Family member has a 6500 watt generator. I just put a new carburetor on it. It is an aftermarket chinese one. The issue is the generator has a tough time starting. If you keep holding down the electric start it will start after 10-20 sec of cranking or if you spray a little fuel in it it will start up. It runs fantastic once its on it just seems like the engine isnt pulling fuel through the carb for the initial start. Yes the choke works and i pulled the plug and it was dry after a decent amount of cranking. I dont have access to the generator immediately but what are some things i can look for in the future.
Help with generator not starting easily
- Thread starter joegreen
- Start date
It sounds like it's not getting enough gas during starting. Have you checked the fuel system, to make sure the flow of fuel is not getting interrupted somehow? If it runs good after it finally starts, it has to be a lack of fuel during the starting procedure.
Perhaps you can install a type of primer bulb in the fuel line somewhere, that will help it get a boost of fuel before you start cranking.
Perhaps you can install a type of primer bulb in the fuel line somewhere, that will help it get a boost of fuel before you start cranking.
Could be the aftermarket carb you put on it. Over the years I messed around with some success and some failures replacing carbs on OPE with cheaper chinese aftermarkets. Sometimes they run good, sometimes not.
I have a Honda Rancher I replaced a carb on with two cheaper chinese aftermarkets. Both times, tt would run like crap and was a pain to get started. I spoke to someone who claimed experience with them and said to only use Honda OE carbs on the Rancher. Ordered a used OE carb and it ran like it should. Threw away the 1st and 2nd chinese aftermarket carbs.
I agree. I've had very good luck with cheap aftermarket carbs on Briggs, Tecumseh, and Honda.
You you have access to natural gas and are sick of dealing with carb/gas issues you can convert generator to natural gas and be done with it.
How old is the fuel on board? It could be summer weight RVP and just not want to "light off".
Why did it get a new carb?
Generator carbs are pretty stupid simple because they only have to run at 3600 RPM. The basic tuning should work fine-- what the more complicated engines get are different emulsion tubes with different hole patterns for better throttle response and idle circuts. Your universal carb is probably better than the OE one!
Run the thing under load then pull the plug and see if it's running rich, lean, or just right. You might need to open up the main jet a little. If it came to that, use a hobby drill bit set like these and run the bits up the middle until you find the first one that doesn't fit. Hog it open, reinstall, repeat a time or two.
Why did it get a new carb?
Generator carbs are pretty stupid simple because they only have to run at 3600 RPM. The basic tuning should work fine-- what the more complicated engines get are different emulsion tubes with different hole patterns for better throttle response and idle circuts. Your universal carb is probably better than the OE one!
Run the thing under load then pull the plug and see if it's running rich, lean, or just right. You might need to open up the main jet a little. If it came to that, use a hobby drill bit set like these and run the bits up the middle until you find the first one that doesn't fit. Hog it open, reinstall, repeat a time or two.
Just spritz it with some starting fluid.
My guess is that the choke is less effective than it should be. Take a detailed look at how the choke is working.
Just worked on a Honda that was left with fuel too long (years), then previous owner replaced the carb with a Chinese one and had trouble getting it to start.
The choke linkage was assembled backwards, but after I fixed that it was still impossible to start. Turned out the idle mixture screw was almost all the way in. It had an auto-idle so I was able to tune it by ear. After I got the idle mixture set right, it would start first pull every time. Might be worth a look.
Sometimes there is a Welch plug that needs to be..."extracted" for you to get to the screw.
The owner isn’t very mechanical so i can’t have him using starting fluid. Plus the wife may have to use it. The generator came with the house they bought and has been sitting. Instead of me rebuilding the gummed up carb it was easier and cheaper to buy a new one.
Take the fuel bowl off and see if there is fuel in it. I know you said it was dry, but check the spark plug for actual fire. I replace my torch plugs with ngk, iridium in my generator.
The plug makes good spark and its a brand new ngk
What kind of generator? Generators are so cheap these days… it almost makes sense to sell the old one for $300 on the classifieds and replace it with a new one every 5 years or so. That gets you a new carb, new fuel lines, a clean fuel tank, less maintenance issues, every few years, and more likely to start too.
If it’s a top shelf generator , then yes, it’s worth maintaining for years and years, but most people just have cheap ones. And those should be replaced every 5 years in my opinion.
If it’s a top shelf generator , then yes, it’s worth maintaining for years and years, but most people just have cheap ones. And those should be replaced every 5 years in my opinion.
I use tcw3 @ 640:1 in my generator. It seems to keep the needle seat from sticking closed when it sits a while. Run the same mix in my ope for last fill of the season before winter.
I try to run my generator ( air-cooled )about 10 minutes every 2 months.
I try to run my generator ( air-cooled )about 10 minutes every 2 months.
