Generator Mods

[parrott]

Originally Posted by Pacostaco

I love this post. Although when I talked to Forest River and used the Part numbers posted they said they were not valid part numbers.
Vent Cover PN: 70A08495A
Vent Shroud PN: 70A08493A
Anyone have any other ideas I would love to make this mod before the season begins.

I got mine from my local Forest River Dealer. Even tho I have a Thor which he is a dealer also. He looked it up using an F3R catalog.

[KansasFR3]

Originally Posted by Pacostaco

I love this post. Although when I talked to Forest River and used the Part numbers posted they said they were not valid part numbers.
Vent Cover PN: 70A08495A
Vent Shroud PN: 70A08493A
Anyone have any other ideas I would love to make this mod before the season begins.

I'm pretty certain those are the right PN, but in any case, just goto a FR dealer and say you need a generator vent cover/shroud off of a 2016 FR3 30DS. They should be able to look it up in their system. If you happen to have another model of FR product, see if they now come with a new vent. I complained with warranty department about the design issue and they mailed me the parts for free even though I was outside the 12 month warranty. Hope your able to get your hands one. Definitely fixed our generator issues.

[StephanFR3]

I'm on trip from south Florida to Chicago meandering along the way. Now a couple of previous trips the generator would over heat and shut down but this trip around Chattanooga it started shutting down every time I had to stop for a few minutes. Progressively got worse. Made detour to elkart and they grasiouly installed the vent and shroud, looks just like Kansas's They also tightened my big slide cables and fixed broken dor latch. They were excellent with customer service. My FR3 30DS is a 2014. They cautioned me that the vent might not cure the problem. And Cummins / onan might need to fix gen. Well the generator shut down again but did last longer. Back in Chicago I went to Cummins service center great service writer she was great. She pushed back other work and fit me in. They installed new fuel pump fuel filter and plug. Cost $368 labor was $148/hr ran fine for 2 hours driving sat running for 20 minutes on hot lot, but shut down after stopping again at another location. It seems like vapor lock. One scary thing is they spoke of cleaning and checking brushes which are only accessible by dropping gen out of rv. Don't want to know labor costs for that.The mechanic said it's dust and dirt that wear out the brushes and the FWD placement is better for longevity. He said brushes last 250 to 800 hrs before needing to be cleaned or replaced. The cost of gen maintenance sorta changes the cost of dry camping compared to stopping and and pluging in at a camp site. Also the valve lash is supposed to be checked at 500 hrs. When I get home I'll add the 2nd aux fuel pump. But manual cushions about over certain fuel pressure can cause fuel leak and fire.

[cjadam]

I have 2015 FR3 with generator issues with 500hrs. The problem ended up being bad brushes. Replaced under warranty by Cummings. Added a generator vent like the 2017 models. It has been running better than ever.

[KansasFR3]

Do you know your fault code when it shuts down? I'm at almost 900 hours on our generator and only had the issue with the vapor lock and just recently, the governor butterfly shaft sheared at one of the two screws that hold it in place. I also noticed the shaft had oblonged the shaft hole in the carb so it wasn't quick to react to changing loads. I ended up replaced the carb and was good to go again this last trip.

It depends on what type of pump is installed in series, but that recommendation came from the Onan dealer when I was there. I probably have 500 hours on the unit with 2 fuel pumps and its been working flawless till the mechanical issue with the carb. I just wonder if your not having an issue with the carb itself.

[cjadam]

Originally Posted by KansasFR3

Do you know your fault code when it shuts down? I'm at almost 900 hours on our generator and only had the issue with the vapor lock and just recently, the governor butterfly shaft sheared at one of the two screws that hold it in place. I also noticed the shaft had oblonged the shaft hole in the carb so it wasn't quick to react to changing loads. I ended up replaced the carb and was good to go again this last trip.



It depends on what type of pump is installed in series, but that recommendation came from the Onan dealer when I was there. I probably have 500 hours on the unit with 2 fuel pumps and its been working flawless till the mechanical issue with the carb. I just wonder if your not having an issue with the carb itself.

I thought mine was vapor lock, took it to Cummings it was brushes. My symptom was just stopped and would not restart.
Has done the trick

[carlb]

Have a different RV, but similar issues. Recently had to have my brushes replaced at 1100 hours. Since then the times it has stopped unexpectedly has been minimal.

[cjadam]

Originally Posted by carlb

Have a different RV, but similar issues. Recently had to have my brushes replaced at 1100 hours. Since then the times it has stopped unexpectedly has been minimal.

I think a lot of RV owner overlook the importance of the brushes and like me replaced pump, circuit board, and all along was brushes wearing out.

[StephanFR3]

Just got back from 3000+ mile trip the generator started acting up and was getting worse. It had over heated before, but not this bad. Was in Chicago so decided to go to Elkart. They installed the vent and shroud. They said it might not fix the problem, and that I might need to go to Cummins. It made it better but still over heated. I went to Cummins/Onan $148.00 labor rate. 2.25 hours for pump filter and plug. Ouch should have done it myself. Though the placement of pump and filter is stupid, it should be moved out side of gen housing. Probably why 2nd pump and filter works. The mechanic mentioned the brushes which I declined as a huge up sell. 650 hours seemed way too soon. Especially since I have a honda generator at home used probably 5000 hours and is from hurricane Andrew works every time carb replaced once. Well pump and filter made it even better, but it still overheated and shut down at 2 hours. Next I tried 1 gallon gas can with 1 gallon of gas with 16 ounces of sea foam 3 foot 1/4 inch fuel line to can. ran at high load for 1hr, half hour at no load. sat shut down half hour. Ran at full load for near rest of fuel. Worked flawlessly rest of trip. I am considering moving pump and filter and mounting external, and adding a 3way shutoff valve for future sea foam treatments. I think problem stems mostly from sitting and not running enough at full load, which supposedly helps clean the brushes.

[MrMando]

Originally Posted by KansasFR3

So this past trip, I was having the generator shutdown uncommanded due to what I believe is vapor lock. I took it into Onan and they couldn't figure anything out. Tech said they typically install an aux fuel pump inline with the factory one, outside of the Onan compartment. He said that would resolve the vapor lock issue. But I also noticed that the 2017 models now come with a generator vent on the door panel. So I emailed FR asking how I'd go about purchasing this vent/shroud since I don't have an FR dealer near me so I can resolve the vapor lock issue. They offered to send the vent/shroud to me for free and apologize for the inconvenience. I was pleasantly surprised for sure. I just didn't want a generic cover on the side of our 2015 30DS. Anyways, here are some pic of the installs if it helps anyone.

Tools I used on the vent install was an angle grinder with a cutoff wheel, hole saw with drill, and a flat/half radius file. I need to order some lap sealant and butyl tape along with getting some screws from Lowes. But this should resolve any vapor lock concerns for sure. Between the shroud/Gen, I have about 1/2-3/4" gap. Definitely feel the cool intake air rushing into the generator. I had to trim the outer ring as well as the depth of the shroud.

Vent Cover PN: 70A08495A
Vent Shroud PN: 70A08493A

For the fuel pump, I replaced the old stock one with a new one in case it was getting weak from being so hot and moved the fuel filter aft of the aux pump. Solder into the same power supply for both pumps. Tech at Onan said the PCB can handle the additional amps.

Aux Fuel Pump: Airtex E11005 ($49)
Wix Filter (33001): $4
Replacement OEM Pump: Airtex E11006 ($33)
Brass barb fitting, 1/4"ID x 1/8" NPT ($2)

Hope this info helps someone.

Nice tip! Got mine to the same point shown in your photos. Now: since the compartment door is basically styrofoam sandwiched between plastic and Fiberglas, how'd you use screws to attach the cover? I was thinking I may have to use bolts and nuts, drill through cover and put fender washers on the inside of the door? Or use aluminum strips on the inside for self-tapping screws to grab? How'd you finish the install?

[KansasFR3]

I used 8 countersunk screws for attachment. 4 for the inner shroud, just off-center so when I screwed the outer cover in the center, it wouldn't hit the inner screws. And they only went through the outer skin too and its been holding up just fine. I caulked the inside shroud with some dycor to weather-proof it. You could probably also secure the outer cover with some double sided 3M tape too if your after a clean appearance.

[MrMando]

Originally Posted by KansasFR3

I used 8 countersunk screws for attachment. 4 for the inner shroud, just off-center so when I screwed the outer cover in the center, it wouldn't hit the inner screws. And they only went through the outer skin too and its been holding up just fine. I caulked the inside shroud with some dycor to weather-proof it. You could probably also secure the outer cover with some double sided 3M tape too if your after a clean appearance.

Thanks again! I ended up using stainless pan head bolts, passing all the way through, to fender washers and nylock nuts inside the door. Looks pretty decent. I also sandwiched a black aluminum screen between the inner shroud and the cover in the process to keep pests out.