I need to tap into the VAF brain trust to point me in a direction for further troubleshooting or replacement.
I’d been having an odd electrical issue, usually after touchdown while taxiing to the hangar, where the Alternator (Plane Power AL12-EI60/B) would drop offline and not charge the battery (0 to 5 amps max). Well on Sunday just after starting the charging system failed, so I’ve been troubleshooting. All connections seem solid.
Here are some findings:
Battery Voltage (nothing on) = 12.31 V
Bus Voltage (Master On) = 12.23 V
Alternator Field Voltage (at Alt. Plug) = 12.21 V
It looks like the problem isn’t field voltage, so I checked the Alternator rotation; pulled off the belt and turned the pully by hand. There were no bearing or other awful noises, and the shaft seemed good.
Cleaned up the pulley (found a little oil/grease in the groove), reattached the belt and checked belt tension (read VAF historical documents on belt tension). Started the engine, and again no charging.
I ran through the Plane Power published troubleshooting guide. The engine/alternator has 129 hours since 2019.
Should I bother taking the alternator to a local auto shop for testing, or go directly to Plane Power?
If it needs replacement, I would like opinions on alternate Alternator.
I’d been having an odd electrical issue, usually after touchdown while taxiing to the hangar, where the Alternator (Plane Power AL12-EI60/B) would drop offline and not charge the battery (0 to 5 amps max). Well on Sunday just after starting the charging system failed, so I’ve been troubleshooting. All connections seem solid.
Here are some findings:
Battery Voltage (nothing on) = 12.31 V
Bus Voltage (Master On) = 12.23 V
Alternator Field Voltage (at Alt. Plug) = 12.21 V
It looks like the problem isn’t field voltage, so I checked the Alternator rotation; pulled off the belt and turned the pully by hand. There were no bearing or other awful noises, and the shaft seemed good.
Cleaned up the pulley (found a little oil/grease in the groove), reattached the belt and checked belt tension (read VAF historical documents on belt tension). Started the engine, and again no charging.
I ran through the Plane Power published troubleshooting guide. The engine/alternator has 129 hours since 2019.
Should I bother taking the alternator to a local auto shop for testing, or go directly to Plane Power?
If it needs replacement, I would like opinions on alternate Alternator.