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

Last summer I purchased a little used 11528, and now after using in 10"-15" fine powder snow -10 to +10F I'm having problems starting
when left in an unheated garage. I've noted that the primer does not work and when removing heat shield around carb  ice has built up
on the carb and choke lever. Its a 11.5 tecumseh OHV engine. I'm sure the carb is not getting enough hot air from engine to keep ice off
the carb/choke.Is there a fix for this problem? Once the ice is removed from carb / choke the primer works and engine starts .

You have to find a way to capture more engine heat. If the machine runs fine while working and only freezes up when stored, I suggest you allow the engine to idle for a while to let heat accumulate in and around the engine then cover it with something to capture the heat after it's turned off. If it ices up while working with it, you'll have to find ways to capture more heat from the engine and duct it toward the carb. Find the direction of the warmed air flow blown by the cooling fan and try to funnel it toward the carb. That might require attaching small pieces of plastic or sheet metal to the existing cowl. Be careful to not block too much off all at once. You could run into an over heating problem.

Well, I don't know how handy you are with sheet metal or pop rivets...  But, i ahve seen where people have taken and made a heat exchanger for their carb intake that would draw warmed air from around the exaust Assy/ muffler.   This would warm the air just enough where the venturi of the carb would not freeze.   Small aircraft have this feature with a cable to turn it on.  This is called "Carb Heat"...

Good luck,

Friiy

>>I've noted that the primer does not work

   The 11.5 OHV has the standard Tecumseh prime and works in cold conditions.  Ice on the carb body, choke and throttle control should not have any effect on the primer. 

   When testing a carb rebuild I leave the carb heater box off and sometimes the carb will ice up.  That sometimes affects the controls but never the primer. How would ice affect the prime system? 

   

   Older machines with a metal wound sheath and single wire metal internal cable often stick so I level them at ¾ throttle for the next restart.  The cable frees up quickly while the enging is warming up.    When shutting the machine off leave the throttle at ¾ throttle and the choke on and it will be ready for the next restart.  Let it warm up for a while to get rid on any ice but as Borat suggested just idle for a while after using the machine should get rid of any buildup.

trouts2 wrote:
No throttle control cable on this engine - it has direct linkage on engine just a lever that is lifted and push down to stop. I removed  small part of engine cowl that was held on with 2 screws this allows warm
air from engine to blow into carb box area. May not know if it fixes problem as it may only happen in cold weather and fine powder snow. But will try going to choke position before the slush freezes. Thanks for the tips.