leaking carb in snowblower B&S engine

[Donald]

The carb on my 36" Ariens snow blower is dripping gas on the garage floor. But the engine runs fine. If the float needle valve was stuck open and the fuel level in the bowl was too high would it still run properly?

11 HP B&S engine

 

[old1]

1st, you need to see if it is actually coming from inside the carb, and not an external leak. If it is internal, it HAS to be coming past the float needle. If it is not leaking TOO badly, it will still run ok. If it burns it as fast as it comes in. So if it is just a drip, and not a steady stream, yes it will still run oik.

 

[Donald]

The garage floor gets wet, but not a puddle.

 

[Quest]

check to see if it comes with a solenoid fuel shutoff valve. In my experience, most larger B&S engine carbs come with that fuel-shutoff solenoid valve, which is leak-prone.

Q.

 

[JTK]

When it's happened to me, they flood-out and wont run. If it is the float sticking, it doesn't sound like it's sticking for too long. Bowl gasket? Seal on bowl drain? Leaking fuel line/connection?

 

[BigCahuna]

The carb bowl gasket may have dried out, and now it weeps gas when it sits. Wipe the carb off, then check to see if that's where the gas is coming from.,,,

 

[VNTS]

Ah my Tucumseh snow king has the inverted bowl where the needle may be worn or gummed up, gravity keeps pushing the fuel into the bowl and it will leak.

Amsoil power foam rescued me many times, note I kept the fuel fresh with stabilizer. Fix is to drop bowl and spray the the cleaner in to clean up anything.

Have a new Ariens with the LCT engine and night and day performance difference vs the old L-head. The ehtanol in the gas
realy screwed up the old carb.

I found a a station in NH and took a trip special to buy gas without ethanol. Will do this going forward in the fall.

 

[Recalculating]

I have the Ariens 8526 with the Tecumseh SnoKing engine. The gasket has had to be replaced for the exact reason you describe and the reason VNTS explains.

I now like I should have in the first place, shut off the fuel flow with the valve under the fuel tank when not in use. That has been the answer for me.

 

[Trav]

See if the bowl has a drain valve with a little spring on it.
You just push it up to drain the bowl, sometimes you need to give it a couple of pushes to seat it better.

 

[Lapham3]

Good answers-I'll just say that I always add an inline manual shut-off valve with this stuff that doesn't come with one=saves some agravation!

 

[Lubener]

If it has a float, try tapping on the bowl.The engine may still run with a stuck float.

 

[Donald]

I do have a gas shutoff but want to fix it properly. This carb does not have the normal bowl where you undo a screw at the bottom and the bowl drops. Rather the bowl is part of the main (lower) carb housing. Its tough to pinpoint the actual leak as the entire bottom of the carb is wet with gas.

http://www.partstree.com/parts/?lc=briggs_and_stratton&mn=252416-0632-01&dn=69280007B

 

[andyd]

Take whatever you can off the engine to expose the carb top . look for external traces. Wipe the carb dry, and watch. Check the hose connection. The longer the wait and watch, the less inclined I would be to fix it. Also could be loose screws holding the carb top on.

 

[old1]

Ok, now that I see what kind of carb it is, I can tell you more. First off, if it is a VERY slow leak, check to see if it is coming from the drain hole on the bottom of carb. If so, it is leaking past the needle and seat. I have found that even with all clean, and a new needle, that they love to seep a little. In which case I would say to use an in line shut off. Although it would be a good idea to give your best shot at fixing it first (might work) . If I am not mistaken, that is a really expensive carb. to buy new.

 

[Donald]

If the fuel shutoff is not closed it will drain a partial tank in a few days. It did not do this last winter.

 

[JTK]

Donald, I don't recall if you've posted this in the past, but is this a newer Ariens 36" 11hp? Briggs OHV I presume? Just curious if it's still under warranty. That is a monster machine.

 

[Donald]

Originally Posted By: JTK
Donald, I don't recall if you've posted this in the past, but is this a newer Ariens 36" 11hp? Briggs OHV I presume? Just curious if it's still under warranty. That is a monster machine.


Its an one with the old style of engine head not an OHV. The carb design is not much different than the 1980 Montgomery Wards snowblower I just sold.

I will order a new gasket and float valve. I will probably just use the shut-off valve until we get a break from the snow.