NW Explorations
AQUILA OPERATING MANUAL
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4F: Electrical Systems,
AC
The AC electrical system is controlled at the AC electrical panel. It has a metering section, a 120-volt section,
and a 230-volt section.
Note: The panel photographs are taken at an angle to reduce glare from the light
reflections
on their high-gloss
fi
nishes.
4F1: AC Generator
The ship’s Onan Generator provides 9,000 watts of AC power to
the vessel and is used for battery charging, heating hot water, and
operation of incidental AC appliances.
The generator is in the engine room. Service access is by unlatching and
removing the starboard panel on the generator’s sound- shield cabinet.
More important is checking the sea strainer (see 4.44)
to be sure is has not accumulated substantial debris while the generator
was run for extended periods, particularly at anchor.
Starting the Generator:
1. Move the “generator” breaker in the AC Power Panel to “On”.
Then press the “Preheat-Stop” button for 15 seconds. Release
the preheat button and press “Start” for a maximum of 3 or 4
seconds.
•
If it starts, hold the button until it’s up to speed.
• If it does not start, press & hold preheat again for five more
seconds, then try “Start” again.
If the generator does not start on the second try, call NWE
for assistance!
(This is
important, lest repeated tries water-lock the generator — very bad!)
2. Check the generator
exhaust, or listen for it to confirm that cooling water is being
pumped
from it.
3. After a brief warm-up of a minute or so, switch the shore power switch in the AC power panel to
“Gen”. You should see the AC meters indicate there is voltage.
Stopping the Generator:
1. Switch the Shore Power switch to “Off”. This removes the load for the generator and allows it to
cool down.
2. After at least a minute to allow the generator to cool down, press and hold the “Preheat- Stop”
switch in the AC power panel until the generator comes to a complete stop.
Routine Generator Service:
The generator oil is easily checked. Remove the starboard cover on the generator by turning the two knobs on
its upper corners and lift it out of the way. The dipstick and fill cap are easily visible.
It shouldn’t be necessary to add coolant, but if you do need to, use 50-50 antifreeze mix adding it to the coolant
tank on the forward side of the generator (you can access the heat exchanger itself under the generator sound
shield through the access port on the top of the shield.)
The Onan generator is at the aft
end of the engine room. Note the
coolant overflow bottle on its forward
side; the genset sea strainer is
directly under it, as is its battery.
