Alternative for AWM type wire

Started by Pargin4, October 31, 2020, 11:26 AM

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Pargin4

I'm in the process of replacing a 4kw Emerald I with a 6.5 Emerald plus. On the 4kw, the wiring to the AC outlet box was 10 gauge appliance hook up wire in flex conduit. I haven't been able to source this exact wire. The temperature rating on it is 125C. Since I'm taking away some clearance by installing the slightly larger generator I don't want to skimp on heat resistance. Will the silicone insulated wire I see for sale on places like Amazon work for this or is there a better alternative?
TIA

Pargin4

I wanted to document some of what I learned for anyone else that swaps 4kw BGE to 6.5kw NHE;
1) If you have an under-the-floor model, try to replace with like kind. The oil drain on the above-the-floor models are a little different. I installed an above-the-floor in my under-the-floor and it makes changing oil a little harder than usual. I could have alleviated this by modifying the belly plate, or by drilling and tapping the Onan crankcase to match the under-the-floor model. I replaced the oil drain valve (that made contact with the belly plate) with a 3/8" pipe plug. you just have to be dexterous to remove/install it, but it's doable.
2) Neither of my gensets had the spark arrestor (one had a car muffler rigged on it), but this is another reason to try to find a like-kind genset. The under-the-floor spark arrestor is expensive so if you can get it as part of your replacement genset purchase - that's the way to go.
3) The remote on my old 4kw had a six-wire connector - two rows of three. It only uses four wires. The remote on the 6.5kw also had a six-wire connector, but they are all six wires in one row (flat connector). It didn't come with a remote, but it looks as though it originally used five wires. The manuals for each genset assigns numbers to each pin, and if you simply make the #1 wire from your old connector the #1 wire in the flat connector and so forth, they are correct (i.e.: they carried forward the numbering system from model to model).
3) As far as 120V wire goes, the advantage of the AWM is its flexibility. I ended up going with regular stranded THHN in flex-conduit, but I will be looking to change this out at some point.

I noticed in the service manual it's kinda rough to see (at least for a layman like me) what wire is doing what in the remote harness:
remote harness wire #1 - Ground; wire #2 - connects to generator stop; wire #3 - connects to generator start. four and five are not used with my standard-model remote. wire #6 - on the 4kw, this was marked p3-6, p2-6 and came from CBI on the printed circuit board. In swapping, I just connected it to terminal six of the newer genset remote connector, and I'm assuming that it is responsible for the little light on the remote that is lit when it's running. At any rate, it works and I'm thankful

Oz

1969 D22, 2 x 1974 D24 Indians, 1977 27' Itasca