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

So I mixed up a fresh batch of 40:1 fuel, filled the 221QE and fired it up.   It fired on the first pull then stopped.  I primed it some more, put the choke on full and fired it up again.  It ran fine but when I took the choke off, it slowed down to about 1/3rd it's operating speed.  Put the choke back on and it revved up to what sounded like normal operating speed.   I kept the choke on and let it run like that for a minute or so thinking the fuel system needs to be fully charged.  However, that wasn't the case.  I stopped the machine, tilted it forward, removed the float bowl and inspected it.  Nice and clean.  Then I pulled the main jet to inspect it.  I could see light through the orifice but wasn't sure of how big of a hole should be there.  You never know with jets.  Nonetheless, I ran a piece of thin wire through it then blew it out with compressed air.  I also blew out the passage in the carb where the jet goes.  After cleaning the jet, I took a good look at the orifice.  The amount of light passing through it indicated It was much larger after cleaning.  Approx. 2/3rds larger than when it was restricted.   Compared to many carbs I've worked on, It does have a rather large orifice. 

The strange thing is that I bought this machine new less than a year ago.  I ran it completely out of fuel before I stored it yet it still managed to develop enough varnish in the main jet to cause problems.  Go figure?  That's the first time I've had that kind of a problem with my own equipment.  I still have the two Tecumseh powered machines to fire up yet.  I'll  let you know how they fared. 

I tried to convence everyone that draining one fuel tank does not prevent any carb problems.  Gas today has water in it. Draining until it cuts off only drains enough fuel to stop the engine. The rest settles and messes up your bowl, jets and valves. I put fuel stabilizer in mine All the time. my Techumseh NEVER  fails me even after 15+ years. If you still want to drain your bowl. Run Stabill through it for 5-10 min to make sure it is through your carb.

I have drained the fuel tank on all of my small engine powered equipment (which is never less than 7 engines) in the following manner for the last 30+ years.  I remove the fuel line from the carb and drain all of the fuel out of the tank. I then blow compressed air into the tank to get any remaining gas out of the tank.  I loosen the bowl nut the allow all of the fuel to drain from the carb, re-attach the fuel line and replace the gas cap loosely.  I use this same procedure on all of my small engines and none have ever failed to start right up the following year. 

On engines with metal gas tanks i spray a mist/fog of wd40 into the tank to coat the inside.  I also change the oil and then with spark plug out i put a couple of squirts of motor oil through the spark plug hone and pull the engine over a few times to coat the cylinder.   Lastly I pull the cord until the engine is on Top Dead Center with both valves closed (compression stroke) and then i replace the spark plug. 

These measures only take a couple of minutes to do on each engine and in my opinion have saved me from the potential issue of varnishing. with the exception of the snow blower I do all of them at the same time normally on a cool November day after all of the summer use for these items are done.

My backup generator is a hybrid that runs on Natural gas and diesel so that does not require any maintanence on the fuel side,  Just oil changes and air filters when necessary.

Denis wrote:
Hi Denis. 

The carb/engine is fine now.  Fired it up and it ran great after cleaning the main jet.  All is well here.  Just waiting for snow.  Got a dusting last night but need a real serious dump.  Got the snowmobile in the garage all set to go and been clearing brush off of the trails.  Just need snow.  NOW!

Since I am now thinking I should leave  fuel in my OPE for storage and as I have both 2 and 4 stroke engines I have another question. Will the 2 stroke mix separate and cause isses with the fuel left in the equipment ? Thanks.

I have another friend who could not get his Toro 421QR started since using it this spring.  Granted he has one more year remaining on the warranty but for most people this is a real pain in the neck. Not everyone is as talented as Borat or the Graveyard Blower (i.e., trouts).  This is why I got really frustrated with Toro lawnmower and have yet to buy another Toro OPE.

I started using this for a boat motor issue and now I use it in every motor I own.

It brought back mileage that had been lost from the addition of ethanol.

http://mystarbrite.com/startron//content/view/93/123/lang,en/

MN_Runner wrote:
Trust me.  I'm not a big Toro fan.   They're usually excessively expensive and from my experience, their dealers are arrogant and inconsiderate to the point of belligerence.  Accordingly, I wouldn't normally buy a Toro product despite the fact that they're good machines.  I bought my 221 from Home Depot at a bargain price.   Many hundreds less than what the local Toro gouger's price. 

Despite the minor carb issue, it's an excellent snow mover for it's size and weight.  That carb issue could have happened on any one of the numerous machines I have.  It just happened to be the newest snow removal machine I own.  Thus my surprise/bewilderment that it would happen to this machine.  Either way, it's in good running order now.  If I have any future problems with it, I'll be certain to report them. 

Not much talent required to fix a carb on this thing.  One of the easiest carb fixes I've done.  Everything is so easily accessible, it's a breeze to work on.  I just tilted it forward, pulled up the work stool did the work in a matter of minutes.  Probably less than ten.  Anyone with minimal skills could do that fix.  

Today I was cleaning up an old snowmobile that I bought last year for a mere $400.00.  It's a Polaris with a sweet 340cc Fuji two cycle engine in it.  This thing is in amazing shape.  I used last year for a few weeks and it performed flawlessly.  I brought it into the garage to give it a good once over before putting into service this season.  The more I inspect/do, the more pleased I am with how well it was taken care of.  Carbs were spotless, all cables and controls in new condition, clutches and belt excellent.  Cosmetic condition very good.  Suspension, skis, track all very good. 

Today, just for the hell of it, I checked the compression.  Both cylinders over 130 psi.  I don't have the specs for this engine but in most other machines I own, that's pretty much factory spec.   Unbelievably good condition.  And for $400.00????   Now that was one of the best buys I've ever made.  All I need now is some snow. 

Since we're sharing experiences... I just make sure there is stabilizer in the gas at the end of the season, whether it's a mower or snowblower (edit: or weedwhacker or chainsaw or leafblower. My 2-stroke oil has stabilizer). Put it away like that, and I've had good luck with things simply firing up again for the next season. I don't run them dry. That's in part because of something I read a long time ago, which said that running them dry could cause seals in the carb to dry out. I don't know if that's true, but I leave gas in them. Our gas always has ethanol now, for reference.

I've recently switched to Marine Stabil. That's for a few reasons. I believe that it's supposed to do better with ethanol. And, frankly, I noticed that it was a similar price to the regular version, but treated much more gas (8 oz treats 80 gal, vs 8 oz to 20 gal for the regular kind). So it's also cheaper to use.

After reading all these posts it's evident that some people store their equipment with full tanks and some who drain their equipment. I'm still wondering if it's a good idea to store a 2 stroke machine with a full tank or is this only anoption for 4 strokes?

On the 2 stage snowblower with the metal tank, I leave a full tank of gas, untreated.  Metal tanks tends to rust if you leave it empty.  Closed the fuel valve, drain the carb bowl.  I ran the engine last week with the fuel that's been there since last spring without any problems.

On the single stage snowblowers with plastic tank, I run it dry and also drain carb bowl.  No problem with this either.

I think the key is not to have any fuel sitting in the carb area for a long time.

Last year, I stopped adding any stabilizer or treatment to the fuel.  So far I don't have any starting problems on the lawnmower or the snowblowers that uses straight gasoline.