# Briggs intek 20hp twin - excessive gas usage?



## cheepsox (Jun 30, 2014)

Deere L111 automatic with a Briggs 20hp Intek V twin. Bought used, 29 hours on it. Oil is filthy, and I don't think its the original oil.

Looking down the air cleaner housing into the black plastic upper intake manifold, there is a small puddle of gas. It seems to me that there should be no liquid gas coming out of the carb into the intake manifold. 

All carb linkages move easily, cleaned degreased then lubed up again anyway. 

Changed the oil, and it runs great. No sputtering, choke wide open, seems fine. My concern is gas getting into the oil, and that's why the oil is so dirty. Not good for my bearings.

Planning on removing the bowl and cleaning it out. Anything I should look for while I am in there? Needle seat maybe? THANKS IN ADVANCE, you guys are awesome!


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## jhngardner367 (Apr 5, 2011)

If there's dirt, you'll see it,and can clean it out.
Be watching for a jelly - like substance,in the bottom of the bowl .
That usually means it has had water in it for a while.
Clean all passages with carb cleaner,as well as the needle and seat . Check float level.
Also,check the carb bowl solenoid(if equipped) ,to see if it is stuck open .
Check the crank case breather tube,for being damaged,or plugged.


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## cheepsox (Jun 30, 2014)

Pulled the bowl off the carb this weekend. Bowl was half full, gas was colored BLACK. Pouring out liquid, there were small granules in the bottom, brown, soft. Almost foamy. Poured on the ground, the gas evaporated, but the granules remained. Engine only has 30 hours on it, fuel filter looks good. Figure some contaminant must have gotten in fuel. Perhaps water, as the bottom of the inside of the bowl had some of the metal eaten away.

Cleaned bowl thoroughly. Tested soleinoid, good. P ulled of plastic assembly with needle and float. Clean, nothing bloocking seat. Blew compressed air thru everyting, made sure gaskets looked good, they were. Reassembled.

Would not start at all, like the spark plugs wires were pulled. Did the whole thing again. Now runs only on very low throttle, with choke wide open. Any choke at all will kill it. the more gas you give it, the crappier it runs. 

Any ideas? I can get a rebuild kit, but would not mind buying a new carb, a 697722. THIRTY HOURS!!! Killing me.


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## jhngardner367 (Apr 5, 2011)

Any fuel entering the float? Could have a hairline crack,and sinking.
Or it could have a bad needle/seat.


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## Country Boy (Mar 18, 2010)

jhngardner367 said:


> Any fuel entering the float? Could have a hairline crack,and sinking.
> Or it could have a bad needle/seat.


I would replace the needle and seat in the carburetor. Gas puddling in the air intake is indicating that the carb is running over, flooding your oil out with gas. You *will* ruin the engine if you run it with gas in the oil over the long haul. I've rebuilt several Briggs carbs this spring now and all of them needed needles and seats. Does your carb have a rubber tipped float needle, or is it all metal? If its rubber tipped, then you have a brass seat that is pressed in. The all metal needles have a mating rubber seat that gets installed in the hole the needle goes into. If you have a brass seat, I'd just change it. A new needle alone fixes the problem only 20% of the time in my experience. The seat will have to be pulled, but it can be done with simple tools and the new one installed just as easily. I can walk you through the process if you want.

Hours don't matter much these days. The ethanol and other additives in the fuel ruin the carbs pretty fast. I highly recommend running non-oxygenated, non-ethanol fuels in all small engines. Since we have been telling our customers that, our carburetor work has decreased exponentially. I used to replace 30-50 carbs a year. Last year I did maybe 8 all year.


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## cheepsox (Jun 30, 2014)

*Update*

Update: Installed a new carb, running fine. I have cleaned out more Tecumseh snowblower carbs than I can count. 90% of the time, cleaning out the bowl did it. Done maybe a dozen B&S, sometimes needed a seat, maybe a float not too bad. 

First experience on a carb with PLASTIC innards, and a gasket that was more than just 2” o ring. Pulled off the plastic float assembly 3 times, never got it running right. A small ¼” O-ring going into the carb body had disintegrated (AFTER 30 HOURS!), so I am guessing that was the black stuff in the bowl. Still dunno what the other orangey crud was. 

The rebuild kit was $35, but a new B&S carb was only 140, so I went for that. Good thing, too, cuz I managed to temporarily loose the jet. Didn’t even know I lost it till I went to install the new carb. Murphys Law dictates that if I ordered a rebuild kit, I would never have noticed the missing jet. Plus I did not like the way the inside of the old bowl was etched from whatever was in there. Who knows where else was effected. 

Fired right up, ran nice and smooth, like new. Even on lowest throttle. 

This winter, I’m gonna forget the Sta-Bil route. Burn all the gas out of it, then fill the carb & bowl with WD40. That will keep any old gas and contaminants out, and keep all the little gaskets from drying out.


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