Abby’s Guide > Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) > Discussions > Use of Fuel Shutoff Valve?
Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions |
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daniel
Location: NY
Joined: Oct 21, 2010
Points: 48
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Use of Fuel Shutoff Valve?
Original Message Jan 25, 2011 10:39 am |
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Hello, I have seen a lot of posts that say "make sure it has a fuel shutoff valve", "I added a fuel shutoff valve", but am not sure exactly what this is for? The manual doesn't really mention it. How should it be used? Is it solely for if you want to keep gas in your tank during the summer, you turn off the valve when summerizing the machine and let the carb/line run dry? Or should I be using it every time I use the blower? Sorry for the cluelessness! Thanks, Dan
Toro 826 OXE Snowblower, Echo PB-500 backpack blower, Toro 22" high wheel recycler mower, Jeep Wrangler JK Unlimited 6 spd :)
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Dr_Woof
Don't blow into the wind, and don't eat yellow snow. WOOF!
Location: Saskatchewan
Joined: Dec 13, 2010
Points: 253
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Re: Use of Fuel Shutoff Valve?
Reply #1 Jan 25, 2011 10:51 am |
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Best practice is to turn it off every time when you are done with the machine. If you leave it open and there is a leak farther downstream (fuel line to carbureter or the carb itself) you will be lucky to smell it before your garage (hope it isn't an attached garage lol) goes up in flames. When you store a machine there should not be gas in the carbureter because it will oxidize and gum up the sensitive parts there. Some say just to add stabilizer to the gas tank after filling it, turn off the gas valve, and run it until it stops which will leave it with a dry carb and a full tank of stabilized fuel. I prefer to store it with a dry carb and a dry tank (drain the tank and run it till it stops). But draining the tank may be diffucult, depending on what machine you have.
This message was modified Jan 25, 2011 by Dr_Woof
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daniel
Location: NY
Joined: Oct 21, 2010
Points: 48
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Re: Use of Fuel Shutoff Valve?
Reply #2 Jan 25, 2011 12:10 pm |
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...(hope it isn't an attached garage lol)... Yep, it's parked 8 feet beneath my bedroom with the cars . Thanks for the info, I will get in the habit of turning it off. Does anyone use it every time they use the blower? Let it run out of gas every time? Or is it worse for the machine to run out of gas than it is to sit with gas in the carb for a few weeks? Thanks, Dan
This message was modified Jan 25, 2011 by daniel
Toro 826 OXE Snowblower, Echo PB-500 backpack blower, Toro 22" high wheel recycler mower, Jeep Wrangler JK Unlimited 6 spd :)
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fleetfoot
Joined: Jan 23, 2011
Points: 19
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Re: Use of Fuel Shutoff Valve?
Reply #4 Jan 25, 2011 12:41 pm |
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I use the fuel shut off valve every time I use the snowblower. As an example on my Simplicity 860E, I turn on the fuel valve before starting and I turn off the fuel valve after I have shut down the 860E. I do not run the carburetor dry except when storing the 860E at the end of the snow season. There is no need to run the carburetor dry between uses since the cold temperatures will minimize any fuel degradation.
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