Onan 5.5 HJAB-901A starting problem
We don't use the generator very often, other than exercising it to prevent varnish build up in the carb. It's in an '02 Georgetown. I had used the drain screw to empty the float bowl when we parked...
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I think I've found the problem. After removing the carb, I took the cut-off solenoid out and tested it with a direct 12V hook-up. It didn't work, the spindle staying in the power-off, fuel blocked position.
I thought initially that it was an open electrical fault, but the coil tested good, at about 40 ohms. I decided to douse the spindle with carb cleaner and worked it by hand without power on and it freed up. To be sure, I left carb cleaner in it overnight, the checked it with 12V the next morning. I now have a working solenoid.
It will probably be Wednesday before I can get to it, but I'm optimistic. I got new sparkplus also.
More info when I get the job done - but a caution about that solenoid. The spindle is immersed in whatever gas remains in the float-bowl at shutdown, so if you don't drain the float bowl or run the generator fairly often, it can gum up.
I found a sentence in the service manual that pointed me in the right direction, where it said that if the engine will start and run briefly after priming, the solenoid may be the culprit. Thanks for that link.
I thought initially that it was an open electrical fault, but the coil tested good, at about 40 ohms. I decided to douse the spindle with carb cleaner and worked it by hand without power on and it freed up. To be sure, I left carb cleaner in it overnight, the checked it with 12V the next morning. I now have a working solenoid.
It will probably be Wednesday before I can get to it, but I'm optimistic. I got new sparkplus also.
More info when I get the job done - but a caution about that solenoid. The spindle is immersed in whatever gas remains in the float-bowl at shutdown, so if you don't drain the float bowl or run the generator fairly often, it can gum up.
I found a sentence in the service manual that pointed me in the right direction, where it said that if the engine will start and run briefly after priming, the solenoid may be the culprit. Thanks for that link.
