# Water in fuel, or just bad gas?



## JDgreen227 (Nov 5, 2014)

Got a freebie Craftsman Tecumseh 5 hp 2-stroke single stage blower from someone who said it last ran several years ago. Has good compression and spark, but when I put fuel in there wasn't a pop of response when I tried starting it. Took the lower housing off to access the carb, pressed in the bowl drain and I got a trickle of rusty looking fluid, very thick...but no scent. Set the blower on the front so the carb was horizontal and took the bowl off, it had about a spoonful of what looked like thick rusty sludge...the pin that held the float bowl on was rusted to about the thickness of a paper clip. Need to replace the float (corroded) the pin, the float needle is long since gone so I need to replace that plus the seat. The stuff in the bowl and on the bottom of the carb looks like wet iron filings but there is no scent at all. I think it's water but not sure...guy I got it from said he always had it indoors and the fuel cap on. Any ideas? Thanks.


----------



## Grunt (Nov 11, 2013)

Hello JD. By the time you buy a carb kit and float for $10?, you may be better off with a new carb if you are absolutely sure you have spark and strong compression. It almost sounds like the engine was stored with straight gas and no oil mix. Removing the welch plugs and cleaning every small passage in the carb may be next to impossible even with an ultra sonic cleaner. Will the engine start with a little fuel down the spark plug hole? If it does start, "I" would get another carb, but, you have nothing to lose trying to clean the old carb. Good luck.


----------



## UNDERTAKER (Dec 30, 2013)

Grunt said:


> Hello JD. By the time you buy a carb kit and float for $10?, you may be better off with a new carb if you are absolutely sure you have spark and strong compression. It almost sounds like the engine was stored with straight gas and no oil mix. Removing the welch plugs and cleaning every small passage in the carb may be next to impossible even with an ultra sonic cleaner. Will the engine start with a little fuel down the spark plug hole? If it does start, "I" would get another carb, but, you have nothing to lose trying to clean the old carb. Good luck.


GRUNT'S OVER 400 POST'S NOW.


----------



## JDgreen227 (Nov 5, 2014)

Grunt said:


> Hello JD. By the time you buy a carb kit and float for $10?, you may be better off with a new carb if you are absolutely sure you have spark and strong compression. It almost sounds like the engine was stored with straight gas and no oil mix. Removing the welch plugs and cleaning every small passage in the carb may be next to impossible even with an ultra sonic cleaner. Will the engine start with a little fuel down the spark plug hole? If it does start, "I" would get another carb, but, you have nothing to lose trying to clean the old carb. Good luck.


 
Thanks for your feedback...I should have mentioned it did fire up with gas in the plug hole. I used to have several Tecumseh engined push mowers and had the carb kits needed to repair those, and they will fit the blower. Not going to get a new carb...if I cannot get this one clean I will just save it for parts...I have another of the exact same model. Should have claified that when I put fuel in the TANK it would not fire at all. 

Congrats on getting over the 400 post mark !!!


----------



## 43128 (Feb 14, 2014)

do you have pictures?


----------



## Grunt (Nov 11, 2013)

JDgreen227 said:


> Thanks for your feedback...I should have mentioned it did fire up with gas in the plug hole. I used to have several Tecumseh engined push mowers and had the carb kits needed to repair those, and they will fit the blower. Not going to get a new carb...if I cannot get this one clean I will just save it for parts...I have another of the exact same model. Should have claified that when I put fuel in the TANK it would not fire at all.
> 
> Congrats on getting over the 400 post mark !!!


It is pretty amazing how the part number 631021B carb kit fits so many carbs. 

Hopefully a few of my posts have helped people.


----------



## greatwhitebuffalo (Feb 11, 2014)

check all the passages in the carb, including the ones you CAN'T SEE, and are hidden, i.e. air bleeds

see this thread

http://www.snowblowerforum.com/foru...h-carb-problem-mystery-solved.html#post306681


----------



## JDgreen227 (Nov 5, 2014)

Hello guys...it has been so darn cold here I didn't do anything more to the machine until today...I cleaned the carb as well as I could using carb cleaner (leaving it on the engine) and installed a Tecumseh parts kit I had purchased for a Craftsman mower 15 years ago...replaced the float and pivot, the needle, spring and seat, the main jet and gasket plus the fuel line and filter...put in fresh 40/1 fuel-oil mix and it fired right up after a half dozen pulls. Seems to run a tad rough when cold but okay when warm so maybe the main jet is off a little. I didn't want to pull the carb unless I had to. Put some dry gas in the fuel mix in the hopes it may take the gunk out of the carb interior. Now I have two of these, about 2003 vintage Craftsman...I paid $285 with tax for the new one back then (floor sample) and it has required nothing except a new belt and fuel lines and filter. What a deal !!!


----------



## Motor City (Jan 6, 2014)

Dry gas is just adding more alcohol to the fuel system, which isn't good. Get a can off Seafoam and mix it in the gas, on the strong side. And run a few tanks of that. It may help clean the carb, internally.


----------

