brake cleaner dosnt remove the baked on varnish, brake cleaner is expensive to waist easier to throw carb away and buy a new one for $20-$25 , i use tip cleaners of the mig welder to clean the jet holes
I use an Ultrasonic cleaner on ALL carburetors anymore. The Ultrasonic waves can reach areas inside a carb no amount of cleaning can reach with a spray cleaner. I use Simply Awesome cleaner from the dollar store deluted with water. Harbor Freight sells a small Ultrasonic cleaner that is the perfect size for cleaning carburetors. I do check the jets and use a jewlers drill bit of the appropriate size to clean out the jets because the blockage is usually very hard deposits of varnish from dried fuel. If all that doesn't work, I order a replacement carburetor. If the carburetor is badly corroded inside, it gets replaced.
@philliphall5198 be careful using any harsh cleaners on carburetors. There is a coating that once removed, promotes rust to form easily in the future. It can also etch the metal, turning it a rough grey color. This can cause serious issues too. I have ruined several carburetors using simple green full strength. It's bad news.
@stevenlengyel9701 NOT like the purple stuff no. Gum out and other carb cleaners were made for that, however, they cannot dissolve solidified gunk internally, hence the reason I use the Ultrasonic cleaner.
Dont put brake cleaner on rubber gaskets or the rubber on the needle it will destroy and deforn the rubber from experience , cheers from Scott @ Australia
This is fantastic. My Honda mower wouldn't start due to the choke butterfly flap sticking open. Lots of video explained wax cartridge problem but this nailed it! Removing the flap, pulling the shaft out and copious amounts of brake/parts cleans got it moving again. Bonus it showed how to put back together with the spring. Well done!
I definitely appreciate this guy. If it wasn't for you and this detailed video, iw as ready to sell my pressure washer. Thanks... it's running awesome 😅
@jjc6776 it definitely helped me fix mine. There's a couple of very small pieces that have to be taken apart. Just put them on a light colored cloth to make it easy to find. I also used my phone to take pictures during the process to make sure I put it back together correctly. Good luck 👍🏿
this seems like an incredibly poorly designed carburator/engine this this is necessary. I had a cdn tire lawn mower that ran perfectly for 10 plus years never had to do this. Bought this honda and started surging after only 3 years, fack, this looks like hell to do without the 4-5 differeent proper tools he was using. I'm pissed i bought a honda, never again.
Buy a Honda engine they said. They start easily they said. It will run forever they said. I had mini bikes with Briggs and Straton engines growing up which ran longer without maintenance they this Honda GCV garbage which ran for 2 years and been giving me problems ever since.
best video I've seen re these honda carbs, my gcv160 surges, replaced carb and wax choke actuator (auto choke sysem) last Apr and started surging again @ < a yr ! Cleaned jet and brass tube under it and still surged. I didn't know of idle circuit : ( Will try the idle circuit oriface cleaning now that I know now. Thks
@richardkanady7466 Same experience here with the GCV160. If it's is like mine, from what I've learned -there is no idle adjustment on the carb. (Fixed throttle too on this mower.) There's a Phillips head screw on the carb that you remove to expose the pilot jet, a tiny hole about 1/2" down in there. Pretty sure it's the culprit. Have not been able to penetrate it with ANYTHING. Tried Carb Cleaner sprays, lemon juice, oven cleaner, and welding tip/ torch tip cleaners. Nada. Gonna see if Harbor Freight has micro drill bits, lemon juice (more) / pinesol soak, laquer thinner, and possibly boiling. 3 times tearing down and cleaning it. Also cleaned fuel tank, and reset the governor twice. Still surged. Frustrating. This will be the 4th time. See Steve's Small Engine Saloon for the best detail on this type of pilot jet. (If u haven't already bought a new one - which will be my next step if this 4th time doesn't fix it. $20? You bet!) He shows other styles in the same video so stay focused & you'll see this one. He uses a handheld micro drill bit and emphasizes when you see it get thru the clog. Good Luck.
I’m glad he’s wearing gloves I’ve seen many videos where they use bare hands, I used to do that myself and it really dries up you skin, cranks and what not can be painful.
If I would have known there would be this much maintenance on a power washer I would have never bought this thing. I've had it for 4 years and used twice. This will be second time I've had to take carb apart and clean...FTR I'm lazy and would rather be spending my time chasing dirty women than messing with this.... seriously.
You start off by cleaning the outside of the carburetor so as not to contaminate the inside parts. The dirt goes into your pie pan. Then you tear the carb apart and put it in the dirty pan
Cleaned my carb and put a new spark plug in. Its running super rich, puffing black smoke, and fouling the plugs within 15-20 minutes. Clean the plug and it runs strong for another 15-20.
The main cause of the condition of this particular carb is the use of gasoline with ethanol. The ethanol causes moisture to build up in the fuel system. Check to see if non ethanol fuel is available in your area. It is usually common near areas that have recreational areas with lakes. The typical 87 octane fuel for autos has 10% ethanol. The ethanol has no value, but it is forced on us. Non ethanol is usually 89 or 90 octane. The higher octane is not the issue here. It's the ethanol. If any type of power equipment, 4 or 2 cycle, has a fuel shut off valve or if the unit can be retro fitted to have one, it is a very valuable item to have. Just before finishing any use of the equipment, simply turn off the fuel and run the engine out of gas. Obviously that keeps the carb from becoming 'contaminated' in the first place. The use of fuel stabilizers when using either type of fuel is always recommended.
I just finished rebuilding my carburetor. Nice detail on the emulsion tube and the jet install. You need to work on the camera position as I saw a lot of your black gloves. Thanks for the video!
brake cleaner dosnt remove the baked on varnish, brake cleaner is expensive to waist easier to throw carb away and buy a new one for $20-$25 , i use tip cleaners of the mig welder to clean the jet holes
I use an Ultrasonic cleaner on ALL carburetors anymore. The Ultrasonic waves can reach areas inside a carb no amount of cleaning can reach with a spray cleaner. I use Simply Awesome cleaner from the dollar store deluted with water. Harbor Freight sells a small Ultrasonic cleaner that is the perfect size for cleaning carburetors. I do check the jets and use a jewlers drill bit of the appropriate size to clean out the jets because the blockage is usually very hard deposits of varnish from dried fuel. If all that doesn't work, I order a replacement carburetor. If the carburetor is badly corroded inside, it gets replaced.
After I sonic clean them if they surge I put them in carb acid for a hour and 98% of the time it fixes them
@philliphall5198 be careful using any harsh cleaners on carburetors. There is a coating that once removed, promotes rust to form easily in the future. It can also etch the metal, turning it a rough grey color. This can cause serious issues too. I have ruined several carburetors using simple green full strength. It's bad news.
@@scottfirmanhow about Gumout carb cleaner, would you say that’s to harsh?
@stevenlengyel9701 NOT like the purple stuff no. Gum out and other carb cleaners were made for that, however, they cannot dissolve solidified gunk internally, hence the reason I use the Ultrasonic cleaner.
THERE IS NO COATING! The simple green is corrosive & ate into the aluminum.
Dont put brake cleaner on rubber gaskets or the rubber on the needle it will destroy and deforn the rubber from experience , cheers from Scott @ Australia
Outstanding video--thank you so much! Super helpful!
thanks! got my honda pushmower started on the second tug after following these steps!
You should invest in a scotch brite.
This is fantastic. My Honda mower wouldn't start due to the choke butterfly flap sticking open. Lots of video explained wax cartridge problem but this nailed it! Removing the flap, pulling the shaft out and copious amounts of brake/parts cleans got it moving again. Bonus it showed how to put back together with the spring. Well done!
Bread tie works great for cleaning small holes
I'm teaching myself how to take care of the small engine tools I just inherited from my dad who passed away recently and this was just so helpful!
I just purchased a brand new carburetor kit on Amazon for under $20 not having to deal with all this.
Installed in minutes and started on first pull.
excellent detail, I have two of these motors that need to have the carb gone through thank you
great video! Helped a ton.. thanks.
I definitely appreciate this guy. If it wasn't for you and this detailed video, iw as ready to sell my pressure washer. Thanks... it's running awesome 😅
Ha ha I was thinking about getting an electric one
Having same issue with my pressure washer. Got it to run with choke on but stopped when I realized I got problems. This worked 100% any tips?
@@jjc6776 clean or better yet change the carburetor
@robdjones50000 going to use this video to take mine apart clean and install again. Hope these directions don't miss a step lol
@jjc6776 it definitely helped me fix mine. There's a couple of very small pieces that have to be taken apart. Just put them on a light colored cloth to make it easy to find. I also used my phone to take pictures during the process to make sure I put it back together correctly. Good luck 👍🏿
awesome! I really needed to know how the choke lever came apart and this was the only video where I saw it come apart! Thanks for a great tutorial :)
this seems like an incredibly poorly designed carburator/engine this this is necessary. I had a cdn tire lawn mower that ran perfectly for 10 plus years never had to do this. Bought this honda and started surging after only 3 years, fack, this looks like hell to do without the 4-5 differeent proper tools he was using. I'm pissed i bought a honda, never again.
@Quickhans
Would you like some cheese to go with that whine?
Buy a Honda engine they said. They start easily they said. It will run forever they said. I had mini bikes with Briggs and Straton engines growing up which ran longer without maintenance they this Honda GCV garbage which ran for 2 years and been giving me problems ever since.
Honda GCV CARB cleaning
Lewis George Johnson Jose Anderson Daniel
Very good video on how to clean up a carburetor.
I have a Honda power washer I'm going to tackle tomorrow. 🤞
best video I've seen re these honda carbs, my gcv160 surges, replaced carb and wax choke actuator (auto choke sysem) last Apr and started surging again @ < a yr ! Cleaned jet and brass tube under it and still surged. I didn't know of idle circuit : ( Will try the idle circuit oriface cleaning now that I know now. Thks
@richardkanady7466 Same experience here with the GCV160. If it's is like mine, from what I've learned -there is no idle adjustment on the carb. (Fixed throttle too on this mower.)
There's a Phillips head screw on the carb that you remove to expose the pilot jet, a tiny hole about 1/2" down in there. Pretty sure it's the culprit.
Have not been able to penetrate it with ANYTHING. Tried Carb Cleaner sprays, lemon juice, oven cleaner, and welding tip/ torch tip cleaners. Nada.
Gonna see if Harbor Freight has micro drill bits, lemon juice (more) / pinesol soak, laquer thinner, and possibly boiling.
3 times tearing down and cleaning it. Also cleaned fuel tank, and reset the governor twice. Still surged. Frustrating. This will be the 4th time.
See Steve's Small Engine Saloon for the best detail on this type of pilot jet. (If u haven't already bought a new one - which will be my next step if this 4th time doesn't fix it. $20? You bet!)
He shows other styles in the same video so stay focused & you'll see this one. He uses a handheld micro drill bit and emphasizes when you see it get thru the clog. Good Luck.
@@evelynmahoney3569 I have the same problem on my 160! It keeps surging agggh....did you get yours fixed?
Can you do this without new gaskets?
Tks for your detailed explanation
I’m glad he’s wearing gloves I’ve seen many videos where they use bare hands, I used to do that myself and it really dries up you skin, cranks and what not can be painful.
I tried that trick on the idle circuit with this carb and that was too big for it
If I would have known there would be this much maintenance on a power washer I would have never bought this thing. I've had it for 4 years and used twice. This will be second time I've had to take carb apart and clean...FTR I'm lazy and would rather be spending my time chasing dirty women than messing with this.... seriously.
Shout out to $1.50 walmart screwdrivers when grinding one to fit 👍
That looks just like mine, what is that Phillips head screw on the top for?
Idle jet
So if my Honda is screaming now, I need to make an adjustment?
Why clean off the carb so then parts go into a pan with the elements you just clean off. I would put the parts on a paper towel.
You start off by cleaning the outside of the carburetor so as not to contaminate the inside parts. The dirt goes into your pie pan. Then you tear the carb apart and put it in the dirty pan
Cleaned my carb and put a new spark plug in. Its running super rich, puffing black smoke, and fouling the plugs within 15-20 minutes. Clean the plug and it runs strong for another 15-20.
Darn I could have saved 20 bucks.
I hate the taste of a carburetor fuel line barb. lol.
Use non ethanol gas to prevent gumming/deposits
very informative, thanks for sharing.........
I cleaned mine 3 times but still surges
use a small ease out to get the emulsion tube out
exceptional video! excellent tutorial
Thank you so much!
new one is $26 shipped. ijs
Which jet are you drilling if it surges? Idle or Main?
Idle jet
Best video around, just cleaned my carb and you made it so simple, thanks
The main cause of the condition of this particular carb is the use of gasoline with ethanol. The ethanol causes moisture to build up in the fuel system. Check to see if non ethanol fuel is available in your area. It is usually common near areas that have recreational areas with lakes. The typical 87 octane fuel for autos has 10% ethanol. The ethanol has no value, but it is forced on us. Non ethanol is usually 89 or 90 octane. The higher octane is not the issue here. It's the ethanol. If any type of power equipment, 4 or 2 cycle, has a fuel shut off valve or if the unit can be retro fitted to have one, it is a very valuable item to have. Just before finishing any use of the equipment, simply turn off the fuel and run the engine out of gas. Obviously that keeps the carb from becoming 'contaminated' in the first place. The use of fuel stabilizers when using either type of fuel is always recommended.
I just finished rebuilding my carburetor. Nice detail on the emulsion tube and the jet install. You need to work on the camera position as I saw a lot of your black gloves. Thanks for the video!