I forgot to run the fuel out of my chain saw and left it in the saw for several months. It'll catch hold briefly but quickly dies out, and the plug is good, so I'm thinking it's a little gummy in there. Is there a way to clean out the system w/o taking everything apart?
gunky 2-stroke fuel 86'd my chain saw
- Thread starter El Cazador
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Check your fuel filter first. It is inside the tank on the end of the hose.
It could be plugged with the crud.
It could be plugged with the crud.
- Thread starter
- #3
Forgot about that, which is embarrassing b/c I just fixed a friend's weed whacker and that was the problem with it. Thanks for reminding me and what's left of my brain.
Get a can of some stuff called small engine carb cleaner (available at most hardware stores) and pour and squirt it through the tank and the carb, it'll clean it out immediately. I usually squirt somewhere around two tablespoons into the tank and then while holding the throttle open squirt some into the carb while it is running. Don't do it once the thing is hot though and as soon as it is cleaned up fill with fresh gas cause I think that the solvents in the carb cleaner are harsh. HTH. 
Here is what happens inside the carburetor.
The old fuel leaves behind a varnish residue. This Varnish residue is hard and makes the diaphragms stiff. If you get it started and it will run on it own, you have purged the old fuel through the carburetor. The new fuel inside the carburetor and fuel lines will begin to desolve the varnish. It will either pass through the carburetor jets or it will block the jets.
The varnish in the fuel lines will get caught in the strainer screen inside the carburetor. It may plug it up, it may not.
The vanish in the fuel filter restricts the flow of fuel. If is a really old filter it will ahve a spong in it. A newer one will have a fabric that looks like tightly packed wool. The newest ones will be made of recycled plastic and is called a sintered material. In a pinch, you can clean the sintered material by back flushing it with fresh fuel or carb spray. This is a common practice when someone puts bar oil in the fuel tank.
The old fuel leaves behind a varnish residue. This Varnish residue is hard and makes the diaphragms stiff. If you get it started and it will run on it own, you have purged the old fuel through the carburetor. The new fuel inside the carburetor and fuel lines will begin to desolve the varnish. It will either pass through the carburetor jets or it will block the jets.
The varnish in the fuel lines will get caught in the strainer screen inside the carburetor. It may plug it up, it may not.
The vanish in the fuel filter restricts the flow of fuel. If is a really old filter it will ahve a spong in it. A newer one will have a fabric that looks like tightly packed wool. The newest ones will be made of recycled plastic and is called a sintered material. In a pinch, you can clean the sintered material by back flushing it with fresh fuel or carb spray. This is a common practice when someone puts bar oil in the fuel tank.
