Carburetor Spray - Does it work.

[nickbo]

Hi all,

Back again with the 1975, 70 hp Johnson which has been sitting for a few years...

Fixed the power pack, replaced the steering, plugs, gear oil, generally tidied things up - including cleaning out the gauze and replacing the gasket in the fuel filter.

Starts OK after a bit of choke, idles reasonably Ok but when I open her up, it runs as rough as.... Anyway, I have no doubt that everying in the carburetor's gummed up or whatever.

Well, being pretty lazy and scared of pulling down the carburetors and seeing springs and things flying about the place, are any of the 'easy fixit' sprays any good ? How do they work and can I do any damage using them ?

[BenKeith]

That's not going to clean inside the carb where the problem is. those carbs are some of the most sensitive to being dirty you'll ever come across. It cost $150 - $200 to have someone clean them, and if they don't realy know what they're doing, it's going to still be running the same way when you get it back. I've seen a many a power pack replaced simply because someone didn't know how to clean the carbs. Get you the carb gasket sets, that's usually all that's needed, a couple of cans of carb and choke cleaner or brake part cleaner, take them apart, and clean them. Make sure you clean every orifice, a set of 1 - 80 drill bits work great for this, welding tip cleaners help but don't have all the sizes you need. Just use them to clean the holes and not make them bigger. spray cleaner through every hole and blow them out good with air. Be sure the emulsion tube is clean and the holes in it a open. That's kinda hard to do and where most people go wrong.

[Markus]

Take them off, disassemble them and clean them with some carburator cleaner. You can find it at Wal-Mart. I have heard that brake cleaner works as well, but I have never tried it on anything but my trailer brakes. If you have access to pressurized air, that is good too for blowing through the little passages.

Get a service manual if you are worried that you will not be able to assemble the carbs afterwards. There are not that many parts, though.

[crazy horse]

I kinda thought that the carbs would need to be cleaned. I think I have a exploded view of your carbs and linkage if that will help. Also for someone that hasn't done this before, Only take one apart at a time. Carbs are pretty simple and yours will most likely just need cleaning and maybe you will need to ajust the floats. You might need to check the fuel pump to see if it needs rebuilding and make sure you have NO fuel leaks anywhere.

[Rickracer]

...better figure out where you can get some, cuz you will need it to do the job right. :cool:

[Travis Fulton]

i would do a set of 3 for 150 bucks anyday!??

but seriously i do em all the time! dont worry about taking the shafts out! just take the bowl off and take the plastic pin out thats holding the flote on and make note how the flote is positioned (up or down) in perportion to the bowl, careful when you pull the needle out not to loose it, then remove the rubber ring on the emultion tube and you are ready!!!! if you want you can also remove the jets no bog deal just un screw em and put em back when you are done dont waste your time on sprays or any other worthless crap buy a gallon can of CHEM-DIP carb cleaner and put em in it over night and wash em out the next day with water, bloy dry with air, it is not difficult at all! and if you have any problems im sure we can help ya through it!!!

[Rickracer]

...for quite some time. I think the EPA caused them to have to change the formula about 10~15 years ago, and it has not worked the same since. Also, disposal of the stuff is regulated. The canned carb spray works better than the newer Chem Dip for dissolving varnish anyway. If you buy 3 or 4 cans, then fill a 2~3 lb. coffee can with it high enough to submerge the carbs in it, you can soak them for a hour or so and them blow them out. To a point, the longer you soak them, the better though. Sometimes when blowing out the passages, you can actually hear chunks of stuff coming out, like a spittting sound, then smooth hissing. :cool:

[JLeus]

Not so much on outboards for me, but I have chased operational problems, motor would not seem to hold the adjustments, that turned out to be float problems. It doesn't make sense to me but it seems like aged gas in a bowl will attack floats, even brass floats in Briggs motors.

Trick:

In a small pot of water "almost" boiling on the stove top....stick the float in it......any air bubbles escaping from the float identifies a leak. The smallest leak will create problems. Find something to hold it under the water with, some long tweezers on the hinge part of the float works for me.

I do this to every carb float I have out.

[nickbo]

OK guys and thanks a heap for all the posts. I now have a manual - but pics don't tell you what's about to fly out when you undo something.

With the manual in the left hand & the S&F posts in the right, I'll give it a go.

- shall use the carb cleaner to light the Barbecue :)

Is anything I clean out likley to visible ? ie, should there be brown chunks or something or is it more subtle than this ? Rickracer, note your comments - are we talking big or little bits ?

will i know when it's clean and if I pull it apart, does every hole (little as they may be) have an out ? BTW, I have compressed air through a little compressor (20cft) and a blow gun - is this what you mean ?

Cheers from the land down under & no, I don't know Steve Irwin !

Nickbo

Jleus - thanks for the tip - let's hope the Mrs doesn't want a cup of tea.
Crazyhorse - Cheers and thanks for the power pack tip you were spot on. Have got hold of the clymer manual from my library. reluctant to give the thing back - but I will !! Apart form the carbs - anything else in your crystal ball (done the impellor) ?
Travis Cheers - I dunno about a gallon for 3 little carbs - but what's left, you can have!
Markus - If we had a walmart down hereI would - but I get the idea
BenKeith - No problems, but can you help me identify the "emulsion tube" ?

I know I seem a bit of a Gimmee this and gimmee that -but the help on the forum is really great and has saved me a fortune.

[crazy horse]

For my own peace of mind I want to tell ya to please be careful using compressed air and cleaning fluid of any kind. Watch your eyes and face when your messing with the carbs. Your little compressor should work. You don't need alot of pressure to do the job and make sure you don't blow something out of the carb that you might need:D.

[Rickracer]

Just look for clean carb cleaner coming out when you are flushing. I usually spray some in each passage with the little plastic tube that comes taped to the can, and make sure what's coming out looks clean, then blow them dry with your air.

That's a very good point too Crazy Horse, the use of safety glasses is highly recommended when using compressed air under any circumstances, particularly with cleaning fluids. Carb cleaner in your eyes can temporarily blind you, and even if it doesn't, it will really sting. I tend to forget to mention things like that sometimes, because I wear glasses (with safety lenses) all the time anyway. Good luck with it, and if ya get in a bind, you know we are here to help you get out of it. :cool:

[Markus]

Well, we do not have them here either. And I have never seen carburator cleaner anywhere. :( Australia might be more developed in that respect, though.

Brake cleaner is a lot easier to come by, so go with that if you cannot find carb cleaner. Your compressor will be just fine.

[Forkin' Crazy]

I will never use any metal object (drill bits, torch cleaners, ect) to clean or unstop any orifice (or jet). If you marr the sides,it will change the flow characteristics. Changes in the flow characteristics may cause harm to internal parts. I use cleaners and compressed air only. If you have to dig stuff out use something soft like a wood tooth pick or plastic.

The emulsion tube (made of brass) extends from the float bowl upwards through the carb body into the venturi. There is a hole inwhich the fuel that is drawn up the tube is mixed with air, therefore an emulsion of air/fuel is created. This is what gives the engine the fuel/air required for idle. An air orifice (what a jet is called when it meters air) meters the fuel air ratio for idle.

You can get kits for the carbs. I would replace the needles and seats. You can look at the taper of the needle to determine if it needs to be replaced. They should have a perfect taper. If it has a ring or grove around the taper, they need to be replaced. The kits also come with O rings that seal off the bowl drains etc. If it is old enough to have an adjustable idle needle, it will come with the packing to do that too.

If you can get OMC's Engine tune, get it. It will clean the parts well and won't eat up your hands as bad as the carb cleaner.

Good luck!

[O/B Dude]

I just skimmed thru this so hopefully I won't have redundant answers. What everyoneone said was all great advice. I use a blow gun on the end of an air hose and direct it into every orifice. I use soft, fine wire to poke through all the orifices, passages, etc. The emulsion tubes are usually brass and hard to miss. Just get some copper wire and poke it through every hole inside the carbs, then spray it out, putting the straw from the carb cleaner can in all the orifices. I would get 3 cans of the stuff so you can really soak them down again after blowing them out. If you are careful in disassembly you may be able to reuse the gaskets. I don't know if OMC's are like Mercs where you can flip the gaskets over to change the mating surface. Hope this helps.

[zmoz]

I had a similar problem when I first got my inline 6. I got a can of "seafoam" and "deep creep" at Napa. Mixed the seafoam with the gas, sprayed the deep creep in the carbs while it was running. Made a BIG difference. It immediately increased the idle speed, made it run smoother, and made it so that I could go above 1200RPMs in the water without it dying. As much as it sounds like "snake oil", this s*** really works. I have witnesses to prove it...;)

[yamahadog]

it may work but nothing is goin to replace cleaning the carbs throughly.

[O/B Dude]

I have to agree with Yamahadog on this one. Varnished carbs should be disassembled and thoroughly cleaned. I am the type that pulls my carbs every few months and cleans them, even its running good.

[chris_lacey]

Carb cleaners.
I have noticed in the last number of years carb cleaners don't work anywhere as well as they used to. No more chlorinated hydrocarbons.
The best alternative I have found lately is "gun wash" from the body shop supply stores. Used for cleaning spray equipment. Very powerful solvent, and it does a great job on carbs. Just make sure to remove any gasketing or plastic parts.