Version 0.0
December 20, 2015
Presented by:Raymond VanDervort
Scope:Bowl Type Carburetors usually found on most 4 cycle engines. Additional scope may include various other fuel systems.
Purpose:
First to prevent leak and fire hazards, second to minimize storage deterioration within the carburetor forcing service and preventing proper operation of the engine.
Problems:
Much equipment is sold without a shut off valve or one not best placed. Second, all bowl float carburetors can occasionally leak fuel, particularly if feed fuel by the most common method of gravity. In such a design, the only thing preventing fuel from leaking is the inlet needle in the bowl float carburetor.
Simple improvement in many
cases is to install a fuel shut off valve in the fuel feed system to the
carburetor. The best location is one that threads into the tank, but this is
not always easily done, and nearly as good is a n inexpensive in-line shut off
valve.
Customer usage:
Upon completion of equipment
usage, we recommend shutting the valve off and letting the equipment run out of
fuel, thus the carburetor has little fuel in it and cannot get more if it were to
leak and also will have less fuel exposed to air, as the bowl is vented and the
gas in the bowl that remains will deteriorate. When next used, the fresher fuel
bottled up in the fuel line will dilute the remnant fuel in the bowl, making
the mixture a better fuel source than if this procedure had not been done. This equates to less service, better starting,
more reliable, cleaner running, less pollution, less fire hazard.
Equipment that is transported:
All Commercial Outdoor Power
Equipment transported on a trailer or vehicle should have a shut off and it
should be used. In some cases, gas dilution of the oil when a leak occurs will
result in engine damage on the next run. Even if this does not occur, in the
life of a unit a leak will occur, possibly on most relocations, causing a loss
of costly fuel.