Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions

I have been working to get an leaf loader ready for fall clean up. The 11hp briggs and stratton engine starts briefly when choked and then dies. Gas runs out and drips below. It runs all of 3 seconds before it dies. I've tried starting it without the choke but no luck there. When I bought it a week ago the previous owner started it on the first pull. It has a good spark, fresh gas, a clean air filter. With the spark plug pulled I can see the spark. I've tried starting it at half throttle, full throttle and low throttle. No difference there. I took the bowl off the carburetor and cleaned out the crud that was in there. Do I need to take the carb off and completely clean it? What setting should the throttle be at for start up? Any suggestions? the motor is a Briggs Industrial Plus model 256422 type 1015 -E1

There is a float mounted inside the engine, with a terminal post outside on the side of the motor.. the kill switch ground the ignition if you run it off, the float will ground the ignition if the oil is too low. I bet that "wire hanging" is grounding somewhere or the oil float is not working right..

When the oil level is low, that switch will blink instead of the spark plug fireing.... When this engine starts to die, look at the switch...

Friiy.

Is there any way of taking the low oil circuit out of the mix. If I disconnect the wires am I "telling the engine there's a problem so don't run"?

No, no problem taking the oil alert out, it will run fine...

Leave the switch hooked up, just take the spade lug off that runs down to the oil float assy.

Did your kill switch work before?

<BR> friiy wrote: <BR>I never had a chance to use the kill switch. The engine always died on its own before I could try it. The prevous owner used the throttle lever to kill the engine when he demo'd it for me. The trottle I think has ground on it. At least it looks like a ground. There are wires that go down to the throttle linkage. I have not figured out why those wires go down there. There are places for them to be attached. On some of these leaf loaders they add safety switches that prevent the engine (and impeller) from running when there's nothing attached to the vac's input collar.
So I should reasemble everything including the switch but this time not attach the red wire that runs to that oil sensing plug.
If that red light on the switch was coming on when the engine was cutting out, I doubt I would have seen it. It is ussually broad daylight out when I run it. It makes one heck of a loud sound when that impeller gets spinning. I would wake up the whole neighborhood if I ran it at night. The suction is amazing.

Runs like a top.  I got it back together last night and started it this morning. No hesitation, idles smooth and quite, revs right up there, sucked the leaves off the driveway.  It must have been that  bad crankcase sensor.  Maybe it got jossled around on the trip home and knocked out of position like friiy alluded to.  (That's a new one for me).  The leaking fuel pump was a real distraction in diagnosing this.  And the fact that it would start for a few seconds and then die? Very odd.    I was planning on leaving the oil sensor disconnected but if its worth my time to fix I will.

Thanks for all the help and patience.  I couldn't have done it without you (no exageration there).   I am ready for fall. Bring on those leaves!

You can put a Ohm meter to the float assy and check to see if fails on the float or if the problem is in the switch. It could be a bad wire bumpign into something and grounding the unit out.. You could get a new gasket so next time you change oil you can pull the float out and wash it out in some gas.. (the oil alert/ Guard unit is encased in a tube and has holes that let oil in. sometimes muck or sludge hamper's its movement inside)

Just keep a good eye on your oil till you get it working...

Maybe now you can till the leaves into you garden..


Friiy

&amp;amp;amp;lt;BR&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;lt;BR&amp;amp;gt;&amp;lt;BR&amp;gt;&lt;BR&gt;<BR> friiy wrote: I never thought to try an ohm meter. I have one of those. So to check the switch I would disconnect the wire at the sensor's post on the outside of the engine block and then touch one lead from the meter to the post and one lead to the engine block? And if oil is full in the engine, the meter should show no continity, but if the oil sensor is showing &amp;amp;amp;amp;quot;low&amp;amp;amp;amp;quot; (or faulty in this case) I should detect continuity? Is that about right? ;And then if the oil sensor checks out OK then I should test the wire and see if it's grounding out someplace. &amp;amp;amp;lt;BR&amp;amp;amp;gt;Yes, you read my mind with the leaves being tilled into the garden.