notice that when heeling to one side our genset stutters and sometimes shuts down. It’s the same HFL 6kva. Probably not the issue but…

Another is a water cooling blockage. It’ll shut down if it overheats. This happened to use when the impeller dry and broke into bits, blocking the water cooling circuit.
 
Waltini said:
Hi John,

I also havethe 4kva HFL and I am struggling with wiring the control panel in, particularly where the prime button wire goes on the generator. Would you mind if I grab a copy of the manual? Thanks heaps.
Ian
Click to expand...

I will email a link so you can download the HFL manual from our server, please let me know once you have it....
 
Hi John.
My brother has a HFL H2W6MIC generator on a 1990 Fairline turbo 36 he has just bought and needs to replace the key switch in the control panel as it either has the wrong key or it’s seized as it won’t turn.
Do you happen to know the make and model of the key switch in the Hfl powergen panel?
Could I also get a copy of your manual please
Email is vicky.archer@hotmail.co.uk

thanks
 
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