Best way to clean/prevent gummed up small engines?

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Could happen to anyone. Small engines that are not being used for years may be interesting again. Like my 2.5hp outboard now that the kids want to play with small boats... It's an eraly 80s archimedes... Even older lawn mowers...

How do we clean them? Chemicals? If they start, i'd rather not take them apart but user some cleaner.
 
If it starts, idles, and runs at full throttle ok the carb is probably fine. The smallest orifice in the carb is usually the idle circuit so any gunking will show in poor or no idle.

If it's carbon on the piston, head, rings that your worried about you could use something like omc tune-up or similar product as directed (the stuff you spray in a running engine).
 
i have 2 big boats, holley 4b on one and a mercarb 2b on the other, have or have had numerous outboards all being 2-cycle, and have the usual: lawn mower, snowblower, weedwacker, and mantis tiller (2-cycle). rebuilt carb yesterday on the mantis that's been a real mf'er .
in all my experience, fwiw, additives in the gas are a complete waste of money. The only surefire solution is pull the carb apart, use carb cleaner and compressed air to clean it out, reassemble and use new gaskets if the old ones can't be salvaged.
the best preventative maintenance, these days with ethanol in the gas, is to make sure you get all the gas out of the carburetor before storage, especially outdoor storage. The ethanol will pull in moisture and water will develop in the carb bowl because it is vented. any other measures you can take are a good idea, such as storing equipment indoors or at least where humidity and temperatures don't change much. Basements are good, outdoor sheds not good.
gas stabilizer doesn't combat the real problem anymore, it's not the gas separating and going bad from storage, it's the water/moisture being pulled in because of the ethanol, and the water ends up forming rust and corrosion which leads to sediment in the carb.
 
Lars,

I would also take out the spark plugs & spray a little Fogging Oil into the cylinders. Then, pull the cord slowly several times and put new spark plugs in.

Good luck and let us know how you do!!!

cheers.gif
 
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