fuel leak

[Mr. Wizard]

When I start my 1991 Artic Cat fuel flows out one of what I think are vent tubes coming off of the carburetor. Is that because a float is stuck and I should clean the carb/ replace the float?

[Macgyver55]

When I start my 1991 Artic Cat fuel flows out one of what I think are vent tubes coming off of the carburetor. Is that because a float is stuck and I should clean the carb/ replace the float?

Yes but its more likely the needle and seat are the problem than the float itself.

You should be able to tell once you take it apart if a simple cleaning is enough or if any parts need replacing.

[MN Mike]

Sounds like you're going to have to tear into the carb. Could be as simple as a stuck needle on your fuel shutoff, sometimes tapping on the carb will loosen it up.

Not too often the float goes bad but you'll be able to test it if you tear it apart.

Beyond that, you might have to replace the needle at least if not the seat too for your fuel shutoff, over time these wear out because of the vibration of the engine, nothing uncommon.

Mike

[fishingstar]

What hose? Cat has a hose at the bottom of the carb that rots off. it is called a condensation drain. The hose is not compatible with ethanol. It hangs under the float bowl and it's about one and half long.

Dan

[Mr. Wizard]

Is the fuel shutoff, needle and seat, you're talking about the one under the float? And maybe it is just that condensation hose...but I think I'll need to take the carb off to access that. Thanks for helping

[MN Mike]

The needle and seat are inside the carb, you will need to remove the bowl from the carb.

Once you remove the bowl, the 'flipper' the float pushes against will be attached to the carb, as that moves up and down, it pushes against the needle ( which should be resting on the flipper ) which in turn either gives gas to the bowl or shuts it off once it is full.

Here's a pic, your setup should be different if I remember right, the floats you have will remain in the bowl, either way, this will be a close reference on what to look for as far as the needle / seat go.

[MN Mike]

As for the tubes, some carbs have the drain hose ' water trap ' on the bottom of the bowl and some don't. Mikuni has many different configurations for hoses on the carbs.

I believe the hose Wizard is talking about is the one on the upper side / left on this picture, which is the one that will leak gas if the needle / seat are not working correctly.

Mike

[Mr. Wizard]

I'm quite certain the fuel is coming from the bottom of the lower right hose in the picture. I will bring the sled into the garage and look it over more carefully when it warms up. This info is a big help though when I tear into it! Thanks again

[MN Mike]

Thats good to know Wizard, pics will help clarify what a person is talking about. If its just the hose at the bottom and that's the one you have, then you might get by with just replacing it, some carbs had it, some did not but for the ones that did, they were known to fail in time.

Good luck!

Mike

[cam7069]

All Arctic Cats have a water trap line .

[Walleyehooker]

The water trap line on Cats is on the bottom of the carbs and is about 2 inches long with a cap on the bottom of the line. Ive seen these get hard and crack and leak. Also not uncommon for floats to stick.

[Mr. Wizard]

FYI...Took the carb off that had the fuel coming out the vent tube and the float was stuck! Cleaned it and put it back together and after I got it started.... a lot of gas in cylinders from trying to start it....it runs great! Now we need some snow so I can run some gas through the sleds and keep them going. Thanks for helping