# surging, governor? 920014 compact



## rnlocnil (Feb 9, 2014)

This is totally subjective, but it seems to me that the engine is surging more than it did last year. Power seems to be adequate, and it always starts right away if I do everything right, but when idling or lightly loaded it seems to surge a lot. The headlight even dims and brightens. Is this normal? If not, is the governor flaky? It seems to me that there's a faint gasoline smell, which I think is stronger when it's on a low setting and idling. I bought the snowblower in 2013, from a Home Despot in Massachusetts. Is there anything easy I can do? Is linkage someplace sticking?

FYI, blower model is 920014 and the engine is a Briggs and Stratton model 130905 (i.e. 130000 series). 

Thanks in advance.


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## JLawrence08648 (Jan 15, 2017)

Carb is getting dirty. Put a fuel carb cleaner in each time, most likely after time it will clear up. If you have mixture adjustments you can adjust out, if not don't worry about it.


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

As JLawrence08648 said, it's likely a dirty carb. Perhaps the idle jet. You could try turning the choke on by 1 or 2 clicks to see if that helps smooth things out. But that's a band-aid, not really a fix. 

I haven't had much luck with putting additives (like Seafoam) in the gas, to gradually clean a carb. I've only really had an improvement when I've finally taken the carb off and cleaned it thoroughly. But it won't hurt to try an additive in the gas as a starting point. 

If you don't have the inclination/tools to clean the carb, and it gets bad, and you don't want to take it somewhere to be fixed, you might be able to just buy a replacement carb for cheap online (eBay, etc). 

Either way, if you add fuel stabilizer every time you fill your gas can, you can help avoid problems like these in the future.


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## coastie56 (Feb 4, 2016)

it appears that there is a fire hazard recall on your snowblower according to consumer reports. org due to a leaking carb. Maybe they will fix or repair it for free.


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## JayzAuto1 (Jul 25, 2016)

All good and accurate answers so far. The only successful repair has been to remove and clean carb. Not a tough job. Fairly simple and about 1/2 hours work. Additives will work as maintenance, not really good at cleaning a dirty carb quickly. Videos available online to aid in the cleaning. even if need to bring to a shop, not very costly, although the good shops are probably busy.

GLuck, Jay


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## jtclays (Sep 24, 2010)

Here's a link to check your serial number for the recalled units. Good idea to check your oil for high level if you smell gas. Briggs sometimes have issues with the needle and seat. On those newer designs the carb has a straight run into the block so if the carb is overfilling you can end up with fuel in the oil. Good idea to always shut the fuel off when not in use if it has a valve.
Ariens Company Safety Recalls


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