High Noise Level

Twenty is a whisper, 55 to 60 is normal conversation. Short of making sure PM and lubing are being done correctly, encasing it with additional sound deadening material might be your only solution. Installing new mufflers may help as well as tuning up the engine. (I presume Diesel ). If the location allows for it encase it in a block house and allow for air supply and exhaust. Even their newest ones run between 60 - 70 db.

Ebijoe,

we need more info:-

1. land or marine?
2. Air cooled or water cooled engine?
3. air cooled or water cooled alternator?
4. What else can you tell us (maker?), use etc.

Charsley's advice is sound if the application fits

Chas

Hi

Info needed:

1.Land

2.Air cooled engine

3.Air cooled alternator

4.Maker is Kipor.Model KDE 7000

Please if iI use Nuxodol 3100 compound what would be the effect.

I look forward to hearing from you.

If the major noise is coming from the panels on the generator, a quick way to quiet it is to apply constrain-layer damping. This can be done by cutting aluminum pieces the size of various panel areas, apply double-backed tape, and press it onto those surfaces. This allows the vibration energy to be absorbed between the layers.

You need to clarify a few things here to give us a chance to help you.

Since this is the Electrical Engineering forum, is this electric noise on the generator outputs or acoustic noise from the mechanics of your generator?

If this is acoustic noise, is the generator system housed in a building? If so you may have a bad room acoustic resonance that a strategically placed Helmholtz resonator might help.

If acoustic noise is the problem is it from the prime mover or the generator? Something maybe loose on either apparatus. Pay close attention to any panels that maybe inadvertently becoming a sounding board.

How did you obtain your numbers? Do an FFT analysis to identify the frequency of the noise. This will narrow your searches.

You can provide sound proof room like used in movie threater

Hello ebijoe:, You still have not told us whether it is indoors etc.

But never mind. Make sure everything is bolted on properly and not rubbing against anything. I note you mentioned it had an aluminium surround?

There is nothing worse than a metal surrounding all those moving fans and the general vibration of the silencers etc. I would completely surround it with wood, lined with rubber If you need to you can use a fire retardant paint but it should not be necessary if none of the wood is touching the engine.

You must keep an airway to allow for cooling but, if this is indoors have a duct from the wooden box with the engine in it, directed away through a wall and away from any windows where smells and or sounds can enter. Do you have the engine on rubber mounts?That would stop a lot of the thudding vibrational noise.

Let us know how you get on please, OK?

Hi Ebijoe,

There is already some advice posted above which is good but some which you cannot use in light of the info provided. Some is good advice if the budget allowed it but clearly at this size much will outside the value of the generator. Things you need to do in my estimation of value.

1. Look for any loose panels and/or exhaust & tighten.

2. Improve exhaust system, try adding a car silencer system.

a. Bury the end of the exhaust in a pile of small rocks, the multi path lengths helps to reduce the peaks.

b. Make the exhaust face away from the house or where the noise complaint has come from.

3. Build a sturdy generator shed of solid materials.

a. Make it as far away from the house as possible!

b. You cannot reduce your ventilation, which you must leave free, but you can baffle the vent accesses. Make them face away from the house also.

c. Make the door from heavy material.

d. Ideally this should be constructed as an anechoic chamber but this is unrealistic. You can however make it big enough to be a store for other things (garden & maintenance tools etc) with shelves etc which will help break the resonant surfaces.

The shed is the only expensive measure but you will need that anyway as even a site grade generator will not last for very long if kept in the open.

Hope this helps

Chas