U240 Alternator seized

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U240 Alternator seized

January 11, 2018, 08:23:56 pm

Heading east toward Denver today the alternator siezed up. It is a Powerline 25-15. We are at a truck repair place right now in Denver. Anyone know of any replacement alternators? After reading some of the alternator posts here, I'm not to confident in what they might come up with. Thanks for any info!

Update: We made it home.

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #1 – January 11, 2018, 08:58:28 pm

I used a Delco Remey with a J180 hinge mount to replace my LN. I used the si40 240 amp version. Easy replacement once you think through the wiring.

http://www.delcoremy.com/getmedia/73749559-41f5-4a88-b956-a24f9c3609bf/Delco-24SI-Single-Page-Brochure-12-14.pdf.aspx

Plus and minus 12v and a sense wire is all you need plus a J180 long arm mount.

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #2 – January 11, 2018, 09:39:11 pm

Might be good to just have yours rebuilt as DUVAC alternators may be unknown to the truck repair shop. Bearings are the culprit. On the road is not the best place to change horses.

Pierce

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #3 – January 12, 2018, 07:53:58 am

I replaced our 5 year old engine batteries last night and we are plugged in and fully charged. Leaving soon to make the 10.5 hour drive home where I can fix it myself. The end bearing went out of the generator last week complicating the situation

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #4 – January 12, 2018, 08:35:00 am

I remember having to run our generator from the middle of southern Minnesota to home because our alternator went out. I knew when the batteries were getting low on charge because the cruise would quit, the coach would slow down because of the battery charge level as shown on my monitor. I would then run the generator until the batteries were back up to full charge. (Apparently some electronics like fuel pumps and sensors won't function on low voltage.)
You will probably have to do the same thing.

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #5 – January 12, 2018, 09:29:32 am

Dave,

Have you contacted them to see if there is a rebuilder or dealer in Denver:
Untitled Document

And the alternator mount on the Caterpillar 3116 is completely different than on the Cummins engine Roger posted.

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #6 – January 12, 2018, 10:16:46 am

Quote from: Dave Larsen – January 12, 2018, 07:53:58 am

I replaced our 5 year old engine batteries last night and we are plugged in and fully charged. Leaving soon to make the 10.5 hour drive home where I can fix it myself. The end bearing went out of the generator last week complicating the situation .

Having no operating generator AND no alternator certainly does complicate your situation. If all your batteries are fully charged, you could engage your boost switch and drive for a limited time using only battery power. Then you would have to stop and plug in long enough to recharge your batteries. I have no idea how long you could safely drive on batteries alone. It would depend on your total battery capacity and what the drain is on the batteries when driving. You would certainly need to monitor your battery voltage carefully if attempting this. Some other members might have actually done this, or can give better guidance.

Also see this old thread on your alternator: Hehr Powerline model 25-15

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #7 – January 12, 2018, 10:46:53 am

Not familiar with the Caterpillar engine, but suspect you could keep the engine running by tying up the fuel shutoff solenoid with a wire tie or something similar. Not a good idea to run down your new or old batteries though if you want them to last. Keep an eye on the voltage and recharge before they go flat.

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #8 – January 12, 2018, 10:51:24 am

Our Leece Neville went out in Wash. state on way back from Alaska,since my 8.3 is all mechanical and the Gen was broken we
were able to make it home no problem.I replaced mine with a delco remy which was cheaper then getting the old one rebuilt.At
the same time I redid the isolator and all the fuses and breakers in that area.Not sure which gen you have but am in the process of putting a bearing in mine now,I have the gen removed.

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #9 – January 12, 2018, 11:09:53 am

Quote from: Jerry Whiteaker – January 12, 2018, 10:46:53 am

Not familiar with the Caterpillar engine, but suspect you could keep the engine running by tying up the fuel shutoff solenoid with a wire tie or something similar. Not a good idea to run down your new or old batteries though if you want them to last. Keep an eye on the voltage and recharge before they go flat.

NO, the Allison transmission has to have 12 VDC to operate, so more than just an engine issue.

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #10 – January 12, 2018, 11:15:44 am

Did it for a week running on 2 new house batteries,the trans does not use that much.Even ran the radio,just not the AC.Batteries
are in fine shape.

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #11 – January 12, 2018, 11:26:23 am

John,

I agree, if you are judicious in monitoring voltage and have some method of recharging (generator operable) it can be done.

But I am very hesitant to recommend that on an open board, as not everyone is "electric savvy" and low voltage to the Allison ECU can leave you on the side of the road.

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #12 – January 12, 2018, 01:24:16 pm

Quote from: wolfe10 – January 12, 2018, 09:29:32 am

And the alternator mount on the Caterpillar 3116 is completely different than on the Cummins engine Roger posted.

Thanks Brett for the reminder that not all FTs are the same.

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #13 – January 12, 2018, 09:37:28 pm

We made it home. No charging needed. The engine ran for about 11 hours. I even had the headlights on for the last 1.5 hours. The analog voltmeter was down to about 10.5 at the end. The house batteries (2 8D's) ran the furnaces fine. The backup plan was to run jumper cables from the Jeep to charge the engine batteries if needed. Outside temps were in the teens across Nebraska and single digits closer to home. Forecast is -13°F tonight so I'm glad the U240 is back in the shed. I'll post an update on the alternator when I get around to fixing it. Thanks for the replies.

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #14 – January 13, 2018, 01:57:11 am

Quote from: wolfe10 – January 12, 2018, 11:09:53 am

NO, the Allison transmission has to have 12 VDC to operate, so more than just an engine issue.

Thanks, I didn't think of that.

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #15 – January 13, 2018, 02:27:04 am

Cummins will work down to 9 volts. I bet the Allison is similar

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #16 – January 13, 2018, 09:40:05 am

UH??

Now this is a Rube Goldberg suggestion from someone who puts tape over the wall outlets to keep the electricity from running out onto the floor, so everyone have at it--either improve or ridicule, either one. Let's just help get the coach home!

If he is towing a car, why couldn't wires be run from the car battery to the coach engine battery and leave the car idling while under tow? Wire size maybe 10 ga. ? It is not like we are using the car battery to jump start the coach but merely to keep the coach battery charging.

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #17 – January 13, 2018, 09:52:13 am

Quote from: nitehawk – January 13, 2018, 09:40:05 am

Let's just help get the coach home!

Hey, Rube! The coach is already home. See Reply #13.

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #18 – January 13, 2018, 10:06:44 am

Quote from: nitehawk – January 13, 2018, 09:40:05 am

If he is towing a car, why couldn't wires be run from the car battery to the coach engine battery and leave the car idling while under tow? Wire size maybe 10 ga. ? It is not like we are using the car battery to jump start the coach but merely to keep the coach battery charging.

As a tool of last resort, a set of jumpers (or wires if engine bats are further away) could be run to the engine batteries from the toad. On ours, it just from the front of the toad to the engine compartment 6-8 feet away. Naturally, if you have solar, it's not ever a problem unless you are trying to drive at night.

When we purchased ours, the isolator was misfired and ALL batteries went flat at a wedding. I just jumped the toad, put a rock on the gas pedal and fifteen minutes later, we had the main engine running.

Pierce

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #19 – January 13, 2018, 10:17:43 am

Would Nitehawk's idea have worked?

If he is towing a car, why couldn't wires be run from the car battery to the coach engine battery and leave the car idling while under tow? Wire size maybe 10 ga. ?

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #20 – January 13, 2018, 10:22:19 am

DUH!!!

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #21 – January 13, 2018, 10:23:07 am

The same wires I run to the Jeep to keep the battery charged, would send back to the coach by starting up the car. No temporary jumpers needed for my set up.

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #22 – January 13, 2018, 11:39:21 am

Yes our Solara has a fairly heavy charge wire with fuzes on both ends. With latching relay combiner we have the car COULD keep up both batteries.

Not sure how much power it's alternator puts out at idle although. Probably enough for an emergency.

Replaced the original alternator with a rebuilt one and put in a optima red top just for backup.

Belt and suspenders. Foretravel backup ideas at work again

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #23 – January 13, 2018, 02:00:16 pm

Quote from: Michaelhayley – January 13, 2018, 10:17:43 am

Would Nitehawk's idea have worked?

If he is towing a car, why couldn't wires be run from the car battery to the coach engine battery and leave the car idling while under tow? Wire size maybe 10 ga. ?

There is no reason why it wouldn't work and that was our plan as I mentioned. Redneck minds think alike

I told Kelli that she might have to sit in the Jeep while being towed and try to keep the RPM's above 1000 where the 100 amp alternator seems to work better. She was even prepared to do it!

Re: U240 Alternator seized

Reply #24 – January 13, 2018, 02:05:14 pm

I found a Powerline 25-15 on eBay for $225. New but has been sitting around. I bought it and will soon find out if it will work. The seller has 2 more for sale in case anyone else wants to roll the dice.

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