PS Magazine - TB 43-PS-702
PS, The Preventative Maintenance Monthly
ISSUE 702
MAY 2011
41
PS 702
MAY 11
Dear Half-Mast,
Do you have
to load test
generators? I’ve
always done it,
but my new boss
says,
“if it’s not
in writin’, I don’t
want to do it.”
Is
it in writing? Do we
have to do it?
SFC B.J.I.
Dear Sergeant B.J.I.,
Since I answered my frst question as a Private under
Patton, there’s been one question I hate to see come
across my desk and this is it. Is load testing generators
mandatory or just a good idea? And the answer is, it
depends upon what you read and who you talk to.
IF you look at private industry and the Air ±orce and
Marine Corps, they load test a generator aFter every
repair, beFore every deployment or feld exercise, and
on a periodic basis that depends on the application
and installation.
IF you look within the Army maintenance community
at the backbone oF the maintenance system, the LAR,
you’ll fnd almost unanimous agreement that load
testing is an absolute must.
And, now, here’s the gospel according to HalF-Mast: It is a sound and cost
eFFective policy For generator set management and maintenance to load test.
Generators leaving the shop should be operated on a load to veriFy Full output. Just
starting the generator and monitoring voltage/Frequency doesn’t identiFy all engine
problems. I recommend a semi-annual or quarterly load testing interval iF the set
isn’t in the shop For maintenance beFore those times.
OF course, the next question is, are you authorized a load bank? Well, it depends
on what your defnition oF authorized is. Talk to your generator LAR.
Generators…
To Load Test or
Not to Load Test,
That is the
Question!
Here’s
what
some of
these
experts
say…
I think that
it is
impossible
to verify
the proper
operation of
a generator
without a load
test.
All generators
should be load
tested
quarterly
at the unit level.
This is the
true
test that the
generator is FMC.
A failed
generator
is
not
repaired
until it has
passed a
load test.
You will find reference to load testing the
generator especially during or after any significant
repair in various TMs and maintenance manuals.
what the
heck are you
doing with the
elephant?
I’m
load
testing
that
generator!
702.40-41.indd
1-2
4/4/11
4:33 PM
Click here for a copy of this article to save or email.
Back to TopBack to Top
