# Snowblower won't stay running when cold



## Mscrump (Oct 12, 2017)

I have a yardman model 31ah553g401, about 15 years old.
We changed the leaking gas tank, put on new hoses etc and last winter it would start but not stay running when cold. Come spring i started it to put in the barn and it ran just fine, it was warm out. Any suggestions?


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## unknown1 (Dec 13, 2015)

EDIT: Welcome to the forum! 

These are just shots in the dark but... 
Can you remember how long it ran when it was cold and whether you kept the choke on or rapidly turned it off? Maybe too soon.
Intermittent ignition coil issues can be temperature related... however when I read about that it's usually a problem when they are hot not cold.
Ditto with a problematic spark plug.
Obviously cold temperatures can affect thermal expansion of metals too.. but that doesn't help narrow things down.
Also, the ignition characteristics of gasoline will presumably be affected by the ambient temperature but I'd need to google to read up on those details.
Scraping the barrel here but if the float and needle were sticking when it wouldn't run and then by moving the machine around over to the barn you unlodged the needle and "fixed" the problem that could affect it too and would not be related to temperature at all.
Are you sure that everything else remained unchanged and constant? Different gas? Different spark plug? Anything different at all? 
Did you re-tweak that gas tank and fuel line and magically fix something? 
Did you add oil and make an oil-detection shutoff system become happy? I don't know if you have one in that machine or not. I did that to a Predator once.
This last one would be embarrassing....the fuel shut off valve wasn't turned off was it? In that case you'd only have a bowl full of gas then... nada. ;-) But in the spring you remembered to turn it on. I do that ALL the time.. especially if I switch from one machine to another and some have shut-offs and some don't. (note to self: hook up those shut-off valves sitting in the garage!)

EDIT: was the gas cap vent blocked but now it isn't? sometimes just tightening and loosening them can affect that.
EDIT: Ignition coil out of position and giving weak spark?
EDIT: spark plug gap giving weak spark?
EDIT: Loose carburetor bolts or inlet manifold bolts with a now-you-see-me now-you-don't air leak 

- The list of possibilities is endless I suppose.

*Most importantly.. how is it running today? * I'm guessing it's ok and you are worried about if that will be true when the winter arrives. You may just need to suck it and see.

Fascinated to hear what anybody may suggest.
Not much help.. sorry.


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## classiccat (Mar 1, 2014)

Cool air has a higher density therefore requires more fuel to compensate. 

It could be suffering a lean condition during cold weather. 

This is could either be due to a blockage in the carb fuel passages/jets, improperly set float or you just need to adjust the carb (if adjustable).

When it was having the issue, did it run OK on the choke? ...and how about when engaging a load?


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## MassSnowblower (Oct 14, 2014)

Carb needs to be cleaned


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## Mscrump (Oct 12, 2017)

Gas was on, it would start but before I could even blow snow it stalled. Tried choke on, choke off. Same. Would do this 5-8 times. New spark plugs. New gas line, but my son put a smaller interior gas line saying it was gravity fed it wouldn't matter. So maybe it would.... And we just purchased a ultrasonic cleaner, the carb was next on the to do list. You see it ran ok with leaky gas tank but before last snow it warmed up and we changed it and fuel line and spark plug and thought all would be good.


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## orangputeh (Nov 24, 2016)

stuart80112 said:


> EDIT: Welcome to the forum!
> 
> These are just shots in the dark but...
> Can you remember how long it ran when it was cold and whether you kept the choke on or rapidly turned it off? Maybe too soon.
> ...


this should be the go to post when this question comes up. I wish I could save it somehow for future reference.


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## unknown1 (Dec 13, 2015)

Mscrump said:


> Gas was on, it would start but before I could even blow snow it stalled. Tried choke on, choke off. Same. Would do this 5-8 times. New spark plugs. New gas line, but my son put a smaller interior gas line saying it was gravity fed it wouldn't matter. So maybe it would.... And we just purchased a ultrasonic cleaner, the carb was next on the to do list. You see it ran ok with leaky gas tank but before last snow it warmed up and we changed it and fuel line and spark plug and thought all would be good.


OK .. but how is it running today?


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## jrcjr (Sep 23, 2017)

I'm also in the camp of 'it's probably a carburetor issue'. 

I was gifted an old Ariens unit a number of years ago, and the first couple years I couldn't even pull start it. I always had to use the electric start, and practically had to have the choke on full or half to get it to throw snow. After the first season, I found that the fuel line was breaking down and putting rubber sludge in the carburetor. I cleaned it out and it ran better the second year, but still required a lot of choke.

I rebuilt the carburetor this summer ($10 for the kit and about an hour's work) and now not only can I pull start it with only one or two pulls, it will die on full choke after only running a couple seconds and I have to back it off to half choke or less almost immediately. So, having those fresh parts in the carburetor can make a world of difference.

So definitely bump the carb rebuild up higher on the to-do list.

Also, if I remember correctly, I watched a video on youtube where it was mentioned that under one of the Welch plugs there is a ball bearing that meters gas flow. If it's stuck with gum/varnish deposits, that can cause the engine to run very poorly.


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## nwcove (Mar 2, 2015)

im with the clean the carb club. and change the fuel filter or add one if not equipped.


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## unknown1 (Dec 13, 2015)

Hey mscrump (OP)

Would you answer this question please...

*How is it running today?*

If it's running just fine then you don't really have any evidence to say you need to do ANYTHING and you can't be certain WHAT to do. You may just be chasing ghosts.
Doing a whole bunch of work may be... at best... a waste of time and money.... at worst...you may get it wrong and introduce a problem that wasn't there until you start fussing.

It's like going to the doctor and saying "Last winter I had a headache.. but not any longer... what drugs should I take?"

I guess I'm saying.... "If it ain't broke... don't fix it!"

See what I mean?


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## 10953 (Sep 4, 2017)

Mscrump said:


> but my son put a smaller interior gas line saying it was gravity fed it wouldn't matter.


sorry buts not true, the hose is of a size meant to feed the correct amount of gas under gravity to the carb for big reasons, 
not running when it's cold out to me spells lean mixture for that 15 year old machine most likely with a tec snow king motor new carbs can be gotten for less then a rebuild kit today,


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## thool (Jul 25, 2016)

87 powershift said:


> sorry buts not true, the hose is of a size meant to feed the correct amount of gas under gravity to the carb for big reasons,
> not running when it's cold out to me spells lean mixture for that 15 year old machine most likely with a tec snow king motor new carbs can be gotten for less then a rebuild kit today,


Yes, sounds like a lean situation. While running, just back out the high speed needle valve a quarter turn at a time until it runs smoothly at full throttle under load.

Sent from my Moto G (5) Plus using Tapatalk


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