[Rludington]

I replaced my12kw generac with a 26kw. However, my son wants me to keep it for him to use in a cabin.. (could be a couple years down the line)
So, pull the battery, drain the oil, what else should be done being that it will just be sitting and not being turned over ?

 

[iowagold]

bad deal to let them sit.
you want to turn them over at least once a month
it is that valve spring thing.

is it NG or LP?

and where will it be stored?

 

[oldcodger]

If you are going to let it sit for 2 years you are guaranteed to have some problems. At the very least you should fog the cylinder/cylinders. I would refill it with oil and rig up some way to rotate the thing monthly. Also take some rodent precautions.

 

[flopshot]

Change oil and filter, hook up a battery to it monthly and turn over the engine with the spark plugs removed long enough to pressurize the oil flow, maybe 15 seconds,install the plugs. If you don't want to do that change oil, fog cylinders, back off the valve springs, plug the exhaust outlet. I would find a way to bag it to keep out squatters and rodents. Can't tell you how many times I've "repaired" equipment by removing mud wasp nests, the love exhaust ports.

 

[OrlyP]

I agree with the gents before me.... new oil and filter. If not fogging oil, I'd put a few drops of motor oil in each sparkplug hole and crank it a few revolutions for a good coating of oil around the cylinders. That will prevent the rings from locking up.

Put dielectric grease around exposed electrical terminals and close off vents and holes so critters can't move in. Store it indoors and away from moisture, if it can be helped. Although these standby gens are designed to be installed outdoors, it can take care of itself to some extent due to the weekly exercise. But without the exercise, it can't get rid of moisture build up so it will fare better when stored in a relatively dry environment and without extreme temperature swings.

 

[zz28zz]

Also need to address the fuel tank. I'd drain it for sure. If it's metal, I'd mix up some 2-stroke fuel/oil. Put it in there swish it around to coat the inner surfaces, then drain it out and use it in your weed-eater/leaf lower, etc.

If it's a single cyl eng, after fogging/oiling of cyl, pull rope till you feel compression then stop. That will have the valves closed and seal off the cyl.

 

[OrlyP]

Also need to address the fuel tank. I'd drain it for sure. If it's metal, I'd mix up some 2-stroke fuel/oil. Put it in there swish it around to coat the inner surfaces, then drain it out and use it in your weed-eater/leaf lower, etc.

If it's a single cyl eng, after fogging/oiling of cyl, pull rope till you feel compression then stop. That will have the valves closed and seal off the cyl.

I assumed that the "12kW Generac" the OP is pertaining to is a standby (NG-fuel) generator. But seeing your post, I guess it wasn't clear what the exact model is, and whether it's a standby or a portable model.

Also: Gasoline vs NG generator and single- vs two-cylinder engine. These dictates what sort of care should be given. And you can't leave both cylinders (two-cylinder models) in the compression stroke, can you?

 

[sledman8002002]

I replaced my12kw generac with a 26kw. However, my son wants me to keep it for him to use in a cabin.. (could be a couple years down the line)
So, pull the battery, drain the oil, what else should be done being that it will just be sitting and not being turned over ?

With the units plans to be sitting for some time, I would treat the engine as I would a 4 stroke outboard, meaning without question I'd fog the engine down. I'd do so while warming the engine before the oil & filter were changed. Fog it almost to the point of stalling the engine. Have new spark plugs nearby but I wouldnt change them out until 'after' it was again running and fogging oil burned off.
If mice are a concern in your area, I'd also take steps in blocking the intake and exhaust with 'lightly' oiled steel wool. In my experience the mice wont touch it.
Just a suggestion here, but as extra precaution I'd also remove and bag the airfilter (to be kept elsewhere in a no mice enviornment).

 

[Rludington]

Thank you all, yes it's a ng. All good suggestions.
Appreciate the help !

 

[Rludington]

I could convert it over to propane and actually run it.... manual says 12.5 wc for the regulator.. (same as the ng it uses now) could I just hook up a 20 lb tank (like for a bbq grill) and crank it with that ? Will that little tank provide enough pressure / volume?

 

[Wiley]

I replaced my12kw generac with a 26kw. However, my son wants me to keep it for him to use in a cabin.. (could be a couple years down the line)
So, pull the battery, drain the oil, what else should be done being that it will just be sitting and not being turned over ?

Leaving a generator idle for an extended period of time will likely allow it to run, but not generate any current. It's due to a loss of residual magnetism. If you google the term, you will find lots of information. Note, though there are some possible ways to repair the issue, none are a sure thing. Champion told me that 15 - 30 minutes, twice a month with a small load (a fan, a hand drill, but not a lightbulb) will prevent the loss of magnetism.

 

[OrlyP]

I think this loss-of-magnetism stuff is mostly a problem with some really old generator designs. Newer non-inverter generators already has a permanent magnet embedded on the rotor to induce the DPE windings to fire up the AVR which then builds up the field.

Standby generators uses a booster circuit that feeds DC current to the rotor while cranking so it can build up the field.

Some old Japanese generators from Denyo, Kubota, etc., uses the charging or lighting coil of the engine to power the rotor. No residual magnetism necessary.

 

[50ShadesOfDirt]

Now that I see this post, I understand the "storing" part ... my answer, especially if it's running and running well, is to sell it and apply the money to yours or his gen needs. Why?

You always want newer technology coming in, not older tech hanging around, and the new advancements are only in the new gens. Parts may get harder to find. Weird things go wrong with the older stuff, and become harder to fix over time. In most cases, newer models are always better.

As a bonus, there's no storage issues, which as mentioned above, start to get into hefty maintenance effort. Generacs have a huge "installation" manual, full of hookup requirements ... one of which is X amount of btu's of propane, which won't easily be served from a bbq pit propane tank.

 

[Wiley]

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[Wiley]

I think this loss-of-magnetism stuff is mostly a problem with some really old generator designs. Newer non-inverter generators already has a permanent magnet embedded on the rotor to induce the DPE windings to fire up the AVR which then builds up the field.

Standby generators uses a booster circuit that feeds DC current to the rotor while cranking so it can build up the field.

Some old Japanese generators from Denyo, Kubota, etc., uses the charging or lighting coil of the engine to power the rotor. No residual magnetism necessary.

Well, Champion doesn't agree with that. There is no vintage-based differentiation for them about residual magnetism. My 2022 100416 Tri-Fuel is just as susceptible as any past models. Knowing that there is no guaranteed recovery method to resuscitate the generator certainly warrants a call to a manufacturer about the risk...at the very least.

 

[Rludington]

Now that I see this post, I understand the "storing" part ... my answer, especially if it's running and running well, is to sell it and apply the money to yours or his gen needs. Why?

You always want newer technology coming in, not older tech hanging around, and the new advancements are only in the new gens. Parts may get harder to find. Weird things go wrong with the older stuff, and become harder to fix over time. In most cases, newer models are always better.

As a bonus, there's no storage issues, which as mentioned above, start to get into hefty maintenance effort. Generacs have a huge "installation" manual, full of hookup requirements ... one of which is X amount of btu's of propane, which won't easily be served from a bbq pit propane tank.

Yup, that's a good suggestion, especially being this was the model that would overcharge your battery and blow it up.
If my son doesn't want to fool with its troubles, I'll probably just let the installer take it away and let him fool with making a few bucks. I probably couldn't get more than a couple hundred for it.. especially since I'm keeping the switch to use as a subpanel, since it has 12 circuits in it.

 

[50ShadesOfDirt]

I'd estimate that you'd get around a $1000 for it from ebay, if you are willing to do the effort, and the right buyer is willing to come get it from you. During Covid, parts were scarce, and it probably would've moved ... don't know if parts are still constrained or not.

If not willing to do ebay, see if the ASD will give you something for it ($500 or so)?

 

[OrlyP]

Well, Champion doesn't agree with that. There is no vintage-based differentiation for them about residual magnetism. My 2022 100416 Tri-Fuel is just as susceptible as any past models. Knowing that there is no guaranteed recovery method to resuscitate the generator certainly warrants a call to a manufacturer about the risk...at the very least.

I understand that there may be exceptions but I still maintain that this is becoming less of a problem on more modern units.

But when it is indeed a loss of residual magnetism, it's easy enough to flash it if you know what you're doing. Failing to flash it (assuming you did it correctly) could indicate that the problem is elsewhere. In other words, if flashing it didn't bring it back to life, check your methodology and/or look for other possible causes.

Anyway, back to the OP's Generac 12kW unit, I believe it has a field boost circuit built into the AVR that applies DC battery voltage to the field when cranking. It technically doesn't need residual magnetism to "boot-up" the field, except during rare situations where the boost circuit has failed. This is all in the manual.