equipment needed - new to GenMon

[kjwilliams1974]

Hello guys - donation sent - getting ready to install GenMon. Setup is Generac 38KW liquid cooled. Not sure if Evolution 1 or 2 controller. Have a Pi3 laying around - new in box. Want to order all cables, etc. pre-made along with HAT. What exactly do I need. It is not clear when trying to order equipment, as the HAT ordering source listed is asking If I have an Evolution 1 or 2 controller. According to my sources at GenTek, all liquid cooled units are just Evoltions, not 1 or 2 and the ver 1 or 2 are for air cooled units... So, I am a little confused on that aspect. The other question I have is powering the Pi. Are we able to power the unit from the controller pre-made cables? I am in the hot / humid south Texas area too. Do I need the optional fan to keep the Pi from overheating....

[jgyates]

Yes, it is just an Evoltuion. No 2.0 exist. You can just select Liquid Cooled Evolution 1.0. I don't think the Evolution 2.0 Liquid cooled controllers exist (yet).

A Pi on the fan is always a good idea, especially in the Tx heat with a generator running nearby.

I will let @skipfire answer the other questions as he is the pintsize.me person in the know.

[kjwilliams1974]

I am not concerned about $. I just want the best of all the options. With that being said, let's move on the best solution... I would like to mount the PI in the well house and not in the generator or outside the generator in weather proof box. The well house is controlled and has back up UPS, etc and much more weather friendly...

[skipfire]

How close is the generator to the well house? My guess is that it is far enough that you will have to look at alternate cabling options (the longest Molex I've seen available is 1 meter), in which case you may as well put the Pi inside your house. From what you have said so far and a desire to not have the Pi in/at the generator, I think the best option would be the rs232 to ethernet adapter in the generator with the ethernet line going to your switch, then put your Pi close to your switch and I'm guessing you have a UPS there too since you have one in the well house. The only drawback to the rs232 adapter is the for data and power, but that's not a very large effort to overcome.

[kjwilliams1974]

@skipfire - thanks for the input - Gen is about 10 to 12 feet from the well house. What do you all think about conduit to the generator, shielded cat6 (what I have in my possession) to the ethernet to RS-232 port adapter to the controller? I could just use the POE and open port. The Pi that I have is a Pi3B. No POE then, right? I have power. I may just order one completely configured from you... that would be the best solution...

[skipfire]

Given your setup, I would suggest the plan you described using the RS232 in the generator with an ethernet cable through a conduit to get it on your network, and then stick your Pi wherever your network equipment is (or wherever you prefer) and it communicates over the network with the RS232 adapter. It lets the Pi not be at the generator and has everything hardwired. This is probably the path I'd go if I could easily get ethernet to my generator. I'm sure someone is going to read this and think I'm a terrible salesperson recommending something that isn't my products.

You are correct that the Pi 3B does not support PoE. As for ordering one from me, I currently only have Pi 3A+ which does not have an Ethernet port so it would have to be WiFi or you would have to add a USB Ethernet adapter. If you want to stick with Ethernet you can buy the Standard HAT and a pre-loaded micro-SD card from me Misc Parts, and use your Pi and you end up with the same basic setup as my pre-loaded, you just have to physically assemble yourself which is just lining up the HAT and doing the screws & nuts. I do also sell a Molex to RJ45 kit (IT IS NOT A NETWORK COMPATIBLE DEVICE), but it does use standard ethernet cables to do extended runs. You could then place one part of that kit in the generator, and the other end in your house connecting to the generator HAT. With that path you could have the Pi inside and the sequence of equipment is Evolution -> Molex cable 1 -> Molex to RJ45 adapter -> 8 conductor wire with RJ45 -> RJ45 to Molex adapter -> Molex cable 2 -> HAT (or Molex USB that I sell) -> Pi.

[kjwilliams1974]

Thanks - have to fly in the morning early. I will take a look at this again and consider what I need... Thank you very much for your time and energy! Let me clarify - can I use your cable in place of the adapter or do I need it too? I think the route that I want to go is like you described above - RS232 from controller over ethernet to HAT or USB to PI3B using your pre-loaded card and whatever else I need... I will put the PI in a box even though it is in the well house with a fan - as it does get hot in the well house... Can someone advise on PI fan? If you can, I just need a list of things I need to to order and since you have helped me so much, I will order from you too... and again, THANK U!

[kjwilliams1974]

Ok, back up…. I think I am going to go the route of ordering a pre-loaded card, the HAT for the pi 3 that I have and the hardware to change from 232 to rj45. I need to go back to rs232 for connection to the hat…. Any help on the pieces needed?

[skipfire]

I do sell a Molex to RJ45 kit, if you used that so then you would just need to look at a RS232 adapter (check if you need male or female) and grab one of the Molex extensions to cut up to connect to the RS232 adapter. That would get you from DB9 to Molex, and from the Molex point you can use the Molex to RJ45 kit with a Cat5/6 cable in between to run the serial over a greater distance. The HAT and the RJ45 kit each come with a Molex cable (1 meter with the HAT, 6" with the Molex RJ45 kit), but you will have to locally supply power to the Pi from a UPS.

However, I was under the impression that the Evolution on Liquid Cooled had a Molex connector not a DB9, if you have a DB9 on the controller face you may have an H-100 which I believe has extra setup steps that I am not aware of.

[kjwilliams1974]

Thx. I am not sure what the liquid cooled unit has other than the evolution controller. Anyone ?

[skipfire]

Can you post a picture of the controller? That really help identifying what it is. Please note, pictures have to be posted through the web, attachments to an email do not work.

[kjwilliams1974]

I hate to be a pain, but I am a little lost at what all it is that I need for sure. Molex to RJ 45 - can’t locate on your listings….

[jgyates]

my liquid cooled controller is an Evolution and has an 8 pin molex connector

[kjwilliams1974]

38kw liquid cooled Generac with evolution controller. Pi3 will be in well house adjacent to the generator. Planning on running cat6 to adapters in generator to connect with pi and hat inside well house, connected to a Poe switch…. I am just a little lost on exactly what it is that I need. I have ordered from AMZ, the RS232 to RJ45 adapter and the molex extension. I will need a hat, preloaded card and a molex to RJ-45 kit…. Anything else? Thx in advance for your help and patience…

[skipfire]

On the listing for the HATs there is a Splitter/Injector dropdown with a RJ45 Splitter/Adapter option, that is the Molex to RJ45 equipment which comes in 2 parts. On the generator end it has a pair of Molex ports and a RJ45 port (each labeled for the appropriate connection), the other device has a RJ45 port and a single Molex for the Pi/HAT end of things. As a reminder, the Pi 3A+ that is in the pre-loaded units does not have a network port, it is WiFi only.

Based on the latest stuff you have posted, from the Generator HATs and pHAT page you will want a Pre-loaded v2.6+ Pi 3A+ and a Splitter/Injector option of RJ45 Splitter/Adapter - you will have to provide your own Cat5/6 cable, RS232 spec allows up to 50 feet total, I've tested up to 29 feet (the longest I had was 25 feet, plus the Molex cables was within a few inches of 29 feet). Add the RS232 adapter and the short Molex cable from Amazon to get you from DB9 to Molex on the generator end and you should be good to go.

[dfxinc]

Did you ever get this installed on your 38kw?
I have a 2023 32kw liquid cooled with same controller, but the controller has 5 separate connectors...any help with where and how you connected would be appreciated.

Im on controller FW 1.52...any issues with encryption on this version?

Photos:

[jgyates]

Firmware V1.52 for liquid cooled works fine and is unencrypted. This is the version of the FW that I have in my controller.

[jgyates]

also, mine is an older unit (9 years old) but the controller was replaced. My unit did not come with mobile link and only has one molex connector this size.

[dfxinc]

Thanks! are all 8 wired on the molex? Mine appears to only have 6...im pulling it out tonight to take a closer look. Do you have any photos?

[jgyates]

The number of wires in the cable that is plugged into the 8 pin molex varies from model to model. For example in mine, there was nothing connected (since it did not come with Mobile Link preinstalled). My controller only has one 8 pin molex plug, but some others have 2 8 pin plugs. Yes, the cable connected into the 8 pin molex socket typically does not have all 8 pins wired into the plug. The pinout for the 8 pin molex is here:

https://github.com/jgyates/genmon/wiki/3.1--Making-a-Cable

[jgyates]

It has been a while since I have taken pics. My initial pictures are in the repository here but there is not a good shot of the back. I would need to unscrews the controller to get back there on my units. I have a 48kW diesel from 2014.

[dfxinc]

No worries, im going to try and take mine apart so I can see exactly what I have

[jgyates]

I put this info in the known issues wiki and put a link to the known issues in the discussion questions section check list that pops up when you create a new discussion.

There are over 1000 discussion thread and over 1000 issue threads and this issue has come up twice so far.

I will consider putting this in the install script, but considering the low numbers of people using 4.5L and the high numbers of people how use air cooled units and older non 4.5L liquid cooled units, the odds are that this would cause more people entering the in incorrect answer to the question "do you have a 4.5L engine" is probably greater than those who would benefit (i.e this may cause more problems that it fixes). If I get more people running into this issue that will certainly help improve the cost/benefit of this feature.

[heffneil]

I agree! its just so obscure its hard to identify. Like I said its a unique engine / generator size I guess for people looking to install genmon. I appreciate all the help but it was a hard issue to stomp out! Thanks again!

[skipfire]

@jgyates might be a good prominent note in the serial troubleshooting document as well.

[jgyates]

that is a good idea about he serial troubleshooting guide. I will add it there.

[jgyates]

I updated the serial troubleshooting wiki with a link to this info: https://github.com/jgyates/genmon/wiki/3.6---Serial-Troubleshooting

[ricracrum]

Hey, @skipfire

I purchased a kit from you for my older 20KW Generac used in Florida quite a while ago, and it's been working great. It's a typical install with the Pi at the generator using wifi. Also, I have contributed to the project again, thanks @jgyates!

I have a new generator (Generac 26KW Evolution 2.0 Controller PIN 10000003275) at a house in North Carolina and could use your help piecing together the parts to purchase from you. For this case, I already have a CAT6 line to the generator, but as with the OP here I want to remote the Pi in my IT closet. I have a 1U rack mount that holds 4 Pi devices and will be using one slot for a Pi dedicated to Home Assistant. I'd like to mount a device from you in the same rack. I like the idea of using your Molex to RJ45 in the generator enclosure to my IT closet, then into the Pi, and then connect the Pi to my switch. Ideally, if you have a Pi device I can power using a PoE+ enabled port on the switch, that would be the route I'd prefer for simplicity, but using a power block is okay.

Thanks!

[skipfire]

What I'd recommend is the RJ45 kit to go the distance and then use the USB Molex adapter which works with both Pi and non-Pi solutions. You can then get a PoE HAT to power whichever Pi model you choose. I haven't seen HA take a ton of resources (unless you get into the voice & AI stuff), so you may be able to run GenMon on the same Pi as HA, though I have no experience in doing so. Unfortunately my directly rackmounted product is still 2 or 3 months away from being ready (at best).

If you want to talk about customizing the Kit for your needs hit me up through our website or on Facebook messenger.

[ricracrum]

Thanks @skipfire I wanted to start this question here to help anyone else finding this thread seeking the same solution. I'll move this to email on your website for details.