Fuel from carb overflow

[grsthegreat]

I had the same issue with my manual push snowblower. i must have forgotten to put the ethanol eliminator sta-ble in the previous year. the gaskets in the carb were toast. that ethanol ate right thru them. leaked like a sieve that winter. Im sure glad the Govt has eliminated ethanol subsidties...maybe that garbage will stop being put into the fuels

 

[BillBee]

Sorry I don't have a pic, the ATV is at the weekend place, but let me try to provide more detail.
The carburetor bowl started leaking without every touching the drain screw. I removed the carb and cleaned the bowl with the drain screw in place and I could blow through drain. When I removed the drain screw there's no difference when I blow through. I cleaned the drain with light air and reinstalled the drain screw, but it will not seal as I am able to continue to blow through it. When examining, I don't see any o-ring and the maintenance parts manual does not indicate it has one, and that is the reason why I'm puzzled by the leak. It's as if there's deterioration in the bowl's drain preventing the screw from sealing.

So I think some type of sealant around the drain screw would resolve the matter, I was thinking perhaps that gas tank repair sealant.

I checked the cost of a new carb it's $385.00 and I prefer not to do the purchase until all other options are exhausted.

Thanks.

 

[TOMMYHPX4X4]

i'm 100 %sure there should be an o ring on that drain screw thats what seals it up. try going down to napa or an auto parts store and see if you can get one .they should have them .i have an o ring kit with about 30 diferent size o rings and 50 of each one i bought it at napa years ago and i am still not even close to useing it up.it was money well spent .i replaced the o rings on many carbs with it .but like i said that screw should have an o ring on it.

 

[SpudHauler]

Maybe you are mistaken on what your a cleaning. The drain is off the bottom of the bowl right. With screw out and bowl filled with gas, it flows out. With screw in and bowl filled does it still flow.
Now if it doesn't flow out in the above situation but does when it's back on the ATV, you are back to what I said originally, your float is stuck open, usually dirt under the inlet needle.
You see there is a higher drain inside the bowl that lets excess gas flow out the overflow in these situations. It's secondary to your bowl drain and only overflows in situations when the float is stuck open by dirt, usually.

 

[BillBee]

i'm 100 %sure there should be an o ring on that drain screw thats what seals it up. try going down to napa or an auto parts store and see if you can get one .they should have them .i have an o ring kit with about 30 diferent size o rings and 50 of each one i bought it at napa years ago and i am still not even close to useing it up.it was money well spent .i replaced the o rings on many carbs with it .but like i said that screw should have an o ring on it.

Okay I'll check but the manufactures manaul does not indicate there is an o ring.

 

[BillBee]

Maybe you are mistaken on what your a cleaning. The drain is off the bottom of the bowl right. With screw out and bowl filled with gas, it flows out. With screw in and bowl filled does it still flow.
Now if it doesn't flow out in the above situation but does when it's back on the ATV, you are back to what I said originally, your float is stuck open, usually dirt under the inlet needle.
You see there is a higher drain inside the bowl that lets excess gas flow out the overflow in these situations. It's secondary to your bowl drain and only overflows in situations when the float is stuck open by dirt, usually.

Yes, the drain is off the very bottom of the bowl and it leaks with the screw tightly in place and I can also blow through it with the screw in place just as if the screw was removed. When I blow through it I can feel the air excaping from the inside of the bowl at the drain, not the higher drain inside the bowl that lets excess gas flow out.

The f

 

[SpudHauler]

Well BillBee that is a tough one.
You may have to take the bowl and screw down to your local shop and see what they say.
You definitely found the problem. But what caused it is now the mystery.
Keep digging.

 

[TOMMYHPX4X4]

unless i missed it what year is your cat maybe with more than one person searching the problem we can help you out more.

 

[TOMMYHPX4X4]

i done a little reading on some cat forums and it seems there is a o-ring and they do mention to watch very closely that it doesn't fall out they do mention that sometimes it gets stuck inside the houseing and turns sideways and then causes a leak .you might wanna check that out but i would like the year model so i can do a better search for you.

 

[tcreeley]

I had a motorcycle with a rusty tank. My carb would overflow, I'd clean it and it would overflow again. Bits of rust would get under the inlet needle and keep it open. An inline fuel filter stopped the problem.
On my farmall cub I got a tube of gasket maker and used that to seal my warped float bowl to the carb. It also helped around my drain screw. It came in a gray and a gold color depending on the temp. No silicon and gas resistant. I used it on the intake manifold of my motorcycle for a positive seal when I was juryrigging a new carb connection. Let it dry a day or two before you use it. Holds up well.
Air is great for carb cleaning. If you don't have a compressor, tape some fuel line on the end of a bicycle pump hose and pump air through that way.