Westerbeke BTDA 15.0 Operator's Manual & Installation Manual page 35

Description of Starting System
Westerbeke diesel engines use electric starters assisted by glow plugs for both normal and
cold weather starting. The figure below shows a cross-sectional view of one cylinder. The glow
plug is located in the combustion chamber so that
~s
tip is in the injector nozzle's spray path.
When the glow plug is energized by the PREHEAT button, the plug glows red at the tip and
assists in igniting the fuel. The
resu~
is a rapid start with less wear on the starter.
This system is common to Westerbeke Diesels. The start circuitry is designed so that the
PREHEAT button must be depressed for the time specified in the Preheat Table (figure 4.7.1).
Then, while keeping the PREHEAT button engaged, the START button is depressed to crank
the engine.
15KW BTDA
GLOW PLUG
figure 4.5: Combustion Chamber
NOTE: The START switch will not energize unless the PREHEAT button
is depressed. When depressing the preheat switch, The glow plugs in
the cylinder head are activated. Use the preheat intermittently to avoid
overheating the glow plugs.
33 Westerbeke Generators