Fischer-Panda 6KW dies under load

[sailinglegend]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

Mine was completely seized, total loss. It was a 5kW DC model.....

I think Fisher Panda tried to put too much into a very small unit - and that was their downfall. I think the weakest part is the FP designed exhaust/water mixing outlet which can fail after only 200 hundred hours with faulty internal welds. We had ours rebuilt in Turkey for about a tenth the cost of a new one from FP. The S/S they used was worse than old baked bean tins. They have re-designed it now to stop water ingress which is probably what happened to yours.

As I said above they have a list of some serious checks that need to be done every 50 hours, which I suspect most people don't do. Certainly they are not going to employ an engineer once a month, which is what the job really demands if you know nothing about engines.

[marcog]

Dear All,
thank you to everyone who tried to help! The issue has been solved and I would like to share with you (and for future reference) what the cause was.

In few words, it was a over-heating problem due to the heat exchanger being badly clogged with deposits and the fresh water pump being unable to reach enough flow to allow for a proper heat-exchange with the flowing raw water and therefore cooling of the unit. Probably the previous owner had used inappropriate coolant (like simple tap water) or something else happened who caused the heat-exchanger to clog on the fresh water side.

The problem wasn't easy to diagnose because we had a regular flow of raw water and the unit run until load was applied, but it was in fact stopping as soon as put to work. We don't know if applying the load triggered the over-heating sensor or there is some other logic to it.

The heat exchanger has been disassembled, cleaned in acid bath and re-assembled, which has made the Panda run properly under full load.

On Monday we will also install a new fresh water pump (apparently the extra pressure from having to work through a clogged heat-exchanger cracked the old one which is now leaking a bit).

Hope this helps. Thanks again everyone for your answers. Such a great community!

Cheers,
Marco
s/v Kismet
Fischer Panda P6 6KW marine diesel generator

[Timd_chapman]

I would stick with the basics. And go through your fuel system with a fine toothcomb, did you replace the $2 inline filter? Second change the air filter, (this is much more expensive at $5).
The theory of exhaust back pressure may be valid, particularly if, as a lot of users, you regularly overload it.

My money is on fuel starvation. I've run a 3000 rpm FP on a live aboard for 11 years now. I installed it, operate and service it exactly to the manufacturers instructions and the only things that have gone wrong are 2 failed capacitors and a hole in the exhaust elbow, (welded in Trinidad for $15).

Good luck, don't listen to the naysayers, very few of them have owned one.

[westwinds]

Originally Posted by marcog

...In few words, it was a over-heating problem due to the heat exchanger being badly clogged with deposits and the fresh water pump being unable to reach enough flow to allow for a proper heat-exchange with the flowing raw water and therefore cooling of the unit... we will also install a new fresh water pump (apparently the extra pressure from having to work through a clogged heat-exchanger cracked the old one which is now leaking a bit).

Hope this helps. Thanks again everyone for your answers. Such a great community!

Cheers,
Marco
s/v Kismet
Fischer Panda P6 6KW marine diesel generator

Interesting problem, thanks for followup. Probably what happened is the crack is located on the suction side of the pump. This would draw air (containing 21% oxygen) into the cooling system. Oxygen would cause corrosion resulting in a buildup of corrosion products, for instance rust.