Important Factors Should be Considered When Purchasing a Generator Set

When purchasing a generator set, you should consider the genset purpose, performance, loading capacity & variation range, and automation. The detailed information are as follows：

1. Purpose: Diesel generator set is usually divided into three types including standby, commonly used and emergency diesel generator set. The requirement is different for different purposes.

2. Loading capacity: You should choose loading capacity and variation range according to the different uses so as to determine the genset capacity and standby capacity.

3. Automatic function: Whether it can be fulfiled with the mains automatic switch during a power failure.

Avoid the traps when purchasing a diesel generator set.

1. Avoid the price is lower than the market when buying a diesel generator set. In general, the low price units have problems more or less. Be alert whether it is a refurbished genset.

2. Specify the generator with accessories in the contract, such as tank, oil pipe, and storage battery (battery specification, capacity and quantity), etc.

3. Avoid purchasing the diesel genset (Commonly known as four protection) without protection. When buying, check whether the genset instrument is comprehensive and the units equip with a air switch or not.  Besides, avoid buying such diesel engine which power is lower than the alternator for the unit configuration. Diesel engine power is equal or higher 10% than the generator power in the industry due to the mechanical loss.

4. Confusion relationship between KVA and KW. Take KVA as KW and exaggerate the power to sell to customers. Actually, KVA refers to apparent power, KW refers to the effective power. The relationship between them is 1KVA=0.8KW.  Usually, imported units are expressed by KVA and the domestic electric equipments are expressed by KW. However, the bad manufacturers usually take standby power as normal power to sell to customers. They just talk about one power and ignore the relationship between normal power and standby power. Actually, standby power = 1.1 normal (Rated) power. Moreover, standby power can only be used for 1 hour in continuous operation for 12 hours. When you are going to buy a diesel generator set, you should inquire the salesman and know the generator unit is expressed by KVA or KW.

What should consider before buying?

1. Before buying, be clear what power you want to buy, what size you want to buy, the diesel generator set you want to buy is for industrial or home use, and what brand of generator set you wnat to buy, etc. 

2. Inquire the salesman whether the diesel generator set is made by manufacturer not from the brokers or distributors. This is quite important since some bad manufacturers pretend to be genuine manufacturers and sale the diesel generators to customers. So it is necessary to go to their factory to observe and study, check whether it is real.

3. Besides, it is important to know about the warranty duration. In general, the warranty typically ranges from one year to five years depending on the generator set type. The warranty for residential and industrial genset is different. 

4.  Whatever types of generator set you are going to buy, you should know about the brand and history of the generator set. For example,  Cummins, Volvo,  Perkins, etc.  Any diesel generator set can't be independently accomplished by an enterprise. Only by having a comprehensive understanding of the genset including diesel engine, generator, control cabinet and brand, can you evaluate the unit level synthetically.

Indeed, there are many factors you should consider when buying a diesel generator set. The above important factors are provided by Jiangsu Starlight Electricity Equipments Co.,Ltd. Hope it can help you. Our company is one of earlier diesel generator and generator manufacturers in China. Starlight shall follow the philosophy to meet customer's demands and offer customers the genunine spare parts, technical consulting and installation guide, make equipment commissioning free of charge, rebuild generation set and train the person.