I think I overfilled the gas on my lawnmower and now it is puffing black smoke. what do I do?
worldpeace asked:
I’ve never filled the gasoline on a lawnmower before. When I tried to do it today I accidentally spilled some all over the mower because I dont have a funell.
I tried to wipe up the excess with a paper towel but I think some of it got into the engine.
When I turn it on it makes huge puffs of smelly black smoke and then dies after a few seconds.
What should I do to get my mower working again?
Okay. So I waited 20 minutes. Now when I start the engine, it puffs white smoke, not black smoke. But it still dies after 10 seconds or so.
What should I do to fix this problem??
Alright…I’m an idiot.
It looks like I filled the oil tank with gasoline instead of the gasoline tank.
Yeah, I know. Real stupid.
I didn’t realize there was a difference.
So now I obviously know what caused this problem.
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I’ve never filled the gasoline on a lawnmower before. When I tried to do it today I accidentally spilled some all over the mower because I dont have a funell.
I tried to wipe up the excess with a paper towel but I think some of it got into the engine.
When I turn it on it makes huge puffs of smelly black smoke and then dies after a few seconds.
What should I do to get my mower working again?
Okay. So I waited 20 minutes. Now when I start the engine, it puffs white smoke, not black smoke. But it still dies after 10 seconds or so.
What should I do to fix this problem??
Alright…I’m an idiot.
It looks like I filled the oil tank with gasoline instead of the gasoline tank.
Yeah, I know. Real stupid.
I didn’t realize there was a difference.
So now I obviously know what caused this problem.
What I dont know is what to do about it!
February 10th, 2009 at 9:21 am
Sounds like your choke is shut. Try opening it slowly when it starts,or open it all the way when trying to start it. It may be flooded.
February 13th, 2009 at 1:38 am
Have you checked the oil level?
February 14th, 2009 at 10:34 pm
Leave it sit over night, the gas will evaporate. You can also leave the lid off the gas tank to let some evaporate from the tank, just leave the mover in a well ventilated area and don’t light a fire anywhere nearby!
The puffs of black smoke sound like something else though. Has the oil been changed recently? It could also be a faulty spark plug. Try changing the oil per the instruction manual and remove the sparkplug and clean it with steel wool. You can check the gap with a 50 cent gapper from an automotive store or hardware store. If you don’t want to do all this, just go buy a new spark plug. Good luck!
February 16th, 2009 at 6:46 am
Some lawn mowers require oil to be added to the gas.
February 17th, 2009 at 2:04 am
I would run. Fast.
Just kidding, I would stop using it and call the manufactuer-they usually have a help line.
February 18th, 2009 at 12:48 pm
is this the first time you used it this year? if so you may have left gas in it over the winter and the needle valve is clogged up. check the oil and make sure it isn’t too full, then try again.
And for goodness sakes, don’t let anyone tell you that you need a new spark plug because it wouldn’t run at all if it were bad. this definitly sounds like a carb problem. now wait a minute…. you said that you have never put gas in a mower before, am I to assume that you have never used one before? perhaps you should ask a friend for some advice.
I would say that you just need to clean the carb and change the gas and oil (if it hasn’t been done) you may even need an air filter, but if it isn’t realy realy dirty then you are fine.
and again, it is not the spark plug
ps, if it is a 4 stroke motor you should NEVER put anything but gas in the gas tank.(the mower would clearly state that it required oil in the fuel if it were a 2 stroke)
February 19th, 2009 at 2:27 am
overfilling it will not cause that problem. gas dries quite fast. check to see if your choke is connected to the hand control. you may have disconnected it in your haste to clean it up. it is definitely overchoked.
February 19th, 2009 at 8:28 pm
Drain the Gas/oil out of the oil resevoure. and refill (per mower spec) with 30W engine oil. fill THE GAS TANK WITH GAS and start…it should be ok…unless there is something else wrong… Is your mower a 2 cycle or 4 cycle engine? the 2 cycle takes an oil gas mixture in the gas tank…but wouldnt have an oil resevoure, the 4 cycle takes gas only and has an oil resevoure. Good Luck.
February 21st, 2009 at 1:35 am
It would help to know if this is a push mower or a riding mower. I will assume it is a push mower.
But first want to advise you never to fill gas in your mower when it is hot because the vapors can explode…especially so on a riding mower.
The only way gas can get into the engine is thru the gas tank or thru the air filter If you spilled a lot of gas and some went into the air filter then you have simply flooded the engine with gas. This will cause black smoke “if” it starts and could also cause it to stall.
to remedy that is just to remove the air filter and let it air dry. This filter is easily removed by anyone with no experience.
Next…all gas engines have a “choke” mechanism which provides more gas at startup as a cold engine needs that. Once the engine starts and runs for a few momments, the choke should be closed.
If it does not close, the engine will be getting too much gas and will send off black smoke before it stalls. This iscalled “flooding”.
When an engine gets flooded, the spark plugs are so wet with gas they will short out the electric going to them and the mower will not start until the plugs are dried again.
So here’s the deal…
I think when you were wiping the excess gas away you may have moved the choke setting by accident. If your mower has a choke lever then find it and set it to a low position when starting and off entirely when the engine is warm.
The best resort would be to ask a neighbour to show you what’s what on your mower and you will understand better. There really is little to learn as the basics are minimal.
Please get a funnel…