I have a westinghouse wgen3600dfc duel fuel. I used it during the our last hurricane with no problems. After the storm the oil was changed and now the generator starts then shuts off. I had no problems running it during the storm. Tried starting it about a week after the storm and , it would start and shut off within 5 seconds and the yellow service light would constantly flash. Decided to drain all the gas and oil and cleaned the carburetor. The yellow light is still on but no longer flashing. I plugged my phone in to see if it has power, as soon as it produces power the generator shuts off. Anyone know what is causing this? Is this a simple fix or do I need to bring it to the shop?
Maybe the low oil switch is bad or not enough oil added?
Is that new enough to have the retarded carbon monoxide sensor ? They fail all the time, rendering an emergency generator useless, when an emergency happens.
Here’s your manual. https://cdn.westinghouseoutdoorpower.com/owners_manuals/WGen3600DFc_manual_web.pdf
look at page 9 on the right.
Yep, those sensors are the worst "innovation" I've seen in a long time. If carbon monoxide sensors with cutoffs were mandated on cars, gas stoves, water heaters, bbq grills, etc., then I "might" see where they would be required on generators. Heck, I can even agree that a generator should have a carbon monoxide sensor with an ear piercing alarm for a warning. But right now, they are generally only a complete cutoff without ability to start or manually override. Doesn't matter if you need it for an emergency situation or just want loud boom boxes at tailgate parties. It's off and useless. Makes no sense to me...
This thread got me curious as to why portable generators have carbon monoxide detectors but other much more commonly owned things like lawn mowers, leaf blowers, etc. don't. I found this: U.S. plans new safety rules to crack down on carbon monoxide poisoning from portable generators The announcement comes two months after an investigation detailed the deadly cost of the government’s failure to regulate portable generators. www.nbcnews.com
People may want to run them in a garage or other building. I agree on double checking the oil level. On my generator it's quite sensitive if the level is just slightly low.
On a side note, we have a multi-fuel generator for powering the house when power outages hit us. I only use propane or natural gas in it, not gasoline, to ensure it's as clean as possible for the next use. In my opinion, an engine that runs only on propane or NG fires up much easier and quicker than a engine run on gasoline. And propane stores so much easier and longer than gasoline. Of course there are tradeoffs in power available when using only propane or NG but having a generator quickly fire up when needed is a huge plus over gasoline. If there's a major storm inbound, I'll stock up on 10-15 gallons of hi-grade gasoline next to my two propane bottles as a "just in case". If we don't need the gasoline, I'll pour it into my wife's Expedition so it doesn't go bad. If you're battling hurricanes in Florida, I know you'll need a substantial stockpile of fuel which ever way you go. Best of luck!
It may be a stupid/simple question, but going off of this and your picture, have you switched the knob back from 'Propane' to 'Gasoline'?
Ohhh, good catch.