Can’t get generator started

[Tnlady]

We have a 3 year old Caterpillar generator. It will not start. Husband has done all he knows to do. Do you know someone who would come to our home to work on it?

[Keefelane66]

We have a 3 year old Caterpillar generator. It will not start. Husband has done all he knows to do. Do you know someone who would come to our home to work on it?
If it's gasoline generator then you may not have put “Stable Gas Treatment” the carburetor jets are plugged with shellac/varnish from dried gasoline. Remove and clean or replace. Even though it's a Cat the engine is probably a Kohler or Briggs
Check Amazon for parts

[Kenswing]

Is it diesel, gasoline, natural gas or propane? Each can present with its own set of problems.

[shaboobie]

Wildwood Mower on 44 352 748 2305. They picked up and returned mine for $30 last year.

[tophcfa]

We have a 3 year old Caterpillar generator. It will not start. Husband has done all he knows to do. Do you know someone who would come to our home to work on it?

If it’s been sitting for a long time with 10% ethanol gas in it than it’s almost certainly a gummed up carburetor. I don’t know of a small engine mechanic in the Villages that does house call work. You can almost certainly get an aftermarket carburetor for less than $50 and swap it out, but it’s a job that requires a fair amount of mechanical skill. I would check out shops that sell small engine equipment like lawn mowers and ask them what they would recommend. Not sure how big the generator is, but if you know someone with a pickup truck you should be able to put it in the bed and bring it to a small engine repair shop. Whatever you do, once it’s fixed always use only ethanol free gas in it going forward so this doesn’t happen again (you can get ethanol free gas at any WaWa for a little more per gallon). Best of luck.

[villagetinker]

We have a 3 year old Caterpillar generator. It will not start. Husband has done all he knows to do. Do you know someone who would come to our home to work on it?

Normally I would offer to help, however I will be tied up for the next several weeks and will not be able to do this type of work. If your hubby is a DIYer, I would start with carb cleaner (or started fluid). I agree with some previous comments, the ethanol may have damaged some of the runner parts. You should be able to get a carb rebuild kit, this will have all of the necessary parts. Make sure this kit is computable with the current fuels. Also replace all of the fuel lines, and make sure there is dood fuel flow to the carb. Most of the time I find either dirt in the needle valve or the needle valve is stuck.
Hopr this helps.

[ThirdOfFive]

We have a 3 year old Caterpillar generator. It will not start. Husband has done all he knows to do. Do you know someone who would come to our home to work on it?
Not a suggestion as to how to fix it...more like advice on how to prevent it from happening again.

We recently purchased a generator (Westinghouse 2500 watt inverter). I've been making a point of running it at least once a month for a couple of hours under load. I do all my own yardwork (mowing, edging, hedge trimming, etc.) and use electric tools exclusively, so it is not a problem to fire up the generator and use it for the yardwork. That way I know if the worst happens, I can rely on it starting. Machines are made to RUN. Buying anything that runs on gasoline and then letting it sit for month after month without using it under the misapprehension that by so doing you're keeping it new and pristine can be more costly than running it routinely.

[Michael G.]

I wonder what those combustible engine manufactures do to new engines when they leave their manufacturing plant.
Surly some of those new engines are stored for years then started.

Maybe these is a plus for electric engines in the future. :shrug:

[Tom53]

Check the oil level, most portable generators have a low oil cut-off switch.

[tophcfa]

I wonder what those combustible engine manufactures do to new engines when they leave their manufacturing plant.
Surly some of those new engines are stored for years then started.

Maybe these is a plus for electric engines in the future. :shrug:

The problem is NOT the engine manufacturers, it’s the government imposing ridiculous mandates on the fuel they use to run on. Get rid of the ethanol and you get rid of many of the problems. Besides, there are people starving all over the world, so the so call geniuses decide it’s a good idea to burn corn? My oil burner service guy up north has also told me the horror stories created by the mandate to add biofuels to heating oil.

[CoachKandSportsguy]

The problem is NOT the engine manufacturers, it’s the government imposing ridiculous mandates on the fuel they use to run on. Get rid of the ethanol and you get rid of many of the problems. Besides, there are people starving all over the world, so the so call geniuses decide it’s a good idea to burn corn? My oil burner service guy up north has also told me the horror stories created by the mandate to add biofuels to heating oil.

Peterson in Worcester got hauled to court, for over bio-ing the diesel / heating oil and wrecked several pieces of city machinery. They were buying cooking waste oils etc for small pennies, and mixing it into the fuel and making a killing. My oil burner got clogged so many times rom their fuel oil so I finally switched to a minimal fuel oil company and their business is booming!

fuel oil burning specialist guy

[jswirs]

If it's gasoline generator then you may not have put “Stable Gas Treatment” the carburetor jets are plugged with shellac/varnish from dried gasoline. Remove and clean or replace. Even though it's a Cat the engine is probably a Kohler or Briggs
Check Amazon for parts

I have found that letting the engine run COMPLETELY OUT OF GAS, (when the engine stalls due to lack of fuel try to start it a few times), is better than adding fuel stabilizer. Also, using mid- grade octane on these small engines seems to help.

[Tjmorello]

I do my own small engine repair and can take a look at yours if you want. Let me know.

[me4vt]

Shoot it with ether!

[DaleDivine]

I wonder what those combustible engine manufactures do to new engines when they leave their manufacturing plant.
Surly some of those new engines are stored for years then started.

Maybe these is a plus for electric engines in the future. :shrug:

Sooooo, when the power goes out from hurricane or whatever, WHERE do you get the power to charge an electric engine??

:popcorn::popcorn::popcorn::sad::sad:

[Sparky6236]

Your first step should be making sure that you are properly following the start instructions. Make sure there is gas, oil level is correct, the starter switch is in the "on" position and that the gas line valve is open.

[OhioBuckeye]

Wish I lived there yet because I would come & fix it. If you do get it running, from now on start it every couple of months. Leaving anything that runs on gas should be ran every 2 to 4 months.

[WV1203]

Make sure gas valve is turned on.take gas cap off put rag around opening and blow into it easy a few times just enough pressure to force gas to flow .this has worked for me several times over the years just don't blow to much pressure so the gas blows back at you. Sounds silly but just did it a few weeks ago for someone .

[DStahulK]

We have a 3 year old Caterpillar generator. It will not start. Husband has done all he knows to do. Do you know someone who would come to our home to work on it?

Make sure to check the oil level in the engine. If the oil level is low the generator will not start.

[ORJohnny]

We have a 3 year old Caterpillar generator. It will not start. Husband has done all he knows to do. Do you know someone who would come to our home to work on it?

Assuming it’s a gasoline engine, and it’s only been sitting for a couple years with the same gas in it, drain the gasoline, even from the carb reservoir , and try a bottle of “Mechanic in a Bottle”. It will remove the shellac and crud. You can find it at Lowes or HD among other places.

Pour it the gas tank, attempt to start the engine a half dozen times, and the. Let it sit for a day. Drain this liquid and put fresh gas in, and presto! It should start .

[DAVES]

Peterson in Worcester got hauled to court, for over bio-ing the diesel / heating oil and wrecked several pieces of city machinery. They were buying cooking waste oils etc for small pennies, and mixing it into the fuel and making a killing. My oil burner got clogged so many times rom their fuel oil so I finally switched to a minimal fuel oil company and their business is booming!

fuel oil burning specialist guy

We no longer deal with it as we sold our northern home and moved to the Villages. It was an adventure. Our home built in 1948 had a 1,000 gallon buried oil tank. We had a long time plan. The tank though it did not leak, we knew it would be an issue when we sold. I was told by the EPA due to it's age the steel was 3/8 of an inch thick and it would not leak for several hundred years. Did not matter. We would need to warranty the tank to sell the house. Due to new windows added insulation, 1,000 gallons was two years worth of heating.
It took two years and I burned most of the oil. There was a government plan to get a cast iron,
quality, complete boiler for FREE. We converted to gas. We had to pay for the installation.
Far cleaner and the cost, reminder 9 years ago, for gas, was half as much as oil.

Far as oil burner being plugged up by fuel. There is or should be a filter before the fuel enters the burner. It is or should be replaced with an annual service. Like anything else there are people who do proper service and others who wipe off the filter hoping the paying customer does not notice it was not changed.

[DAVES]

Your first step should be making sure that you are properly following the start instructions. Make sure there is gas, oil level is correct, the starter switch is in the "on" position and that the gas line valve is open.

You reminded me. Many years ago I was away in college. Yup, wow that was many years a go. My dad was no dope. I got a call. They had a major snow storm and he couldn't get the snow blower to start. Hey, did you put gas into it-NO.

[DAVES]

We have a 3 year old Caterpillar generator. It will not start. Husband has done all he knows to do. Do you know someone who would come to our home to work on it?

We of course do not know how big your generator is or what your husband has done. Any gasoline engine is first of all need lubrication. Is there oil in the crankcase? It needs fuel. Most likely gasoline. There are some that run on natural gas and others that run on diesel. Is there fuel in the tank? Newer gasoline engines often have a fuel shutoff-is the valve opened?
You need a spark to ignite the fuel. Take out the spark plug using the proper tools. This is NOT a vise grip sledge hammer job. Look at the plug. There can be carbon shorting out the plug. Connect the high voltage wire. Touch the spark plug to the metal of the engine. Pull the starter cord There should be a bright white spark. Do not hold the wire. It is a few thousand volts but low amps. IT DOES HURT. IF YOU MAKE THAT MISTAKE.

You should now know what the problem is. Almost any problem with almost anything look on the internet. You are not the only one with that problem, with that item and someone is out there to show you how to solve it. Fuel, plus spark plus compression, it will run.

[CoachKandSportsguy]

Far as oil burner being plugged up by fuel. There is or should be a filter before the fuel enters the burner. It is or should be replaced with an annual service. Like anything else there are people who do proper service and others who wipe off the filter hoping the paying customer does not notice it was not changed.

You have no idea what you are typing about. After a three months, my filter was clogged with chicken fat, many homeowners experienced this which is why the fuel damaged city equipment, and he was targeted with lawsuits and other issues.

And more than once in a season, after they adjusted it, replaced the filter, but keep on typing your theories, especially after the company lost the lawsuit for same

[tophcfa]

You have no idea what you are typing about. After a three months, my filter was clogged with chicken fat, many homeowners experienced this which is why the fuel damaged city equipment, and he was targeted with lawsuits and other issues.

And more than once in a season, after they adjusted it, replaced the filter, but keep on typing your theories, especially after the company lost the lawsuit for same

Bummer, unfiltered oil used in a deep fryer being disguised as biofuel is criminal. Unfortunately, even the biofuel that is considered to meet all government specifications is garbage. It doesn’t necessarily clog the fuel filter, but it can destroy the seals in the oil burner and corrodes oil tanks from the inside causing them to prematurely fail. These problems were never an issue with regular heating diesel but are now showing up in great numbers with biofuel mandates. It’s a big problem for snowbirds who need to have a reliable heating source to keep their pipes from freezing while enjoying the winter in the Villages. We had to spend some good hard earned money to have our service guy rebuild our oil burner with new components that can withstand the mandated biofuel and are crossing our fingers that the crap won’t destroy our oil tank before we sell the home.

[OhioBuckeye]

Good point!

[cb1972]

two good suggestions already mention," make sure the fuel line is open (usually an inline valve)" , " shoot it with ether ( starting fluid)". So make sure the fuel line is open , remove the air cleaner cover and filter, spray a quality starter fluid into the carberator, try to start it. If it starts and stalls repeat until the engine continues to run. As mentioned its best to close the fuel valve and let the engine run out of fuel when storing the generator.

[Tnlady]

Thanks for all of your suggestions! Due to other things going on in our life, this issue has been put on hold. The generator has been run several times over the 3 years that we have had it. It has never been an issue getting it to start. He has previously tried several things that were suggested. Again, thanks!

[DAVES]

you have no idea what you are typing about. After a three months, my filter was clogged with chicken fat, many homeowners experienced this which is why the fuel damaged city equipment, and he was targeted with lawsuits and other issues.

And more than once in a season, after they adjusted it, replaced the filter, but keep on typing your theories, especially after the company lost the lawsuit for same

kma

[DAVES]

You have no idea what you are typing about. After a three months, my filter was clogged with chicken fat, many homeowners experienced this which is why the fuel damaged city equipment, and he was targeted with lawsuits and other issues.

And more than once in a season, after they adjusted it, replaced the filter, but keep on typing your theories, especially after the company lost the lawsuit for same

Wow. "No idea what you are typing about." Clearly we had a better fuel supplier. We had a filter on our fuel supply. As stated we had a 1,000 gallon tank. Any fuel tank, normally has the fuel line above the bottom of the tank so unless you run the tank very low you do not pick up trash. WE NEVER HAD YOUR PROBLEMS and it has nothing to do wit original post.

[kkingston57]

From your ? appears you need a small engine mechanic who will perform service calls. Bet generator is almost impossible to get into vehicle. Other posters probably correct that it is a gummed up carburetor.

[tophcfa]

After reading this thread I thought it would be a good idea to start up our generator, since it hasn’t run since last December. Gotta love ethanol free gas, fired up on the first pull and ran like a champ. Who was the rocket scientist that thought it would be a good idea to mix corn based alcohol with perfectly good gasoline?

[Nucky]

Scott, ASE Generator Repair 352~630~9973. Never used him myself but a good friend with a Diesel Generator had good luck with Scott.

Our friends are a pain in the butt so he must be alright cause they normally hate everyone. Lol. Good Luck.

[Vickim]

We have a 3 year old Caterpillar generator. It will not start. Husband has done all he knows to do. Do you know someone who would come to our home to work on it?

Call Dick Vought 352-629-4104 Generator service- does mine great guy.

[Wing-nut2]

Try North lake Motor Sports in Leesburg. You'll have to take it there. I know of no one who does house calls.

[frose]

needle stuck in the seat.. varnish will do that.. take bottom of carb off and just clean it

[photo1902]

Your first step should be making sure that you are properly following the start instructions. Make sure there is gas, oil level is correct, the starter switch is in the "on" position and that the gas line valve is open.

And if it has a vented gas cap (a lot of the newer ones do), make sure to turn the knob to ON

[RICH1]

Check the oil level, most portable generators have a low oil cut-off switch.
I like Toms answer ! Also those oil pressure or and level sensors can become defective ( like mine did) bypass the wires to get it running !

[Tnlady]

Thanks to Scott, ASE, for getting our generator running. So thankful for at home service.