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Small Cabin Forum / Off-Grid Living / Honda 2200i meltdown
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bc thunder
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 10:53
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So I'm having some solar issues in another threat, but I know solar tech doesn't always make for interesting reading so.........
I hooked my nearly new (6month old) honda 2200i up to charge my "cursed" solar system last night. Within about 90secs it was crazy high reving, and by the time I got to the shed, was smoking and smelling of burnt something......I turn it off, and it would not start back up. Left it for 2 hrs and with the slightest of hesitation, fired back up and has been runng great ever since.

Do any of you honda guys know what could be happening???

I tried hooking it up again, in case it was a one off. It began right away again, and I yanked the cord, and won't be hooking it up to this system ever again.

Thanks

Nate R
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 12:07
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Are you hooking it directly to batteries to use the DC charging output of the 2200? Or what were you hooking up to and how?

Brettny
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 12:22
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Dosnt it have a 3yr warranty? Bring it back.

bc thunder
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 12:54
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Hey Nate, It hooks up directly to my AIO inverter as intended. Has been doing the job since last aug. when I got the system. It feels to me like power is being sent back to honda, which to my knowledge, should not be possible.

BNY, Sadly it"s a 40hr trip one way to dealer
As you well know, I have had some rather suspicious results from my solar system. I don't really believe this is the honda causing the problem.

But I don't know what to think anymore lol

bc thunder
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 12:55
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Sorry Nate the inverter has a built in charger, and the honda powers it, when little, or no sun.

Brettny
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 13:31
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Have you checked the voltage and Hz output on the generator?

bc thunder
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 14:40
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No but I'll take a look, Thanks

bc thunder
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 14:48
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123v / 59.9hz
It was suggested to me to turn down the 60a charge setting. Maybe, between the charging and the cabin load it was a bit much on start up?
Never happened before but maybe, it's charging again right now, but I'm super paranoid.........

FishHog
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 15:48
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have you tried running any other load off the Genny? Just anything with a decent load to see how it runs. Might narrow down your problems.

Or a separate battery charger direct to your batteries from the gen to take the AIO out of the loop if you have the components.

Stranger things have happened, but something seems out of wack to have genny issues that are separate from your solar system. I was suspecting an issue with your AIO in the other thread, now it seems very likely to me. But Honda's while rare certainly can have the odd issue.

bc thunder
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 16:26
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Hey Fish, I do have an another charger, but super inconvenent to unhook two 24 volt string, and charge each individualy, but possible.
I have since had it hooked back up to AIO,but lowered the amps from 60 to 30.
I did also fire up the grinder in one hand, while swinging a sawzall in the other. The Genny loved it, but my neighbours don't think I'm well balanced lol.

It's just a dog chasing it's tail, one min I think AIO is flawed, the next batteries are garbage, and yet later both are junk. I don't know, and no one seems to know for sure either. The solar is bad enough, but I love my honda, and don't want to live in a world without one lol.

bc thunder
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 16:29
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I did talk to the dealer, they think it's strange too.
The good news is I"m well within waranty, and can take it to any honda dealer, so maybe Ill swing by.

NorthRick
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 18:07
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Quoting: bc thunder
I did also fire up the grinder in one hand, while swinging a sawzall in the other. The Genny loved it, but my neighbours don't think I'm well balanced lol.


Sorry, don't mean to make fun of your misfortunes, but that's just funny!

gcrank1
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 18:23
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The gen governor should restrict its top rpm's to a 'no damage condition', perhaps well higher than you have ever heard it before and put you into 'alarm' more than the gen?
How does the gen hook up to the aio?

bc thunder
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 20:27
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The aio has an ac out for power, and an ac in for a charger. It just plugs in. My rough math figures it was at about peak watts. I think the surge just lasted a little too long. I don't know why it didn't shut itself down.
The Gen was so alarmed it wouldn't start for two hrs...

travellerw
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 20:36
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I have many many years of experience with the Honda 2000 and 2200 generators (using, repair and sale).

They are super hard to kill as they have many built in safety features. Of course a backfeed of voltage is one of the things that could kill it, but that should trip the overload protection (green blinking light on the front).

I'm most concerned that you said it was smoking. That should NEVER happen unless the stator overheated. A stator overheat can happen if a wire inside shorts to another wire inside. However if that happened, it would be SUPER hard to pull over and if you got it started again it would continue to short and smoke (until it melted the wire off).

As GC said, the mechanical governor will keep the engine from over reving and self destructing. However, that governor only comes into play if the stepper motor controlling the throttle looses all power. Otherwise the stepper motor keeps the throttle below that level.

I'm not sure what else to say.. Since it restarted and continued to produce power, it seems fine. It sounds like you have something attached that is drawing a HUGE current (like max the unit can handle), causing the control board to instruct the generator to go to max RPM.

travellerw
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 20:38 - Edited by: travellerw
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Quoting: bc thunder
The Gen was so alarmed it wouldn't start for two hrs..


Sometimes if you kill them when they are at MAX output, you cause a flood condition. It takes them a while to spin down and the whole time the carb is still pumping in fuel with no spark.

They get flooded and are a bitch to start again!

So that brings up a question..Did you yank the cord? If so, did the generator return to normal RPM before you killed it, or did you just hit the kill switch?

bc thunder
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 21:08 - Edited by: bc thunder
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It was running hard, maybe even harder than eco off, and was not running well, sounded like it was about to die,Like the timing was off if you will, and strugling. I turned it off, but even then I though it would never run again. When I tried to pull start it, it sounded dead, like no mech action anymore.
Two hrs later I tryed it out of shear frustration, it barely caught on, then struggled for 5 secs, then roared to life, like only a honda could. If that was controlled shut down, I'm less than impressed. I have fired up power tools in eco mode, and had them just shut down, but not smoke and burn smell, and not restart right up............

bc thunder
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 21:12
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I did some rough math, and was at about peak power, but surge seemed to last to long. It was like it got stuck. It does seem fine now though.

toyota_mdt_tech
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 21:12
Reply 


Quoting: travellerw
It sounds like you have something attached that is drawing a HUGE current (like max the unit can handle), causing the control board to instruct the generator to go to max RPM.



Bingo, my thoughts also

bc thunder
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 21:16
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So you guys feel it was all normal operating procedure?

bc thunder
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 21:21
Reply 


My starlink does draw iradically, and can pull 2oo watts
off and on for 90secs or so. If I was at peak, and starlink pulled heavy draw, then dropped, then heavy, could the honda get caught in a constant high rev?

gcrank1
Member
# Posted: 2 Dec 2021 22:50
Reply 


Does it have that distinctive smell of burned electronics?
If so, its broken.
Its built in safety features should have shut it down if the load was 'over the limit' (by a little or a lot, doesnt matter, should have shut down/tripped).

bc thunder
Member
# Posted: 3 Dec 2021 06:21
Reply 


I remember, there was a burning smell, but honestly, I was in a bit of a panic thinking ,I was about to lose the honda, ontop of everything else. I don't really remember, but there is no smell now, and it seems 100% fine. I think I'll (has Brett has already recommended) take in for a service. I talked to them on the phone, they felt it unlikely they would find a problem if it was running fine, but who knows......

Nate R
Member
# Posted: 3 Dec 2021 08:25
Reply 


Could be something burning off in the muffler, etc the first time it got that hot/high revved..

Nate R
Member
# Posted: 3 Dec 2021 08:29
Reply 


I just thought about it more....

My Yamaha 2000, I had 2 hooked together. A couple times I had the compressor try and kick in while a saw was already going and overload the system. Sometimes that would make one kick out entirely/overload, but then the other would sound like it was revving to the moon trying to keep up.....

So, the more I think about it, probably just got overloaded and tried to keep up.... Should be fine.

bc thunder
Member
# Posted: 3 Dec 2021 08:46
Reply 


Thanks Guys...........

Steve_S
Member
# Posted: 3 Dec 2021 09:51
Reply 


I use the L5:30 off my gensets, 120V/30A max.
When charging my bank (24V LFP) I can push up to 100A with my charger but I dial it to 80A so I have balance for pass-through. @ 80A Charge for 24VDC the Charger pulls 120V/23-24A. (I have other trickery do deal with surges) during charge.

My Inverter/Charger (Samlex EVO-4024) has advanced programmable charging BUT it is also 92% Efficient while MPP & GW average about 86-90% efficient.

In essence, you were Red Lining that little 2200.

bc thunder
Member
# Posted: 3 Dec 2021 10:10 - Edited by: bc thunder
Reply 


Yes, I agree fully. But I'm not sure I'm of the belief that it was about to shut itself off safely. That's my only concern, but I have dialed back the amps to 40a, and can turn cabin appliances on, after the charging has begun. I don't think this will be an issue going forword. I hope

gcrank1
Member
# Posted: 3 Dec 2021 10:44 - Edited by: gcrank1
Reply 


BCT, you said "it was running hard, maybe even harder than eco off".
With eco Off the rpm it runs at is not peak rpm's. You say 'maybe', as in 'not sure'? If it is iffy that it was faster than just eco off it was no where near danger.
When we have never run something up at top it can be surprising what top really sounds like!
The smoke? Hmmm
Very good thing that you cant smell 'burned electronics'! And that smell does linger long after the fact.
You've been running this gen a lot. It is possible it has puked out some oil and that was burning off? It doesnt take much burning oil to make a lot of smoke, just splash a little onto a hot muffler and watch....upwind.
It is always a good idea to do the calcs on what load a gen can take and stay within its 'continuous' rating, not the the surge. The surge rating takes care of the stuff that pops up temporarily, like a start-up load.

bc thunder
Member
# Posted: 3 Dec 2021 11:03
Reply 


The oil was just changed (every 50 hrs, much sooner than the spec's call for), and its still fresh and full.
This is the same load as always, never a problem before, and it comes out of eco mode on it's own.
This, as I stated earier, sounded like a car engine, with the timing out.
But, you could well be right, I am a little shell shocked these days.........

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