Fixing A Toro Mower That Has Running And Starting Problems

[@jesterr7133]

I may have said it before, but I remember the first time I encountered the plastic carb. My initial reaction was WTF?!? Once I tore into it, I immediately fell in love with them. They are incredibly easy to work on and install, and despite my initial reaction, using plastic on a carb is a wonderful idea. It eliminates the corrosion and rust issues that you have with metal carbs. It actually makes perfect sense. I am a huge fan of them.

[@HomeGaragechannel]

you are correct, there are a lot of good things about that.

[@georgenovotny4421]

Come on everyone. If we all just tell 5 friends and neighbors about this outstanding channel and tell them to subscribe because it is free to do, we can get him up over 100 thousand subscribers. I’ve learned so much from his detailed videos and I for one believe he deserves to get to 200k or more this year! Thanks for hearing me out. Have fun with fixing and maintaining your equipment.

[@HomeGaragechannel]

I really appreciate this comment. I know that the 100k sub count is a goal for a lot of people as it's a nice number.

[@johndenver8574]

I finally tried your lawn mower cleaner today you use on almost every video. Just wanted to say thank you!!! It worked really well on an oil mess on my mower that I could take off with alot of stuff.

[@HomeGaragechannel]

Nice and thank you for trying it out

[@UhBuddy1976]

I was just given 2 Toro lawn mowers from 2021. One of them looks like it had been used for one season. It had a 140 cc Briggs motor with a hole in the block and a broken connecting rod. I replaced the engine with a good, more powerful Briggs & Stratton engine from a different mower. The mower is now in good shape, and while they may not make them like they used to, Torros are still in my opinion the best consumer grade mower. The wheels and body seem very solid compared to the MTD offerings like Troy-Bilt and Craftsman. The other mower is one just like you have in this video except that it is electric. My plan is to more than likely pull the electric motor off and replace it with another powerful gasoline engine by Briggs & Stratton, also from a different used mower, but in excellent condition. This mower looks like it was started once and then taken back to the store because the self-propelled function did not work, only because the pulley on the electric motor shaft is free-wheeling. This is one thing I love about Toro consumer grade mowers. They are one of the companies where their electric mower offerings are built exactly like the gasoline offerings. One can easily interchange them and swap gasoline engines & electric motors.

[@HomeGaragechannel]

thanks for the information

[@dsmdriver2588]

Bought a Toro back in 2013. The transmission completely locked up right after the 2 yr warranty. From then on, I've been using my Troy Bilt which has never failed

[@HomeGaragechannel]

yes that unfortunately happens from time to time.

[@MarkMeadows90]

My dad bought a 2011 Toro Timecutter zero turn with the Kawasaki engine back in 2011. Still going strong to this day. Maintains it regularly, and cranks it up occasionally during the winter to make sure the fuel is stabilized. He rarely uses a fuel stabilizer, unless it's deemed necessary. Answering your question, if I had to, I would stick with a higher quality brand of push mower like Honda. But they can be a bit pricey for a brand new one. I would try to buy a used one and see if it needs fixing up. They are easy to work on, that's for sure.

[@HomeGaragechannel]

thank you and yes, If I was going to spend money on a new mower, it would also be a honda.

[@stevepelino5986]

Another very easy to understand and follow video. Thank you for sharing.

[@HomeGaragechannel]

Thank you Steve Pelino

[@liljoeii6091]

I don't mind buying used lawn mowers or riding tractors thank you for the video

[@HomeGaragechannel]

me too!

[@pit4955]

Purchased a Toro pace this April seller was moving he had purchased it a yr ago from Ace showed me the receipt $565 we agreed to $225. Let’s just say it was sparkling new. I can easily say it will last me many yrs. Very simple to work on and I love those Briggs plastic carbs. Looking at that oil i would say head gasket water of fuel getting in Very informative video, thx for sharing 👍

[@HomeGaragechannel]

thank you very much and nice purchase

[@jwayne777]

Yeah that was great it turned out it was a compression issue soon as you cleaned up that oil you got a lot more RPMs🎉

[@HomeGaragechannel]

thank you!

[@dustyvape.9238]

I just recently bought a lawnmower similar to this for $50. The person was selling it because the electric start didn’t work and with an $18 battery I got it working again.

[@HomeGaragechannel]

nice choice!

[@crisprtalk6963]

The drama of the xtra rubber O-ring was almost too much for me to handle. I shed a tear.

[@HomeGaragechannel]

I know right

[@scottdunn4506]

I found a free toro yesterday every year in my neighborhood they have clean up day were they put two huge dumpsters in this empty lot and anyone can put anything in them I was putting items in them and I saw a lawnmower inside the dumpster and the back of the dumpster was open and I was able to save the lawnmower it’s a toro with a Kohler engine it needs a new cable I think that’s why they threw it away and than someone saw a post I posted on my neighborhood group on fb and they messaged me asking if I wanted a pulsar lawnmower for free I picked it up on thruday it started right up I’m really happy

[@HomeGaragechannel]

wow that's a great haul! Congratulations!

[@angelicaconiguliaro3179]

We have 2 personal pace models like in the video and a fwd model. All run perfect, oldest is a 2021 newest is a 2024. We also take care of our equipment. So hopefully we'll get 10 years out of each mower. Have many other mower's as well.

[@HomeGaragechannel]

if you're taking good care of it, I can believe it'll last a decade. Too bad this one was not.

[@bentley0388]

I finally got the first comment on a home garage video!!! Cant wait to continue watching

[@HomeGaragechannel]

Congratulations, I appreciate your persistence

[@lewiemcneely9143]

Old or free. You know me! Happy weekend

[@HomeGaragechannel]

yes I do!

[@lewiemcneely9143]

@@HomeGaragechannel Great minds....

[@HomeGaragechannel]

....think alike.

[@lewiemcneely9143]

@@HomeGaragechannel Right-O!

[@Christian-l7p]

That would be cool to have a relationship ship with a KZbinr 😉 @lewiemcneely9143

[@kencurtis228]

TY for Sharing

[@HomeGaragechannel]

Thanks for watching!

[@williamwelch7]

Thanks. I'm a little curious about what you adjusted to make the engine run better. Did you bend the piece of metal holding the governor linkage/spring, or did you turn a screw on the carb?

[@HomeGaragechannel]

I'll spoil it for you, you remember that breather hose on the back of the filter base? Well it was pushing out too much air and affecting the flow of air thru the inlet of the carb. I disconnected it as a test and it ran 10 times better. now I have to figure out why it's doing it, because it's not supposed to have that affect on the system.

[@999thenewman]

@@HomeGaragechannel Is the next video showing you opening the engine and replace the camshaft/compression release?

[@Dopest_diecast2003]

I do agree with you. The quantum style briggs and Stratton 190 CC were the best engines ever made from briggs and Stratton. But I still like the newer Briggs and Stratton engines. They're not built as well, but if you take care of them They'll last a good amount of time I just worked on a 500 E Briggs and Stratton with the primer and it just had water in. It went through it, and that baby fired right up. But. Awesome video man.

[@HomeGaragechannel]

thanks man, and yes I agree, the newer one can be maintained to last as well.

[@gearhead366]

I have one of those older Toros. Is it better than the new ones? I don't know. It probably is better from the standpoint of tolerating abuse and neglect. But if treated well, I suspect even the new ones of being capable of lasting 10 yrs. The weak point, IMO, on the Recyclers is the Personal Pace system, even though I love how it works. My Recycler is a 2009 model, and most of the repairs and adjustments I've done to it are related to the PP system. Another upgrade I'd like to see on these (and any other push mower) is wheel bearings. At about 5 yrs, the wheels start getting wobbly. Then they want to tilt inward toward the deck. Eventually, they will tilt enough to start rubbing on the deck. The old ones and new ones suffer from this. To get a push mower with wheel bearings, you'll have to spend around $1000.

[@HomeGaragechannel]

you are correct, I think the PP transmission is under a lot of "stress" so it's going to have issues sooner than later.

[@kathleenbrown6734]

Maybe you can give me advice on whether I keep trying or give up. I maintained for 25 years a walk behind gas John Deer and it just was starting to smoke so I offered it up free and men came by the dozen. Great lawnmower. but I was moving from country to community with HOA. So 5 years ago I bought a gas Toro recycler 22 inch . I have been maintaining it as I did with the other. Reg maintenance every summer etc. It started the problem with a new gas can and 92 quality gas. It seemed the top of the can inside had plastic adhered to it? There was moisture but I ignored it and put gas in it and in my lawnmower with HOA breathing down my back. Everything fine then second fill in a week not so good. I decided the no start and finally start but running horrible whole time there must have been water in the can. So bought products and I always keep stabil enzyme marine in gas of lawnmower to protect the gas from breakdown etc. It was horrible starting etc, and of course smoking a d smelling like crazy!! Lawn is growing HOA sent me a warning. So I did something dumb I always drain the oil by tipping to correct side down. I knew I had to completely drain the gas out and dry the inside. so after pouring out as much as I could and turned it on its head and let it drain for 24 hours forgetting that I had put fresh oil in the lawnmower. So I had oil in the spark plug box and everywhere. I know nothing about the carburetor but knew it probably had some in it? I placed some product in the oil because it was suggested and I bought a product to put in the gas to help clean the carburetor etc. IT WILL NOT START! what I want to know is should I tank it and get another lawnmower or is the thing salvageable. for me. I cannot lift it to take it for help. I found the spark plug cap is too loose so I have bought Kohler My engine brand plugs and a new cap, toro oil, engine start spray to start over? I don’t know how to clean the carb and I watched this video and thought I would just make a mess. Thank you !

[@HomeGaragechannel]

just get another mower.

[@tjclarke4604]

I am with you. Avoid Briggs EX engines if possible and find an older Quantum instead.

[@HomeGaragechannel]

that would be my choice, Good deck, RWD and Briggs Quantum. Awesome combo.

[@mikon3270]

I just picked up a toro personal pase mower. Not a fan of how it handles. Feels like I'm being dragged around the yard. Old school self propelled is better especially fwd. That's just me...Seems like this mower towards the end had a issue with the auto choke functioning correctly just a thought. However very interested on your findings! I found brake grease works well with lubrication on my projects and anything really..but I mainly use wd40 on the cables and rusted hardware. Either way I learned so much from this channel. I haven't had the courage to take apart carbs with my mower projects. I didn't want to mess with it unless its really bad....I mainly spray carb cleaner first or straight injection of seafoam into the carb as i get it running at first. I've had success tbh. Then use the mower for good for like an hour then oil change! Seafoam is good stuff but would not use it on cars good for small engines that stuff is potent.

[@HomeGaragechannel]

thanks I really appreciate your time here. Yes, if you're not used to the personal pace system, it feels weird. But I found that if you adjust the cable to give "less" help from the system, it feels a lot better.

[@mikon3270]

@@HomeGaragechannel dang. Had no idea. I'll have to check that. Thank you.

[@johnleerichardson6220]

Thank you so much because of you I got into retirement project of fixing up lawn mowers and you're right those ones from 8:10 years ago wow I love them buy doesn't mean you make money on everyone some can be a lot more difficult when people ask me why I clean them up so much I tell them that home garage says they'll sell twice as fast for twice the money thank you again take care

[@HomeGaragechannel]

no problem and these will keep your mind and your hands busy, that's why I do it too.

[@michealwilliams5639]

What do you put in the engine to flush out sludge and any left oil that didn't drain out

[@HomeGaragechannel]

I use old stale gasoline, about 10 oz or so. You'll also have to let the engine air out to let the gasoline evaporate before adding your new oil

[@michaelmiller161]

I like your videos, they are very detailed. i do have a question. i owned a 20016 and I had no problems with it until 2 years ago. the problem, it would start then dies after about 90 seconds. i cleaned the carb, new spark plug, replaced the ignition coil and still have the problem. interestingly, after several attempted start, it would stay running, but not very good. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[@HomeGaragechannel]

sure thing, simple items would be to replace the fuel line from the tank to the carb and also replace the fuel cap. You might have a fuel restriction either related to a swollen fuel line, and a venting problem with your fuel cap. If the cap is "slow" to vent air, fuel flow will also be slowed as well. you can get around getting a new cap by drilling a tiny hole in the cap, but you do risk a fuel leak too.

[@michaelmiller161]

Thanks for the quick reply. I replaced the fuel cap and hose in addition to cleaning the fuel tank after the carb clean didn't work.

[@patmiller7045]

Do you have a video on your engine flush technique? What product do you use?

[@HomeGaragechannel]

not a separate video but I'm glad too tell you, it's stale gasoline. I put in about 10 oz of stale gasoline into the engine thru the oil fill tube. Rock the mower back and forth for 1 minute and then dump it. You'll have leave the engine alone for a couple of hours to let any remains gasoline evaporate before you add your new oil.

[@MixingGBP]

Oh wow did not know you can do this. What if you use fresh ethanol free gas for cleaning?

[@patmiller7045]

@@HomeGaragechannel Thank you. Appreciate you and your channel.

[@briantii]

@@MixingGBPYou could, but pretty sure he’s just using stale fuel because it’s free and is a good use of something almost impossible to get rid of otherwise.

[@mr1pearl]

I saw someone mentioned choke linkage and I thought valves too but its really new so I kinda doubt it ?

[@HomeGaragechannel]

don't worry, I'll spill the beans on it in a later video. You're never going to guess as to the reason why It was running that way. I know i had a hard time figuring it out

[@robertmailhos8159]

Lawn care equipment is only good as what it's made of And the care they are giving

[@HomeGaragechannel]

well said

[@robertmailhos8159]

@@HomeGaragechannel 👍👌💪

[@IsaacSchuler]

ive recieved so many of these mowers. they usually have very little use and were just stored with bad gas.

[@HomeGaragechannel]

yes I would agree with you on that

[@tylerfaith2042]

What sprayer are you using for your hose too wash everything

[@HomeGaragechannel]

it's the Avanti paint sprayer set to wide

[@tylerfaith2042]

@@HomeGaragechannel I see I’ll have to check into that

[@RussellBooth1977]

It sounds like the choke is stuck on which is making the engine run rough or the air filter is blocked. Try running it without the air filter & see if that makes a difference !

[@HomeGaragechannel]

I've ran it without the filter and it still does it. The choke is also open when running. You're so close as to the reason why it's running rough.

[@christophermarshall5765]

That poor thing looked like it never got an oil change.

[@HomeGaragechannel]

you are correct! IT's a shame really

[@zodx19]

I have that same model. I replaced the carburetor and the spark plug flush the tank and add a new oil... and it still won't start.... What do I do now. I'll make sure the carburetors on right. What can it be

[@HomeGaragechannel]

sure, have you checked for spark? Have you tried "priming" the carb with fuel to help start it?

[@kencurtis228]

Yes

[@gkrew1969]

Am I wrong or isnt it better to pack wheels and gears with bearing grease? It would last more than 1 outing.

[@HomeGaragechannel]

not sure about better, but you're welcome to use whatever you think works. Give it a try and see how it turns out after several uses.

[@williammoore4800]

It's the little plastic jet in the bottom of the carburetor take it out and replace it you can buy them for like 4 bucks

[@HomeGaragechannel]

thanks

[@deebee3901]

The amount of debris could be from (1) low oil leading to major engine wear (2) engine running too rich. Not sure how you fixed this mower so please give us an update soon!

[@HomeGaragechannel]

Unfortunately the debris in the oil was from "low oil" and it was aluminum in the oil. yes I plan on talking about in a video in a couple of weeks.

[@deebee3901]

@@HomeGaragechannel I'd be very interested to see what the compression is and whether the engine can be saved (i.e. continue to be used). Thanks for all the great content - I'm loving your channel here in Australia!

[@HomeGaragechannel]

no problem however I've since sold the mower but It was to a good friend, so I'm sure I'll be seeing it next spring. If I remember, I do the compression test then.

[@adammosher1115]

Have you or seen anyone weld a oil sump on a Briggs and Stratton push mower I'm asking cause I have a 500 series the new style like in this video and it broke on the corner of the oil dip stick and the bolt I really don't want to spend the money on a new sump or should I just replace it with a new motor from Amazon

[@HomeGaragechannel]

I have not seen it done but it worth trying to fix it using some aluminum rods.

[@WaynesAdventure]

I would buy the older one or take a free one 😁

[@HomeGaragechannel]

me too!

[@josephmeadows8521]

What happens if you put more than one fuel filter

[@HomeGaragechannel]

nothing bad will happen. You'r welcome to put one on there if you want.

[@josephmeadows8521]

Thanks, at least if one goes out I'll have a back up lol

[@HomeGaragechannel]

that is true

[@mikehrdlicka8635]

You forgot to straighten choke/throttle linkage. Check valve lash. I buy toros fix sell sold 55 this year maby 40 toro's

[@HomeGaragechannel]

ah.. you're the first to notice that I never did that. I did end up doing it off camera and that's part of what I did when you saw the mower running at the very end of the video. Nice job!

[@jesussantibanez6711]

👍👍👍👍👍👍

[@HomeGaragechannel]

Thank you!

[@jnorm18]

Hey, I have a string trimmer that doesn’t work. Do you want it?

[@HomeGaragechannel]

I wish I could but I am not setup to take in stuff right now. I appreciate it though

[@jnorm18]

@@HomeGaragechannel ight

[@mjg263]

I’ve always liked Toro mowers but I have to say I really dislike their new “baby stroller” personal pace handle.

[@HomeGaragechannel]

LOL!!! I like how you described it.

[@andyhamilton8940]

Still a nice solid deck but fitted with the same cheap plasticy Briggs engine that is on every other mower out there now.

[@HomeGaragechannel]

I know right. The deck is holding up well.

[@matthewwearsch242]

I'd buy a used toro but I wouldn't pay more than $50 and that's only if it doesn't need ANY repair I mow my own lawn with one and I have 2 other comple ones not to mention all kinds of spare parts

[@HomeGaragechannel]

$50 would be a tough sell during spring, but right now with the market at a crawl.. you might be able to get one for that price.

[@TTMonkeTikTokAccount]

I Dont Understand How The Newer Recyclers Are Having Problems Ive Had My Toro For 7 Years And It Has No Problems At All It Only Goes To The Shop For A Tune Up Every Year

[@HomeGaragechannel]

I think the part that's interesting is the "7 years" on yours. I'm guessing even 7 years ago, they were built a lot better back then. A LOTS happened in the last several years around the world.

[@TTMonkeTikTokAccount]

@HomeGaragechannel Yeah Alot Definitely Change

[@williammoore4800]

Nemo plastic card from them things can be a world's worst nightmare most people take their cars off and just throw them away because you can go buy a new one for 12 13 bucks most of the thing that's wrong with the carbs is the little jet in the bottom of it just because it's open don't mean that Jets good trust me replace the jet and be done

[@HomeGaragechannel]

makes sense