Kussmaul auto-eject

[ThNozzleman]

We've had to replace the Kussmaul auto-eject outlet on our Pierce engine three or four times in the last year and a half. Apparantly, the springs are breaking, preventing the unit from ejecting the shore line when the engine starts. The last time it failed, it was replaced with a unit that has heavy-duty springs, according to the tech who installed it. That was only a few months ago. The unit has failed, again. Anyone else having similar problems? This engine ran just over a thousand calls last year. Of course, it is started many other times, such as going out for a meal, hydrant testing, check-offs, etc. Any info would be appreciated.

[nmfire]

If it's being covered under warrenty fine. However if you guys are paying out of pocket to fix that, it's probably not worth it. Just unplug it.

[HFRH28]

You may want to check the plug itself, that part that is ejected. We had to put a smaller plug on ours so that it would eject freer.

[BirkenVogt]

If the rig runs a thousand calls a year why does it need shore power anyway? We have two first line rigs here one summer and one winter and we don't plug in the one that runs first out because it gets started and driven all over town anyway.

I would suspect that is just more cycles than the auto eject is good for. We run a similar call volume here on our first out but on rigs that run even less calls than that I have had auto ejects that were just getting close to "plumb wore out."

First check to see that you have the heavy duty one where the center pin is about 1/4" in dia. It is better than the older style one that is about 1/8"

If that is the case then consider moving up to the super auto eject like I have on one rig. Rather than relying on a spring to "pop" the cord, (one of our rigs drug a reel down the road about 5 miles one day when the cord stayed in) the Super Auto Eject uses its own special plug that retracts, powered by a motor and worm gear. Near as I can tell short of a major failure there is no way that sucker can stay connected to the vehicle and it seems a lot more heavy duty than the common style.

Birken

[lvwrench]

We have Kusmaul on everything here. The only problem we have is that people don't pay attention to which way they plug it in and bend the tabs or break them off. Soemtimes we have problems with the insulation in the plug cracking that causes trouble. never had too much problem with the spring breakage but do know that we have had to tweek the Kusmaul eject part to keep it from sticking in and not ejecting the plug.

[Dave1983]

We HAD a problem with ours. The second time our mechanic sent it in a rep from Kussmaul called and asked if people had been pulling the plug out instead of letting it eject on its own. We did have some that did this and the Kussmaul guy said that pulling the plug screws up the mechanism. Since we fixed it and told people not to pull the plug weve not had a problem. Oh, and our rigs run about 1500 calls a year each.

[WRENCH]

We have had some similar problemssuch as bending the pins and plug prongs. But one area that also needs attention to make them work right is to keep the pins clean and lubed. Grit builds up and doesnt allow the ejection pin to push out properly. . One other thing that we did to eliminate draging reels is to put on short 2 ft pig tails that go from the auto eject to the reel plug. This way if it does hang up the plugs pull apart and you only take about 2 ft of pig tail with you.

[FyrGuy176]

The two foot pig-tail is a great idea, but as the plug gets worn out and doesn't hold tight, instead of replacing the plugs, people would tie the cord in a loose knot and totaly defeat the purpose of a break-away pig-tail!

[nmfire]

We have one truck with a functioning auto-eject, so everyone is already used to unplugging it. I don't think anyone actually relies on the auto-eject. We have to unplug the air line anyway so it's hard to forget.

The 2' pigtail is something we have on all our shoreline outlets as well. Trust me, it works great, I've made use of it many many times If the plug gets worn out, a replacement plug is like $1.50.

[BVFD1983]

We don't have any problems with ours becuase most everyone manually takes it out before starting it.

[westofd1]

We have had to replace our super auto-eject on our 2003 pumper/tanker 3 times since we got it, it will be 2 yrs in sept. they advertise the super auto-eject as a sealed unit. its not water has gotten into unit and rotted the springs out 3 times now, the current replacement is not working as i type. kussmaul rep says that they are not sealed to prevent moisture just dust. it has gotten expensive to keep using auto-eject so we have the 1 foot long pigtail on supply cord which works better than our kussmaul product. i could go on for ever but i wont, and i do recommend anybody looking to purchase look elsewhere.

[Stick533]

If the rig runs a thousand calls a year why does it need shore power anyway?

We have 6 boxlights on a constant charging base, A TIC with an external cord going from the battery to a 12v plug for a constant charge, a cooler with built in refrigeration unit to keep rehab water cold, and our mobile radio and intercom system is never turned off.
Good news- I've gotten used to unplugging it before I go out....
Bad news- I still have a hard time remembering to plug it back in when I get back.

[Jim917]

We have em. They fail on a regular basis. Haven't really been able to find anything better.

[doughesson]

I was told that for every minute that you run the lights,it takes about 30 minutes for the alternator to catch up on the battery charge,so I reckon that shore power isn't just something nice to have but a vital need.
When you are at the scene,do you leave the lights on or turn them off so as to not distract the ones in mobile phone booths?
We have about a thousand runs(mostly medical)total in a year but the two frontline Pierces both have shore power cables and everything else gets started at least once a week to ensure that it can run.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by BirkenVogt
[B]If the rig runs a thousand calls a year why does it need shore power anyway? We have two first line rigs here one summer and one winter and we don't plug in the one that runs first out because it gets started and driven all over town anyway.

[pfd4life]

We have issues with all of ours as well..we have them on three engines and a ladder, they have all failed multiple times on the engines, but not once on the ladder. And we only run a few hundred calls a year. So it's not that they get overworked, it's just that they suck. Everytime I'm driving, I just pull the plug out before I get to the drivers door.

[SpartanGuy]

Why do you get an auto-eject if you're going to pull it out? Might as well just plug in an extension cord to the truck.

Our Kussmaul auto ejects, which we have on every truck, work perfectly. Our trucks are set up that you just get in and go. Get in, start it, the Kussmaul auto-eject charger auto ejects(!), push the garage door opener to open the door, roll out and remember to close the door behind you?

By the way, our engines leave on just about every call we have, so that's about 750 a year, not to mention the thousands of other times its out for fuel, fire prevention, pump details, community days, etc.

[pfd4life]

The issue isn't pulling the plug, it's the fac that the AUTO eject fails to work on a consistent basis. Sometimes they do, sometimes they don't. So instead of hoping it does eject, I make sure it's out. If it doesn't eject, and you still drive out, you CAN cause a good amount of damage to the truck, station, and can cause a hazardous situation if there is a live 220 volt shoreline flopping around. If Kussmaul could make and AUTO eject that actually ejected on a regular basis, like everytime, we as drivers wouldn't be forced to do it ourselves. I'd love to have one less thing to think about when jumping in the drivers seat, but considering it fails easily, and consistently. I've just gotten in the habit of pulling it.

[BirkenVogt]

Originally posted by doughesson
[B]I was told that for every minute that you run the lights,it takes about 30 minutes for the alternator to catch up on the battery charge,

Not a personal attack on you but whoever told you that was slinging pure bull$#!+. I am a fire mechanic and I can tell you that any apparatus built within recent memory has plenty of alternator to run all the lights continuously. Maybe at low idle you will be drawing slightly from the batteries but probably only on the oldest apparatus with wimpy alternators.

When you are at the scene,do you leave the lights on or turn them off so as to not distract the ones in mobile phone booths?
We have about a thousand runs(mostly medical)total in a year but the two frontline Pierces both have shore power cables and everything else gets started at least once a week to ensure that it can run.

We do the opposite, the two frontline rigs, one engine and one ambulance do not get shore power because they run several times a day and that is plenty to keep the batteries charged, everything else has shore power of some kind. We do not use 120v chargers on most of them however since we already have these big ole golf cart charger things I have them set on the lowest setting which is like a 1 amp trickle charge. And we still have one very old engine that has no shore power, we just switch off the batteries, trouble is the radios and flashlights don't get charged very well this way, but it is old and in my judgement not worth the hassle of adding shore power when we (hopefully) will get rid of it soon.

Anyway the engine that runs about 700 calls has about 4 flashlights, a TIC, some radios, a telephone and maybe something else I can't remember, plus a lot of the engineers leave the battery switch on all day, and it keeps the batteries charged fine.

I replace batteries on engines every 3 years and on ambulances every 2 years just to keep them fresh and reliable.

Birken

[Chief745]

We have them our our truck. Never a problem. Our dealer told us one time unplugging it manualy would destroy the unit. Why unplug it thats kinda like having a automatic and manualy shifting it.

[pfd4life]

Originally posted by Chief745
We have them our our truck. Never a problem. Our dealer told us one time unplugging it manualy would destroy the unit. Why unplug it thats kinda like having a automatic and manualy shifting it.

Well..what other option is there when they don't eject.