Amun wrote:

"Jeff Wisnia" wrote in message
...
benzette wrote:
Is it harder then before to pull start or is it just taking more pulls
to start it?

Maybe try premium gas. Let it run out of gas before putting in new
premium or drain the other gas out.


Premium gas won't ignite any easier than regular gas in a lawn mower
engine.

Premium gas has a higher octane rating which means it suffers less
preigniting from the heat of compression in high compression auto and
aircraft engines.

It'll just waste Betsy's money, Benzette

Jeff


Jeff is right, the difference between regular and premium is minimal.

And to be honest, as most gas stations sell such a small amount of premium
gas compared to regular.

The regular is usually fresher and still fully potent.
Many times the premium is already weeks old, and slightly dead.

Not that it matters for her problem, but gas does not go bad in few
weeks under normal conditions. A month or two would be more of
a likelihood of such a problem. If she had her gas in the tank for that
time period, it could have gone bad. That is why I suggested she put
in a product like Stabil just after buying the gas. If her gas is that old,
it's too late to protect it, so she should dispose of it and get fresh stuff.



People who have high compression engines that need the premium will know
what I mean.

But at the low compressions in a lawnmower it doesn't make any difference
anyway.
Save the 20 cents and buy the regular.

But you can add a very small amount of gas line deicer (PURE methyl/ethelene
hydrate/ alcohol) if you have a bit in the garage.
(NOT the rubbing alcohol from you medicine cabinet that already contains
water)

Most gasolines already have about 10% alcohol in them, at least in my part of
the USA. If she bought her gas without the alcohol in it, she is better off going to
a different gas station who might not have water in the bottom of their tanks, or
finding a station that sells gasahol. My vote goes for stale gas, not gas with water in it.



But mix it into the gas can as you only need a few drops per lawnmower tank
full. (quart)

It helps the gas fire a slight bit hotter and help pass any
water/condensation/scale through the carburetor
It may not help with your starting, but it can't hurt it.

I would recommend a product called SeaFoam, available from most
auto stores to treat the gasoline to both clean the carburetor and stabilize
the gas (similar to the Stabil product I mentioned earlier). If she did not
run the gas out of her engine last season, these additives probably won't
work, and she will need to have the carburetor cleaned by a mechanic.



Then pour the rest of the bottle into your car gas tank.

It may not pay to fix it, but I would bring the lawnmower somewhere else to
see if anyone else can locate the problem your neighbor seems to be missing.

It could be, dirt in carb, bad/ misadjusted/weak ignition module, pinched
spark plug wire, bent flyweel key, bad plug.
But it's impossible to tell from a usenet post.

These things are almost all cheap for parts to fix, but labour could cost
$100 or more.

It would help to know if the motor is a briggs & stratton, tecumeth, or some
other make, but I'm going to assume Briggs.

Offhand I'd check the spark plug wire is not pinched/cut in the
starter-flywheel shroud where it goes out to the spark plug since that was
removed shortly before the problems began. (to change the pullcord)
Even an experienced person can do this easily if they aren't careful as
there is only a slight bend in one spot for the wire to pass through without
being damaged

If you can get the mower into the dark, try to start it and watch to see if
little faint blue sparks may be going right through the wire to the engine
case

Depending on the mower this wire can be part of the coil assembly, or
replaceable separately.
And sometimes just a bit of black electrical tape/shrinkwrap over the wire
can get you going again.

A broken ignition wire is highly unlikely, but not impossible. I would do a more
positive test of taking the plug out of the mower, but leaving it connected to it's
lead wire. Then set the body of the plug next to a large metal surface of the mower.
Pulling the starter cord should then produce a healthy spark at the plug. If it doesn't,
she has an ignition problem such as a bad plug, ignition coil, etc.



But as already said, this is just an internet guess.

AMUN