Spring Is In The Air
Spring has finally sprung. This means warmer weather and getting ready for grass (and other items) to start growing. This in turn means getting the lawnmower ready to start cutting the grass. Back in the fall, I wrote a blog about storing equipment properly. For those that read the blog and stored your equipment properly, your equipment is ready to go. For the rest of you, Mechanic In A Bottle is your best solution.
Even if your lawn mower starts and runs, the gas that sat in the gas tank all winter long and is now running through the engine has started to go bad (marginal gas). This means that the fuel system has started to collect some varnish as well as the internal engine components. Pour 1 ounce of Mechanic In A Bottle into the gas tank on the bigger riding mowers, a capful or two for smaller equipment, run the unit for 5-10 minutes, then let it sit for 4 hours. Top the unit off with fresh gas (not the gas that is in the gas can since last summer) and your machine will run great.
So what do you do if the lawnmower does not start? Should you bring it into a shop and spend a lot of money? The good news is that if it is a fuel related failure, Mechanic In A Bottle will take care of the problem. Get as much gas out of the unit as you can then pour 2 ounces of Mechanic In A Bottle into the tank. Prime the fuel system by either pushing the primmer bulb 8-10 times or pull the starter rope 12-15 times. This will work the Mechanic In A Bottle into the carburetor. Let the unit sit overnight. Then top off the tank by adding fresh fuel. Start your machine. This may take a few extra pulls to get the Mechanic In A Bottle out of the carburetor and work in the fresh gas.
If the unit still does not start, there is something else going on. There could be a crack in a diaphragm or some serious corrosion inside the carburetor. It could also be a non-fuel related failure like no spark. Unfortunately, at this point the unit will need to go to a shop as the issue could be major.
Remember to treat all of your fuel with Ethanol Shield and use the Gasoline Tank Snake in the gas can to protect your fuel system year round. By using the Gasoline Tank Snake and Ethanol Shield together, you will have the gold standard in fuel protection.