Help!!

[kitty]

Haven't ridden my bike (er500) in over a week. Went out to it today and there was a puddle of what smells like fuel under the main part of the bike. There was also a smaller second puddle of what looked like oil under the chain where the scottoiler is... Went to start the bike and it make a weird clunking sound but made no attempt to start. Bike is kept in a cold garage and has been on the side stand for over a week... Any ideas what's wrong??

[Stu]

clunking or clicking? if it was a rapid clicking sound thats usually the starter relay and is caused by a flat battery

the oil could be from the scottoiler

and the petrol could be from the overflow on the carbs if one of the float valves has stuck slightly

[littlecat]

ok,to clarify a bit now ive been over for a look, theres no fuel left in the tank, what didn't end up on the floor is now mixed in with the oil., to the point of overflowing.

stuck carb float is being suggested as the culprit...though im not sure if there may also be a problem with the fuel tap...its in the on position, but wont turn at all.

suggestions/remedies please

[megawatt]

Put fresh fuel in tank, slush it around. Fully charge battery. Turn over while gently tapping float bowls with a wooden mallet or piece of wood. DO NOT USE METAL!!!. Deal with oil once bike is running. Bell me for details?

[Stu]

if the tank is empty and in with the oil the engine will be hydrolocked as the fuel will have gone in through the cylinders

hopefully no damage has been caused to the engine!!

do not turn the bike over any more unless you know that its not hydrolocked

remove the plugs and turn it over by hand and cross everything

also drain the oil too and fill with fresh

[littlecat]

stu, how the heck do we turn it over by hand ??

[fredc]

stu, how the heck do we turn it over by hand ??

 

put it in top gear and turn the wheel

[Stu]

there should be a plug on one of the side casings you can take off and put a socket on the crank

[Stu]

stu, how the heck do we turn it over by hand ??

 

put it in top gear and turn the wheel

 

this is all good and well but you need to be feeling for any resistance while turning it as hydrolocking can kill an engine big time!

[megawatt]

If there is a chance of fuel in the oil, best to drain the oil, before turning over.

[littlecat]

ok cool, now how do we diagnose and fix whatever has caused this in the first place

[littlecat]

ok, so first we drain the oil ( which is now 90% fuel), then we remove the plugs, then we manually start it ....is that right so far?

do we need any fuel in before we attempt that?

[megawatt]

NOOOOOOO. Drain the oil. Allow air into and out of crankcases via oil filler and oil drain plugs. Pull fuel line off fuel tap , put a little fuel in tank. If no fuel flow, put fuel line back on. Remove plugs and turn engine over to check for fuel in cylinders. If all is good, replace oil drain plug and put oil into engine. Spin over with plugs out. Drain oil, check for fuel in it. If no fuel in oil, put it back in engine , replace plugs and start engine. Tap carb float bowls with wood to hopefully unjam a stuck float bowl.

Fuel should not have got into engine unless fuel valve is faulty and carb bowl stuck. Bell me ?

[Stu]

what I would do is drain the oil

remove the plugs

turn it over by hand feeling for any roughness it all feels smooth and no notchiness and no locking up then put fresh oil in and plugs

then look at the fuel tap if it has a vacuum hose check all the diaphragm and seals replace if you feel you want to they are only cheap

remove carbs and clean them out and set float height

then assemble and put fuel in and start

[littlecat]

wont be able to get over there for another look till the weekend.., ok , most of that makes sense...the carbs bit is where I get totally lost

[Stu]

buy some carb cleaner and remove the carbs take the float bowls off (the bottoms) and clean them out

inside there will be a plastic float attached to a valve make sure its not sticking if you can get a manual you can set the float height

[BikerMooFromMars]

Good luck with it Kitty & Cat! Hope you can sort it out.

[Grumpy Old Git]

A fairly easy but time consuming job.

Agree with Stu's approach.

One point, once you have re-assembled the bottom half of your carbs (float chamber)., re-check that fuel is not flowing into the engine (i.e. still got a mis-set or 'stuck' float).

As to the fuel tap - WD40 is your answer. Spray around the spigot; leave a few minutes, try and turn the tap. Repeat until you get full movement. Prevent from 'siezing' again by always switching off when you leave the bike (this also stops the fuel from draining through the carbs whilst stationary).

Enjoy the task!

[OhJay]

Prevent from 'siezing' again by always switching off when you leave the bike (this also stops the fuel from draining through the carbs whilst stationary).

 

There's no off Al, it's a vacuum tap

[Stu]

It sounds like it's stuck or the seals are split I would rebuild it personally

[OhJay]

Think that's the way we're leaning Stu, as far as we can work out it has to be combination of the tap and float. If either was working properly it should stop the fuel all dripping down into the engine.

Float could just be stuck and/or mucky rather than anything broken but the tap sounds like a definite culprit.

[Stu]

If one or the other is working it won't happen so it is definitely both

[Grumpy Old Git]

...though im not sure if there may also be a problem with the fuel tap...its in the on position, but wont turn at all.

suggestions/remedies please

 

Stu - I just assumed that if it 'wont turn' then it should be able to turn!

My mistake!

[Stu]

...though im not sure if there may also be a problem with the fuel tap...its in the on position, but wont turn at all.

suggestions/remedies please

 

Stu - I just assumed that if it 'wont turn' then it should be able to turn!

My mistake!

 

It's may have a reserve but no off position

[littlecat]

Reserve off and prime