2 Important Maintenance Tips For Your Standby Generator

A power outage can greatly affect your quality of life and bring your daily activities to a halt. Having a standby generator is an easy way to ensure that you stay powered up when the power goes out. However, standby generators often stay for long periods without being used, which can lead to a host of problems. To ensure that your generator will be in good working order when you need it next time, follow the steps below. 

Proper storage

Storing your generator well could help prolong its utility and ensure that it fires up when you need it to. Be sure to wipe off mud, grease, fuel, and other contaminates on all working parts to prevent corrosion and clogging of vents. Next, check for any corroded parts and treat them with a corrosion inhibitor product. You should then let the generator dry out completely and store it in a place with no moisture so as to minimize corrosion on metal components. Be sure to also keep the generator covered up against water, grime, and dust. 

During storage, you should start up the generator after every month or so. This will help keep the machine in good working order by drying out the alternator, cleaning the  carburetor and efficiently lubricating the engine. Be sure to also add a preservative to the fuel to keep it fresh for future use. 

Maintenance

General maintenance procedures such as changing the oil, cleaning air filters, and replacing clogged oil filters can greatly help improve the efficiency of your generator and keep it in good working order. Be sure to also inspect the machine for corroded spark plugs, frayed wires, loose connections, and sticky buttons after long periods of storage. 

Next, use a compressed air blower to remove leaves, dust, and other debris stuck in the ventilation fans and vent openings. You should also inspect the distilled water level in the generator and fill it up to counter evaporation and spillage over time.

The above maintenance steps should be followed after every few months regardless of whether the generator has been used or not. It could also be wise to keep a record of your machine's maintenance history. This could come in handy in case of a malfunction, as a repair technician can easily refer to the records to help unearth where the problem could be. 

When maintaining your generator, always follow the manufacturer's recommendations and consult your local generator shop or check out the site whenever in doubt.