B&S 6.5HP Intek...rough running?

[deeter16317]

Got a newer [censored] Intek on my log splitter...it has been running good until today. It runs rough under no load, but smooths out under load. RPM doesn't make a difference.

Its not a regular "miss" or stutter, if I knew better, I'd say it was bad fuel...except its less than a week old and has stabil in it. I pulled the plug, it looked fine and was gapped 0.035". Air filter looked fine...no fuel filter.

Thoughts?

 

[hatcoleman]

I would still try some fresh gas. Drain tank and add new fuel.That would be the easiest and cheapest thing to try. I have had a few problems with the ethanol gas. Even using the red Stabil and have had fuel go bad. Causing the exact problems you described. Now I am using the new Stabil for ethanol, will see if that prevents future problems.

 

[dwendt44]

A dose of SeaFoam wouldn't hurt and might fix the problem.

 

[FL_Rob]

Under the fuel bowl,which is 10MM if I recall ,is the float. above it is the needle&seat.You'll get gas all over but pull off the bowl and dump it out ...toggle and tap on the float ASSY then re-install check that the bowl washer is intact when you do this.fresh fuel and fire it up.


Next if this dosent solve it, adjust the choke, cant remember if the intek has the auto-choke ,If not,you can wire the choke arm to run right ( i use thin wire).Next and the least desireable,pull the carb and replace the gasket that's against the block (use rubber cut to fit or gasket material cut to fit)..then the gasket thats against the air cleaner.also check the fuel filter,if it's only run seasonally it's probably gunked up .sometimes you can reverse-blow-it-out with wd 40 or air/both.add fresh fuel with stabil.

 

[FL_Rob]

10MM fastener is what I meant.

 

[deeter16317]

I'll pull the fuel bowl tonight and check...I think I got a small engine fuel filter at the house, I'll add that to the line just to make sure there's no junk getting through (there isn't one right now).

It almost does the classic B&S loping, but not quite that severe yet.

This is a new-to-me splitter, just bought it (used) about a month ago. I've got several hours of run time on it...this is the first it acted strange.

Thanks for the replies, I'll give that a shot.

 

[deeter16317]

Well, I pulled the bowl off...nothing weird there. The air filter is clean. I checked the carb to engine bolts, they were tight. I installed a small fuel filter, just to be on the safe side.

I noted this tonight: If you just engage the choke one notch, it smooths right out. It almost acts like its running lean? Under load, it fine.

I added some fresh gas, will see what happens tomorrow.

 

[deeter16317]

Well, I ran it about three hours last night...no real improvement. Maybe some, but its still rough running.

As noted, under any load, it smooths right out and runs perfectly. If you move the choke on one notch (it has a manual choke with infinite settings between off and on), it runs better.

I can't believe its the gas since it had Stabil added to the can before I filled it last week! And the other mowers seem to be running fine on it. The filter I added is staying clean, no big surprises found in it...and the bowl was clean.

My plan is to run it completely out of fuel and start with some 91 octane, see if that cures it.

 

[yeehaw1960]

The bowl nut is pivotal to these engines running correctly. Make sure the passage way down through the center of it is unobstructed. Another problem is that just about everything runs pretty lean with EPA standards being what they are. It could be worse, you could be saddled with an EPA compliant Tecumseh. I also had one, a number of years ago, that had a leak in the seal between the air filter housing and the carb. Particularly with some newer, EPA compliant engines(in the last 7 or 8 years), the carb depends on the filter "choking" the carb little. It's all a very exact science robbing us of our small engine power.

 

[car54]

new engines are always too lean to meet epa emissions. maybe it;s just too lean, plain and simple.

I found a drill bit ever so slightly larger than the jet on my mower and used that to "clean the carb". it runs better than ever before.

 

[deeter16317]

Originally Posted By: yeehaw1960
The bowl nut is pivotal to these engines running correctly. Make sure the passage way down through the center of it is unobstructed.



Did this when I pulled the bowl, it was clear.

 

[deeter16317]

Originally Posted By: car54
new engines are always too lean to meet epa emissions. maybe it;s just too lean, plain and simple.

I found a drill bit ever so slightly larger than the jet on my mower and used that to "clean the carb". it runs better than ever before.



That's what it sounds like, that its running too lean. Maybe its the gas since it just started. The thing that puzzles me is that I had made no changes (other than gas) and it went from running smooth to running rough...I could see if I had changed the air filter or something.

It runs, and it starts easy...I'll just chalk it up to being the nature of the beast.

Thanks for the insight!