Gen start question

[pconroy]

Just picked up our 2016 Greyhawk 31FK - but we're second owner so no PDI and not much of a chance to test anything.

So far the only bump is the genny. Our old Onan 4K fired up with little effort. I'm a bit confused about the start procedures.

Do I always Prime before starting? Or is that only in cold weather? If so, how long do you hold Prime down for?

I've held Start for 5 seconds or so about three times and it's cranking but not catching. I will check to make sure I've got more than 1/4 tank of gas, but any suggestions if it continues to be grumpy?

thanks

[reitrof]

Mine can take some time to start, when it's been unused for awhile. I hold the starter till it starts or dies. It can take 2 tries to get it going.

[oldmanAZ]

Congratulations on the new to you Greyhawk and welcome to the forum.

[pconroy]

whelp - it's just not starting. cranks but doesn't catch. 25 hours on the clock - so it has to be something simple. time to debug the thing.

[che57vy]

Mine is like that start it will sometimes die restart and its fine if it sits a while long crank to start

[edatlanta]

If the Onan hasn't been run for a while the fuel system needs to be primed. I run mine every month and before the first start attempt I prime for 15-20 seconds. Then I press the start side of the switch and it fires in a few seconds. I NEVER run the started more than a few seconds then re-prime if necessary. Starters will get hot and burn up. Don't need that.

[snowbird47]

On mine, you hold the switch to the prime (off) position until it lights up, then hold the start position until it starts. That usually takes less than 15 seconds.

That said, I bought mine second hand from a guy who had already had to replace the carburator because it gummed up from sitting too long. He said, and I do religiously, to run the genny for at least 30 min once a month. I have owned the unit for 3 years now and the genny starts every time.

If yours won't start it may be carburator gumming.

[Jopopsy]

http://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f5...0-a-33956.html

[The Logans]

I often have to re-prime as many as 3 times before the thing will start. It's a very common issue.

[DumpStation]

If it just cranks with no start and a full tank of gas, you may want to check the fuel pump. I had similar issue on my old genny when I first owned it. After removing the fuel line I clamped on a gravity fed line affixed to a small container with a little gas in it. She started right up. Replaced the fuel pump and issue was resolved.
The onan on my Greyhawk operates and feels no different than my old 23 year old genny. That genny always started on the third go when cold and not used for a while, beit a few days or a few months. It also had a start position lever on the side of the unit itself. If off, it wouldn't crank.
Starting The New genny is identical, hold prime and start, kicks in after two or three goes cold, one go when warm. Never had varnishing or gumming issues on the old genny. It would sit upto three months without a start.

[Quahog]

We had our gen set for two weeks before it started giving me trouble starting. With less than one hour on it, the fuel pump was bad. I could have opted to wait six weeks for an appointment with Cummins/Onan but instead replaced the fuel pump. Since then it works like a charm but it does take about two tries before it starts and requires priming for a good twenty seconds or so.

[pconroy]

Thank you all! I was out fiddling with it last night. And "fiddle" is about all I can do because I'm not much of a small-engine guy. I held prime down for 30 secs, at the genset (not inside) and I could hear clicking and eventually smelled gas.

So, although I didn't yank the fuel line from the carb and actually see gas, I thought the fuel pump might be working.

While cranking, I yanked on the two wires at the top that connect to the carb. I'm guessing one could be a choke? Not sure what the other one could be, throttle?

Anyway - I was able to get it to catch and fire and run for about 5 seconds by pulling those wires. But 5 seconds was about all I could get.

The meter says 27 hours on it, so clearly someone had it running before me.

I'm thinking I really need to check the fuel pump, yank the line off and watch it pump gas to the carb as the next step.

[DumpStation]

Originally Posted by pconroy

Thank you all! I was out fiddling with it last night. And "fiddle" is about all I can do because I'm not much of a small-engine guy. I held prime down for 30 secs, at the genset (not inside) and I could hear clicking and eventually smelled gas.

So, although I didn't yank the fuel line from the carb and actually see gas, I thought the fuel pump might be working.

While cranking, I yanked on the two wires at the top that connect to the carb. I'm guessing one could be a choke? Not sure what the other one could be, throttle?

Anyway - I was able to get it to catch and fire and run for about 5 seconds by pulling those wires. But 5 seconds was about all I could get.

The meter says 27 hours on it, so clearly someone had it running before me.

I'm thinking I really need to check the fuel pump, yank the line off and watch it pump gas to the carb as the next step.

I forgot to mention that. My old pump did manage to move some gas but not enough to sustain it running. If it is the pump, Cummings replacements run about $200-250. Pretty pricy for a pump that some Nissan fuel pumps can be substituted for about $75.