You tug the cord, sure that it’s ready, but instead of firing up, the engine just chokes to death. Now what? No more mowing the yard.
And there you stand, dripping sweat from your grip on a cumbersome piece of plastic that won’t cooperate. It’s personal, but it’s not, it’s just waiting for you to learn its language. Most starting problems aren’t mechanical disaster; they’re simple miscommunications between man and the little engine.
Simple Steps to Fix Echo Trimmer Starting Issues
Two-Stroke Engine Basics and Fuel Mixing
Mastering the logic behind the two-stroke mechanism will saves you countless hours of cord-pulling. Old gas is silent killer of lawn equipment fuel systems. Gasoline begins to degrade after just thirty days.
Add some ethanol to the mix and now you has a recipe for ruined seals and clogged carburetors. So if you have an Echo SRM-300 or something similar, that sits through the winter, you’ll want to go ahead and drain the tank right away. Mix it up with fresh fuel.
Most models calls for a 50 to 1 ratio. Too rich and you flood engine; too lean and you’re cooking the piston. It’s a narrow window of perfect chemistry.
Don’t skim on the lubricant and use a quality two-stroke oil such as Stihl HP Ultra or Echo 2+1. That oil mixed into the gas is what keeps the engine from welding it’s internal parts together. Then you check the air filter.
Inspecting and Cleaning the Air Filter
Duh, it’s what keeps air from entering the engine. Just as a blocked nose restricts our breathing, so does a plugged air filter restrict engine air flow. Without air, the engine can’t mix the fuel with it either.
You pull off the cover and have a peek. Is it black and gritty? Change it.
With a paper filter, you don’t attempt to wash and reuse. They’re inexpensive; buy another one. With a foam filter, you use some mineral spirits to clean it up, then lightly oil it.
Either way, a clean filter allows the engine to get the clean, rich air that it require to burn the fuel mixture well. Next is the spark plug. This little piece of metal and ceramic are what ignites the fuel.
Checking and Replacing the Spark Plug
If its electrode is worn down or the spark plug itself is coated with carbon deposits, it won’t be able to create enough of a spark to ignite the gas. With a socket wrench you pull off the spark plug and then examine its tip. Is it black and sooty?
That means it’s dirty, and you’ll use a wire brush to clean it. Did you notice the gap wasn’t right? Adjust it to specification in your manual.
In most cases, this is roughly 0.025 inches. Is the plug damaged or old? Replace it, it’s cheaper than two bucks.
Often, what appears to be a fuel problem can be cured by a new spark plug and it’s a time saving diagnostic shortcut. Then there’s the business of the choke and primer. This is what controls how much fuel mix with air when you start it.
Using the Choke and Primer Bulb
When it’s cold outside, you engage the choke (which closes down air to make mixture richer) and then pump the primer bulb a few times, enough to get some fuel going into the carburetor. There are two ways to kill an engine: flood it or starve it; flooding is easier than starving it. Bump the choke off as soon as the engine starts.
The changeover between cold-start position and just-running should be smooth. The engine may fire and then die. Meaning that even though it fired, the choke might still be in place.
Remember, no air mean no life for an engine. With time you get good at all this stuff and then you can start your trimmer with one pull. You should of practiced more earlier.