glad someone know what they are doing i am a small engine mechanic my self. i drive garbage truck full time and see mower after mower getting thrown away Ive saved hundreds of them due to this problem you have a good attitude towards saving machinery
Thanks, you were right. The repair was simple and under 15 minutes. Took longer to clean the machine. Now my mower runs like new again. I appreciate your positive energy!!!!
Fantastic, watched this, ordered the gaskets off ebay (£2.40), fitted them while talking on the phone to my Dad, then fired it up....never loved the sound of my little lawnmower so much! Thanks for bothering to put this up..my 20year old mower lives on (in a wet and soggy Leyland -Northern England)...!
Rock on! Bought the lawn mower for $60. Ran great at the sellers house. Than did an immediate nose dive. Changed the spark plug and it started easy. But, all the problems mentioned here. Thought I was out $60. And then your video saved the day. Ordered the part on line (different part number but I had the manual. May be the same thing) and watched the video twice. Took me 10 minutes to replace. And for about $20 (spark plug, filter, oil, and diagphram, it runs great. Thanks so much!
Like the other comments, thanks for the video. Cost of service £55 plus parts, plus VAT... Cost of parts (from ebay) £8 (including carb spray). Took me 15 minutes. Mower work fine now. I would not have done this, if I had not watched this video. Thank you once again from a happy Man from England.
EXCELLENT! EXCELLENT! EXCELLENT! Thank you! I'm am the ANTI-Handy Man! Can barely change a light bulb. But in this economy, I couldn't see spending the $90 bucks to have, what I thought, was a simple problem fixed. Enter your video. The diaphragm was $2.99 at my local NAPA Auto Parts. I changed the oil and installed a new air filter. Now.....The push-mower than hasn't run in 3 years fired right up! Total cost - about $7.50! THANK YOU!
I came across your video today while researching how to bring a mower back to life. Your title caught my attention! Thank you for doing everything step by step. Most videos tell you that it's an "easy fix" and then they don't show you all of the steps! I was able to take my carburetor apart - having never even thought about doing so - and fixed it myself! Great, great video!!
Thank you...worked great. $4.98 at local Lowes. Yard Machine, with Briggs engine. Starting running like crap this year, with fouled plug. Tried just about everything until I found this video. 10 minutes, and runs like new!
Glad to hear that you were able to fix your lawn mower. So many of these mowers end up in the trash because of such a simple problem that is pretty easy to fix.
Thanks for this post. Two years ago my Briggs and Stratton mower showed all the classic signs of needing a new carburetor diaphragm. The lawnmower "specialists" I used to service it were obviously not aware of these symptoms as it took them two attempts to fix and cost me 100 euros (about 130 dollars) into the bargain! It has recently started to do the same thing and following your clip I have fixed the problem for the cost of the part (3.50 euros/ 4.60 dollars). If I can fix it anyone can!
I guess next year I will owe you the $50 the repair guy charged me for his time to repair my mower. And then he charged me $22 for the "parts". And even this little old lady can do this myself thanks to you. The hardest part will be picking it up to put on the stool. Thanks a lot.
Hey Arizona; I just want to say thank you for not starting your videos with that F#$%%ing so "annoying" metal music like most of the other GUY's do...Your videos are a big help here thanks and keep them coming.
Thank you sir!!! You just fixed my mower, and possibly another that has been out of commission for 2 years, which seems to have the same problem. And I can tell my man I did it myself lol. Thanks again for your expertise! You rock :D
Thank you so much for this video, it took me more than ten minutes but it really was as easy as you say it is. I'm glad i watched this video first as it made removing the linkage straightforward and without complication. All your advice and insructions were right on the money. My mower thanks you as well :)
Love the way you explained everything.. I can't wait to show off :) you should do changing oil, filters too. For others that don't know anything about this kind of stuff. Like me.
Thanks man, I really appreciate it. I was so far as to pull the carb yesterday. I was to scared to pull that gasket off. Thanks to you I can be more confident now and rebuild the whole thing. Thanks again.
Thanks from England for your video and explanation. Just got a Briggs & Stratton 450 series running again. The bigger bolt was undone by a 13mm socket and the smaller one a 10mm socket. Think they're technically 1/2 and 3/8 but I only have metric socket to hand so they were close enough.
thank you SO MUCH!! i replaced the plug and cleaned the air filter and it still ran like crap...i was just about to go buy a new mower as so many things are almost throw away items nowadays and i am not mechanically inclined at all but after watching this video i had to try...figured i had nothing to lose so i got out a few tools and had mine running like new for $5...took me a bit longer than 10 minutes but not much. thanks again!
Shit. I literally just bought a new mower yesterday and think this is the problem with my old one. Well, looks like I'm gonna be able to have the wife mow with me so we can bang out the lawn in half the time.
My local Lowes had a Briggs & Stratton OEM rebuild kit for $4. Just finished doing this to mine, though i also replaced the spring and pickup screen, as well as the plug and fired on first pull. Ran like it did on day 1. (5 years old). Mine is a Briggs and Stratton 183cc.
Yep. Most of the time it just needs a rebuilt(usually a completely new carb) because they haven't properly drained the fuel and it goes bad and eats the carb. It's amazing how fast gasoline can turn to crap without fuel stabilizer and even then the shelf life is crap compared to so many other sources of energy like propane.
Good, informative video here, Thanks, I was wanting to pull off the carb on an old B&G mower my Dad left me. All the gasoline that you buy at the pump is 10-15% alcohol now, so the old fashion rubber and vinyl seals in your fuel system, that are not PVC grade, are being slowly eroded........ If you have a gasoline powered Lawn Mower, Weed Eater, Leaf Blower, Chain saw or Hedge Trimmer and have been rebuilding or replacing the carburetor every season, it's the Ethanol/Alcohol eating away the seals, clogging the fuel jet with resin from the melted rubber.,,,,,, Ever look at a clear fuel line in small a 2-cycle engine and see what looks like black mold...??? It's actually burnt rubber from when the gas and alcohol separates and the alcohol becomes full strength, burns the rubber and vinyl, melting it,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, Solution: GO TO YOUR LOCAL RACE/PERFORMANCE SHOP, like Horse Power sales, AND BUY A 5 GAL CAN OF SUNOCO-STANDARD 110 RACE GAS,,, This product is good old fashion pure petroleum with lead, just like your grandpa used, and is perfect for powering your small engines that keep your lawn and garden looking appropriate. just add the 2-cycle oil as normally done when needed....... And of course,If you're going to store your small engine equipment for the winter, dump out your gas tank, run the engine out with the choke on to use up remaining gas and put a couple of drops of light oil into the cylinder through the spark plug hole, work the cylinder a bit. And leave the gas cap off for effective evaporation.
I just replaced the carburetor diaphragm and gasket on a Craftsman power mower equipped with a Briggs & Stratton engine, and I got to do it TWICE, because I got the stacking order of the fiber gasket and rubber diaphragm wrong. The first time I assembled it, the primer bulb didn't suck fuel at all, just air. I re-examined the old gasket and diaphragm, which were pretty much fused together with age, and it was DIFFICULT to tell on which side the rubber was. On the second attempt the primer worked properly and the engine immediately started up. FYI - the fiber gasket goes against the carburetor body and the rubber diaphragm goes against the boss on the fuel tank. In my case, i was taking a chance that the diaphragm was the cause of the problem which was uneven power and engine speed, particularly when the mower was decelerated sharply, causing the fuel to slosh in the tank. It wasn't enough to kill the engine yet, but it looked like failure was imminent, so I bought the gasket and diaphragm kit (less than $3 on eBay) and swapped it out. In a brief test run it appears to have cured it. I'm happy, as 20 minutes of work and a few bucks in parts saved me $100 in shop charges.
I'm not sure what the new diaphragm is made from, but it seems to work okay with ethanol. I replaced the diaphragm in my mower about three years ago and it still works good. In michigan it is almost impossible to find 100% gasoline and the gas station does not have to post ethanol percentage here in Michigan. This year I found 100% gas at the boat marina, so I'm using that now. About a $1.50 more per gallon, but I have a small yard and only use a gallon or two all year.
Thanks for the quick reply. I have change the air filter and the diapharm is next. I have no idea what it could be. Im just a single mom so I dont have a lot of disposable income. It starts up and then after about 2min just dies.
Its a Poulan with a Briggs and Stratton engine. I live in Texas and most gas stations post a sticker saying the gas may contain 10% ethanol...don't know about the alcohol content. This mower started acting up the second time I tried to use it....wouldn't start. the following day was gonna take it back and then it started and i had not any trouble until yesterday.
Do you know the size of the bolts (front& side) that connect the carribuator/ tank to the engine? My brother in law used my lawn mower and when he returned it one of the bolts (front) was missing and the side one was very loose. I treid to recconect the side bolt, but it appears to be to small as it will not thread in. Just want to purchase new bolts and start from there
Where do you get this diaphragm at? The local home improvement store didn't have it.I took mine apart and it was one piece that peeled off. My lawn mower is 4mo old and Im tired of messing with the thing. I dont know where my receipt is, usually I am good at keeping receipts...so now im out of luck
HELP! I replaced the diaphragm, add new oil, replaces air filter and spark plus, new gas - and lawn mower is still revving up and down and blow a bit of smoke. really frustrating for my first attempt at DIY. Thanks!
So you don't throw away the old diapharm? you put the old and new one on together? I might have misread your reply. Sorry to bother you but I appreciate it
I sware I don't intend to disrespect you or attack you brother but this video is irresponsible as hell. Your spraying carb cleaner on your carb without safety glasses! My father has been working on cars for over 35 years and he's had carb cleaner in his eyes. It can be horrific. Carb cleaner as you surely know is nasty, nasty stuff and can cause permanent eye damage and immense pain. Please edit the video reco'ing safety glasses when using carb cleaner. Thanks for the vid and god bless.
glad someone know what they are doing i am a small engine mechanic my self. i drive garbage truck full time and see mower after mower getting thrown away Ive saved hundreds of them due to this problem you have a good attitude towards saving machinery
Thanks, you were right. The repair was simple and under 15 minutes. Took longer to clean the machine. Now my mower runs like new again.
I appreciate your positive energy!!!!
Fantastic, watched this, ordered the gaskets off ebay (£2.40), fitted them while talking on the phone to my Dad, then fired it up....never loved the sound of my little lawnmower so much! Thanks for bothering to put this up..my 20year old mower lives on (in a wet and soggy Leyland -Northern England)...!
Rock on! Bought the lawn mower for $60. Ran great at the sellers house. Than did an immediate nose dive. Changed the spark plug and it started easy. But, all the problems mentioned here. Thought I was out $60. And then your video saved the day. Ordered the part on line (different part number but I had the manual. May be the same thing) and watched the video twice. Took me 10 minutes to replace. And for about $20 (spark plug, filter, oil, and diagphram, it runs great. Thanks so much!
Like the other comments, thanks for the video. Cost of service £55 plus parts, plus VAT... Cost of parts (from ebay) £8 (including carb spray).
Took me 15 minutes. Mower work fine now. I would not have done this, if I had not watched this video. Thank you once again from a happy Man from England.
EXCELLENT! EXCELLENT! EXCELLENT!
Thank you! I'm am the ANTI-Handy Man! Can barely change a light bulb. But in this economy, I couldn't see spending the $90 bucks to have, what I thought, was a simple problem fixed. Enter your video. The diaphragm was $2.99 at my local NAPA Auto Parts. I changed the oil and installed a new air filter. Now.....The push-mower than hasn't run in 3 years fired right up! Total cost - about $7.50! THANK YOU!
I came across your video today while researching how to bring a mower back to life. Your title caught my attention! Thank you for doing everything step by step. Most videos tell you that it's an "easy fix" and then they don't show you all of the steps! I was able to take my carburetor apart - having never even thought about doing so - and fixed it myself! Great, great video!!
Thank you...worked great. $4.98 at local Lowes. Yard Machine, with Briggs engine. Starting running like crap this year, with fouled plug. Tried just about everything until I found this video. 10 minutes, and runs like new!
Brilliant advice, saved me £££'s, new gasket only cost £3 :-) took me 20 mins to replace and mower runs like a dream now, many tanks
Glad to hear that you were able to fix your lawn mower. So many of these mowers end up in the trash because of such a simple problem that is pretty easy to fix.
Thanks for this post. Two years ago my Briggs and Stratton mower showed all the classic signs of needing a new carburetor diaphragm. The lawnmower "specialists" I used to service it were obviously not aware of these symptoms as it took them two attempts to fix and cost me 100 euros (about 130 dollars) into the bargain! It has recently started to do the same thing and following your clip I have fixed the problem for the cost of the part (3.50 euros/ 4.60 dollars). If I can fix it anyone can!
I guess next year I will owe you the $50 the repair guy charged me for his time to repair my mower. And then he charged me $22 for the "parts". And even this little old lady can do this myself thanks to you. The hardest part will be picking it up to put on the stool. Thanks a lot.
Thanks so much from the UK, brilliant instructions, couldn't of done it without you! My mower is running like new again.
great instructions. I'm a novice, but was able to do all the steps and the mower runs great!
Hey Arizona; I just want to say thank you for not starting your videos with that F#$%%ing so "annoying" metal music like most of the other GUY's do...Your videos are a big help here thanks and keep them coming.
Thank you sir!!! You just fixed my mower, and possibly another that has been out of commission for 2 years, which seems to have the same problem. And I can tell my man I did it myself lol. Thanks again for your expertise! You rock :D
Thank you!!!! I've thrown out two mowers prior for the lack of knowing how to fix/clean them. Your video is very helpful! Thank you
Old fashioned American DIY. No muss, no fuss, just git-r-done. Thanks.
Thank you so much for posting this, you probably just saved me 100 bucks.
Thank you so much for this video, it took me more than ten minutes but it really was as easy as you say it is. I'm glad i watched this video first as it made removing the linkage straightforward and without complication. All your advice and insructions were right on the money. My mower thanks you as well :)
Thanks for the video. This saved us some money and made for a good Sunday afternoon project with my son!
Love the way you explained everything.. I can't wait to show off :) you should do changing oil, filters too. For others that don't know anything about this kind of stuff. Like me.
Excellent video buddy! Saved me a hundred bucks!
Thanks a lot.
Thanks man, I really appreciate it. I was so far as to pull the carb yesterday. I was to scared to pull that gasket off. Thanks to you I can be more confident now and rebuild the whole thing. Thanks again.
Great Video, I'm working on mine tonite and this will make it simple. Thanks.
Thanks from England for your video and explanation. Just got a Briggs & Stratton 450 series running again. The bigger bolt was undone by a 13mm socket and the smaller one a 10mm socket. Think they're technically 1/2 and 3/8 but I only have metric socket to hand so they were close enough.
i like the dot idea many times you take things aprt and not sure which way they go back. thanks for the vid
thanks great video!!!!!!!!!! will try rebuilding one tomorrow
thank you SO MUCH!! i replaced the plug and cleaned the air filter and it still ran like crap...i was just about to go buy a new mower as so many things are almost throw away items nowadays and i am not mechanically inclined at all but after watching this video i had to try...figured i had nothing to lose so i got out a few tools and had mine running like new for $5...took me a bit longer than 10 minutes but not much. thanks again!
Shit. I literally just bought a new mower yesterday and think this is the problem with my old one. Well, looks like I'm gonna be able to have the wife mow with me so we can bang out the lawn in half the time.
thanks bud, good simple to the point tutorial.
My local Lowes had a Briggs & Stratton OEM rebuild kit for $4. Just finished doing this to mine, though i also replaced the spring and pickup screen, as well as the plug and fired on first pull. Ran like it did on day 1. (5 years old). Mine is a Briggs and Stratton 183cc.
Very helpful thanks mate
Great video, about to fix an old B&S
Thank you very kindly.
Yep. Most of the time it just needs a rebuilt(usually a completely new carb) because they haven't properly drained the fuel and it goes bad and eats the carb.
It's amazing how fast gasoline can turn to crap without fuel stabilizer and even then the shelf life is crap compared to so many other sources of energy like propane.
This guy is awesome
Good, informative video here, Thanks, I was wanting to pull off the carb on an old B&G mower my Dad left me.
All the gasoline that you buy at the pump is 10-15% alcohol now, so the old
fashion rubber and vinyl seals in your fuel system, that are not PVC grade, are
being slowly eroded........
If you have a gasoline powered Lawn Mower, Weed Eater, Leaf Blower, Chain saw or
Hedge Trimmer and have been rebuilding or replacing the carburetor every season,
it's the Ethanol/Alcohol eating away the seals, clogging the fuel jet with resin
from the melted rubber.,,,,,, Ever look at a clear fuel line in small a 2-cycle
engine and see what looks like black mold...???
It's actually burnt rubber from when the gas and alcohol separates and the alcohol
becomes full strength, burns the rubber and vinyl, melting it,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Solution: GO TO YOUR LOCAL RACE/PERFORMANCE SHOP, like Horse
Power sales, AND BUY A 5 GAL CAN OF SUNOCO-STANDARD 110 RACE GAS,,, This product is good old fashion pure petroleum with lead, just like your grandpa used, and is perfect for powering your small engines that keep your lawn and garden looking appropriate. just add the 2-cycle oil as normally done when needed.......
And of course,If you're going to store your small engine equipment for the winter,
dump out your gas tank, run the engine out with the choke on to use up remaining
gas and put a couple of drops of light oil into the cylinder through the spark
plug hole, work the cylinder a bit. And leave the gas cap off for effective evaporation.
I just replaced the carburetor diaphragm and gasket on a Craftsman power mower equipped with a Briggs & Stratton engine, and I got to do it TWICE, because I got the stacking order of the fiber gasket and rubber diaphragm wrong. The first time I assembled it, the primer bulb didn't suck fuel at all, just air. I re-examined the old gasket and diaphragm, which were pretty much fused together with age, and it was DIFFICULT to tell on which side the rubber was. On the second attempt the primer worked properly and the engine immediately started up. FYI - the fiber gasket goes against the carburetor body and the rubber diaphragm goes against the boss on the fuel tank.
In my case, i was taking a chance that the diaphragm was the cause of the problem which was uneven power and engine speed, particularly when the mower was decelerated sharply, causing the fuel to slosh in the tank. It wasn't enough to kill the engine yet, but it looked like failure was imminent, so I bought the gasket and diaphragm kit (less than $3 on eBay) and swapped it out. In a brief test run it appears to have cured it. I'm happy, as 20 minutes of work and a few bucks in parts saved me $100 in shop charges.
I'm not sure what the new diaphragm is made from, but it seems to work okay with ethanol. I replaced the diaphragm in my mower about three years ago and it still works good. In michigan it is almost impossible to find 100% gasoline and the gas station does not have to post ethanol percentage here in Michigan. This year I found 100% gas at the boat marina, so I'm using that now. About a $1.50 more per gallon, but I have a small yard and only use a gallon or two all year.
thank you for a very informative video. have you any advice on a over fast revving engine? best regards adrian uk
Thanks for the quick reply. I have change the air filter and the diapharm is next. I have no idea what it could be. Im just a single mom so I dont have a lot of disposable income. It starts up and then after about 2min just dies.
Do these engines also require valve adjustment?
What kind if problems does a gasket cause? I ask cause my lawnmower sounds like its struggling. White smoke also present
Where can order a gasket?
dude thats an Omni GLH!!! thats cool!!! want to sell it?
Its a Poulan with a Briggs and Stratton engine. I live in Texas and most gas stations post a sticker saying the gas may contain 10% ethanol...don't know about the alcohol content.
This mower started acting up the second time I tried to use it....wouldn't start. the following day was gonna take it back and then it started and i had not any trouble until yesterday.
Where did you buy your diaphragm?
Do you know the size of the bolts (front& side) that connect the carribuator/ tank to the engine? My brother in law used my lawn mower and when he returned it one of the bolts (front) was missing and the side one was very loose. I treid to recconect the side bolt, but it appears to be to small as it will not thread in. Just want to purchase new bolts and start from there
what was that a highliter?
What type of spark plug does this mower take, I found a similar mower with no plug, and want to try to fix it, please help?
I have a 4.5 hp B&S, with only a engine brake cable, and no throttle cable. How does the throttle work on my motor?
man i hate those cheapo plastic carbs! easy to work on, but aside from that they suck! good video though :)
I accidentally poured oil down where the filter is. What should I do now? Will I need to buy a whole new lawn mower? Please help
Where do you get this diaphragm at? The local home improvement store didn't have it.I took mine apart and it was one piece that peeled off. My lawn mower is 4mo old and Im tired of messing with the thing. I dont know where my receipt is, usually I am good at keeping receipts...so now im out of luck
HELP! I replaced the diaphragm, add new oil, replaces air filter and spark plus, new gas - and lawn mower is still revving up and down and blow a bit of smoke. really frustrating for my first attempt at DIY. Thanks!
sounds like your governor spring needs to be replaced
If you want to see what the lawnmower looks like when it is not running smoothly, have a look at a clip on my videos
Just an FYI, you should never work on your mower with out disconnecting the spark plug cable first...
So you don't throw away the old diapharm? you put the old and new one on together? I might have misread your reply. Sorry to bother you but I appreciate it
buy a new filter and change oil
Some of these diaphragms aren't so obvious. Doesn't take much distortion to throw off the metering and make the engine run lousy.
Fail for not starting it.
i only charge 40$... or a tune up for 40, and an extra 5$ for a new diaphragm.. lol
But! it never did start though...
I sware I don't intend to disrespect you or attack you brother but this video is irresponsible as hell. Your spraying carb cleaner on your carb without safety glasses! My father has been working on cars for over 35 years and he's had carb cleaner in his eyes. It can be horrific. Carb cleaner as you surely know is nasty, nasty stuff and can cause permanent eye damage and immense pain.
Please edit the video reco'ing safety glasses when using carb cleaner.
Thanks for the vid and god bless.