OT - lawnmower carb problem

[Paul McDevitt]

My 2 year old Craftsman lawnmower has a carb problem. Haven't run it in about 18 months, & I did not drain gas from it way back when. Now...won't start. Good spark, air filter clean, but even with it removed, won't start. Check carb bowl, there's gas there. Dumped all old gas from tank and bowl, filled with 75% gas/ 25% Seafoam. Won't start. Sprayed carb cleaner into carb air intake. Starts, runs for 5 seconds, stops. Lather, rinse, repeat. Removed carb, sprayed carb cleaner everywhere, ran fine wire thru ports where it would go. Re-assembled. Won't start. Will only start after spraying cab cleaner in thru the air intake. I'm tempted to pull the carb and soak it in carb cleaner, but don't know if there are rubber seals/gaskets that I might damage. Another thing I noticed is that although Gas does end up in the bowl, I don't hear a gurgle when I operate the primer bulb, and the issue does seem as though the engine is not getting gas.Any suggestions?

 

[Richard L]

You can buy a carb rebuild kit from Sears that will replace any gaskets or seals, then you can soak the carb clean. An alternative might be to just buy a new carb. I had to do that with a Sear Rotortiller I owned...That cured the problem.



Sears uses a lot of Tecumceh engines and they are kind of crappy engines. Now I avoid any equipment with that kind of engine.



You may also need to check for clogged fuel filters (sometimes int the tank) and fuel hoses for breaks, etc.



...Rich

 

[Bill Cooksley]

If you have a bole on it take the bolt from the center of it and there should be a very small hole in it and one across it take a small pc. of wire and clean it should fix your problem. Bill

 

[robert broere]

had the same problem with my craftman edger.turned out the carb was bad.but was fixed under warrenty.

 

[Michael Cacioppo]

Since is runs for a short while then dies after being spayed with cleaner and there is gas in the bowl the problem appears to be a clogged main jet.



Lawnmower carbs are very simple devices but clog easily when gasoline is left in for extended periods. They have very small orifices that are easily clogged. One remove the carb from the mower. On the bottom of the carb is a fuel bowl with one bolt holding it on. Remove the bolt and the fuel bowl will come off. Look at the bolt you removed. On some models there is a small orifice that must be clear. Using carb cleaner or compressed air insure that the holes, if any are clear. On the carb there is a float, a small spring and a needle and seat which is used maintain the proper fuel level in the bowl. Blow into the fuel inlet of the carb and see that when the float is manually lifted that the air flow is stopped when the float is level. If not you need a new needle and seat set. Looking at your carb make sure that ALL small passages are clear of debris. Note there are some opening that there are small that are not thru holes but used in the manufacture of the carb. When you are sure that all passages are clear, reassemble the carb by replacing the fuel bowl and nut. Reassemble on the mower and you should be free to go.

 

[shawn stonbraker 2]

MikeC is correct. You need to really work on getting every hole in the carb clean. We loved people who would leave the gas in the carb all winter then bring them in for us to work on it. Couple hours labor. What you need to do also is let the pieces soak for a day in the SeaFoam. Sometimes this will help dissolve whatever the cause is. Also, run some through the mower before storage. This will keep it from happening again.

 

[Gavin Allan]

Wildbill, MikeC, and stonemiser have it.



Main jet clogged.



Check inlet needle and seat, float level.



Get some gumout spray and clean-r-out.

 

[Paul McDevitt]

So, after I cleaned the carb last night, it was still only starting when I'd shoot carb cleaner into the air intake. This morning, I discovered that while working in the dark, slapping away mosquitos, I neglected to refill the gas tank after draining it to clean the carb ;-)



So, I mixed 50:50 fresh gas and Seafoam in the tank, and now the mower would start if I hit the primer bulb about 10x (label says 3x). But, it would still run only 3-5 seconds, and die. No choke to be found, so I decided to perform CPR. I removed the air cleaner, pumped the bulb 10x, and started the mover. I jumped down and started pumping the primer bulb, and the engine ran until I stopped pumping the bulb. Repeated the process, and this time sat there and pumped that sucker for about a minute. Now the engine runs on its own



I'm letting it run through that 1/2 tank of gas and Seafoam, and I think it will be fine after that. Thanks for the suggestions

 

[EddieS'04]

Main jet is partial cloged. 50% sea- foam is too much. 1 ounce would be more than enough.