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Carbs were frozen

931 views 6 replies 6 participants last post by  ksquared 
#1 ·
My carbs were frozen! The part called a valve set (the part that goes up & down) was rather firmly stuck down. Both of them. They were so stuck, the cable couldn't lift them. I pulled the air filters and accessed the carb throats. I lightly lifted the "valves" with a screw driver and up they popped. I don't know why they got stuck. I use premium gas and StarTron enzyme fuel treatment. The treatment is supposed to prevent ethanol problems. Maybe it does and creates other problems? I pulled the valves out & found some gummy coating on them. Lacquer thinner cleans it of easily. Anyone have an idea what it is/why it's there? Should I run the carbs dry if I'm not going to use the bike for a while (like a couple of months)?
 

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#2 ·
It's not a bad idea to run them dry or drain them when they will sit for a time. Even with treatments the fuel will leave a residue behind when it evaporates. Adding Sea Foam to the fuel can help to clean up the minor problems.
 
#3 ·
If possible, avoid gasoline with ethanol. That stuff is bad news.
We can still buy real gas in Oklahoma and I have no carb problems.
 
#4 ·
I've always ran my bikes dry even if I plan on running them the next day just for reasons like this. Its not really all that hard for me, I just turn the petcock off about 2 blocks from the house and they usually have enough fuel to die in the garage right after I get off it.

Takes a minute or two to refill the bowls while I'm putting my helmet and gloves on.
 
#5 ·
I use sea foam , an ounce per gallon, sta-bil, an ounce per 2 and a half gallon in all my non auto type equipment and have for years. No storage or plugged carb problems. The only thing I do for long storage is drain the carbs and pull the battery.

Bill
 
#6 ·
That almost looks like a residue on the slide, which can make it hard to slide freely... Your fuel additives definitely help, but like was already mentioned, they can still leave residue. For what it's worth, I only run ethanol free now, and my carb couldn't be happier. I don't have issues like this anymore.
 
#7 ·
I wish I could get ethanol fuel but that is a big challenge where I live. That's why I tried the StarTron. Yep, the residue on he slide valve made it impossible to open the throttle. It felt like I'd break the cable if I tried much harder. At first I thought my cable was bad. Now everything is clean and works great. Frogman that's a good idea.
 
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