GE generators

The reports, as CPSC published them

1. No one hurt

   Made Dec 21, 2011 · , sent to the company Dec 30, 2011 · , published by CPSC Jan 17, 2012

   The product, in the report: 10kw GE Home Generator System with Briggs and Stratton engine model 359775. LP fuel. Note: Page 2 of this report: There were -0- injuries. Your report keeps Jumping back to 1 person injured and I cannot correct it and save it.

   We built a new home in 2009 and 10-15-2009 I installed a 10kw GE whole home generator model 040316 s/n 1017504211with automatic weekly exerciser. We are 2 hours south of Canada border so ran heavy (#6 AWG stranded copper) 12v battery cables in underground conduit to 12 volt automotive lead-acid maintenance-free sealed battery stored in warm basement. The GE installation manual insisted that a 12v 350CCA AGM battery be installed, however none of the local auto parts stores, nor Sears, Wal-Mart, K-Mart, Autozone, NAPA stocked AGM type. Installed accessory GE (Briggs and Stratton model 359775 engine) engine oil heater #6030 Standby Generator Cold Weather Kit 6-10-2010 for easier winter starting. Operator’s Manual page 20 advises not to charge battery higher than 13.7 volts if battery needs recharging, at a rate not to exceed 2 amps.

   On 12-8-2011 after working normally and weekly automatic exercising (set at 40 minutes per) we had a utility company power failure and noticed the generator did not turn on. I checked voltage at the battery at 13.8vdc and was convinced the battery was OK. I observed no “fault lights” on at the basement transfer switch box. I observed a FC-5 “Low Frequency” fault at the display on the generator itself.

   The local generator repair tech came on 12-20-2011, opened the generator service door, removed the 15 amp fuse, pressed manual start override and simultaneously the engine just started to try and turn over as a loud bang was heard from the house basement where the battery was kept. We went to the battery and the air was overpowering to breathe with battery acid vapor in the air. The battery entire top was embedded in the ceiling insulation, one end was blown off the battery, and acid was everywhere. We left the room, disconnected the 12v cables at the generator outside, brought in a new charged 12v car battery and using jumper cables the tech tried to start the generator to see if the generator had any problems. The tech could not get the generator to run for more than several seconds at a time, but while doing that he did some voltage tests and said it was not putting out any voltage. He checked the windings on the stator beneath the engine and said their ohms was correct. He commented that he saw some “mud-wasp nests” and that maybe they had gotten inside the stator and are causing the “no voltage output” condition. I told him of the 13.8vdc I had measured at the battery, and he remarked that would be affected by the generator’s constant trickle charger that never turns off. I commented that if the maintenance-free battery had boiled off from constant trickle charging (no float cycle) then that would mean built up hydrogen gas inside the battery, and when he got it to try and crank over the generator, the inrush amps from the battery triggered the explosion. He said that I should have used an AGM battery, not a lead-acid battery, that he learned that at Briggs and Stratton Tech training. He further stated that they want you to use AGM batteries because they can take the vibration better inside the generator housing. I asked if they always use AGM batteries when doing the whole installation themselves, and he said “We didn’t use to, but now we do”. He stated he had never seen a battery explode in his time as a generator tech, that this was the first. I pointed out that I had kept mice out of the generator with 1/4” screening, but to keep wasps out would require building a larger enclosure using house screening. His cell phone went dead waiting on hold for GE tech help, and was not able to fix the generator, leaving with “I’ll let you know what I find out”.

   I read all I could online about generator batteries exploding, about AGM batteries, and learned that AGM batteries require special charging strategy, and cannot tolerate overcharging. Read that AGM batteries can be ruined from one overcharge event, “drying out the battery” and doing permanent damage. So I phoned GE customer support to ask about the exploded battery and their charging strategy. I was told that they always are trickle charging but that as the battery voltage rises, they lower the current from a maximum of 2 amps down to as low as .33 amps. He assured me that would not damage an AGM battery. He advised selecting one with higher than the recommended 350CCA was fine, that the larger the better because it puts less stress on the battery, and I agreed. When I asked if mud-wasps could damage the stator or windings below the engine I was told “No, they are too soft and would get wiped off on start up”. He said they could interfere with running of the engine if they built a nest inside the atmospheric vent of the fuel regulator, which would not be a warranty situation.

   I ordered an AGM battery rated at 850 CCA online, and await the technician coming back to work on the generator when he gets the information he needs from GE.

   Model

   040315 Rev.00

   Serial number

   1017504211

   Bought from

   Home Depot online

   Bought

   Oct 5, 2009

   Where

   Plainfield, New Hampshire: Home/Apartment/Condominium

   Who was involved

   Unspecified

   The reporter’s relation to them

   Unspecified

   As this report names them

   Brand GE, made or sold by Briggs & Stratton Corporation

   How badly, in CPSC’s words

   Incident, No Injury

CPSC’s disclaimer

Sources