Nomad2201
September 6th, 2006, 06:46 PM
I have a Coleman PowerMate generator with the Tecumseh HM100 4 cycle engine. The generator is approximately 4 years old with less than 50 hours of operating time on it. The engine has been maintained in accordance with the operations manual that came with the unit.
The until worked very well until last October when it was used in an open field outside the Texas Motorplex (NHRA dragstrip). After sitting in the open over night, the engine would not start first thing in the morning. Removing the spark plug, turning the on/off switch "on", grounding the spark plug and then pulling the start cord showed that there was no spark. A new spark plug yielded the same results. After giving up on trying to start the unit, we left and entered the track for the day.
When we returned late that afternoon, the unit started on the first pull and ran flawlessly until after midnight, when it was shut down. The next morning I tried to start the unit and encountered the same results as the previous morning: no spark at the plug. And again, later that afternoon, the unit started on the first pull and ran until well after midnight.
The only thing that I can think of is that the unit is becoming damp during the night in the open air, which is shorting something out, but I haven't a clue what that might be. The unit worked flawlessly in identical conditions in the same field during the first 3 years of it's life. Could a part in the engine have deteriorated in a year's time? The unit is stored in my shed (fuel drained from fuel system) with a plastic tarp covering it.
We'll need this generator for the O'Reilly Fall Nationals in 3 weeks, so any help in resolving this problem will be greatly appreciated. Thank You.
The until worked very well until last October when it was used in an open field outside the Texas Motorplex (NHRA dragstrip). After sitting in the open over night, the engine would not start first thing in the morning. Removing the spark plug, turning the on/off switch "on", grounding the spark plug and then pulling the start cord showed that there was no spark. A new spark plug yielded the same results. After giving up on trying to start the unit, we left and entered the track for the day.
When we returned late that afternoon, the unit started on the first pull and ran flawlessly until after midnight, when it was shut down. The next morning I tried to start the unit and encountered the same results as the previous morning: no spark at the plug. And again, later that afternoon, the unit started on the first pull and ran until well after midnight.
The only thing that I can think of is that the unit is becoming damp during the night in the open air, which is shorting something out, but I haven't a clue what that might be. The unit worked flawlessly in identical conditions in the same field during the first 3 years of it's life. Could a part in the engine have deteriorated in a year's time? The unit is stored in my shed (fuel drained from fuel system) with a plastic tarp covering it.
We'll need this generator for the O'Reilly Fall Nationals in 3 weeks, so any help in resolving this problem will be greatly appreciated. Thank You.
