Running genny whilst sailing

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I have a Paguro 4kw genny on our monohull. It has a diesel Farryman engine. I’ve no idea whether the engine will tolerate operating at 20deg from vertical for extended (an hour say) period, does anyone have experience?
 
I'd have thought it would be ok assuming the angle of heel doesn't result in it being starved of fuel or, more importantly, oil. I'd probably fire it up & keep a very close eye on it to see how it goes...
 
also check the water pickup point and if there is a scoop and which way it's pointing. Don't want to starve it from seawater either although I doubt pickup point is going to be that high that's exposed...
 
V1701 said:
I'd have thought it would be ok assuming the angle of heel doesn't result in it being starved of fuel or, more importantly, oil. I'd probably fire it up & keep a very close eye on it to see how it goes...
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Yes, that makes sense, I need to check the specification and see what it says about angle of operation.
 
vas said:
also check the water pickup point and if there is a scoop and which way it's pointing. Don't want to starve it from seawater either although I doubt pickup point is going to be that high that's exposed...
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That's a sensible assumption but I've given up making sensible assumptions after the numpty generator installers fitted the genny start battery on top of the panel that has to be lifted to operate the seacocks for the genny. Doh! I had to move the battery and reroute the cabling, what idiots!
 
I have sailed for many days on end with a genset running to power the aircon on a 43ft monohull sailing quite fast and reasonably heeled. On deck so hot you stood in a bucket of seawater to keep your feet cool, go below off watch and you are in civilised comfort, not sweating into your bunk.

Obvoiusly it depends on the installation. That boat had a good and newish setup - I have also sailed on several otherwise excellent boats with very unreliable gensets.
 
I have an HFL 4kW with a farryman engine. The HFL-approved engineer told me the manufacturer's advice was that they shouldn't be used while sailing which seems to defeat the point somewhat. Still, that's just the advice of a different manufacturer (or rather the 2nd hand (3rd hand if you're reading this) report of it which is probably completely different from what you *can* do). TBH I've never sailed the current boat far enough in one hit to need to try it and if I'm going that far I'll probably invest in a watt & sea.
 
Robih said:
Yes, that makes sense, I need to check the specification and see what it says about angle of operation.
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Fuel is no problem. You just ensure the tank is sufficiently full. The big problem is that these engines are designed for operating more or less in an upright position and if at extended angles for any length of time there can either be oil starvation due to the oil pump suction rising clear of the oil surface or the oil hanging up in the tappet space due to the amount of oil required up there to reach the drains when not upright. Many marine engines are fitted with a deep sump to get over this problem. I expect your generator will have the shallowest sump possible to slim it down.

You could always hang it from the boom :) ;) :)


PS...

There is a deep pan sump available but the specs seem to steer clear of giving angles however this wee engine might be limited by depth of a standard sump.

https://cdn.greenmountaingenerators...nmar-L-Series-Brochure-and-Specifications.pdf
 
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There is also an issue when the generator stops when the vessel is heeled in that the water in the exhaust may not drain as it would if the vessel was level. Won't be applicable to every installation but worth thinking about.
 
jwfrary said:
There is also an issue when the generator stops when the vessel is heeled in that the water in the exhaust may not drain as it would if the vessel was level. Won't be applicable to every installation but worth thinking about.
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Not if it is installed following normal convention with the crank shaft for and aft. There is a reason for these things ;) In this case it is possible crankshaft thrust bearing problems.
 
Bilgediver said:
Not if it is installed following normal convention with the crank shaft for and aft. There is a reason for these things ;) In this case it is possible crankshaft thrust bearing problems.
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Orientation isn't the only issue to be honest, I have seen some pretty horrendous installs and blown engines (both generators and main engines) 9 times out of 10 its poor installation of the exhaust and consideration for the amount of water in the system. This can be exasserbated by an excessive heel especially in larger displacement yachts with below water line installations
 
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