Koehler command 17.5 smoking in a John Deer L110


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Old 10-10-16, 09:12 AM
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Koehler command 17.5 smoking in a John Deer L110

I have a John Deer riding mower L110 w/ a Koehler Command 17.5 engine. I have maintained service and it has always done great for me. Until, It began pouring out white smoke from front exhaust after running for 10 minutes and stalled. If I let it sit, it will run for a couple of minutes then stall out again w/ puffs of white smoke. If I restart immediately, it smokes the whole neighborhood. I did find there is gas in the oil so I have drained the oil and the gas to do new filters and fluids. I changed all filters-fuel/air/oil-several mowings ago and it has done fine for several weeks. Oil level on dip stick reads just under full. I have also changed the spark plug. The mower has not been tilted. It does start fine even though I think the fuel shutoff solenoid is not retracting properly after testing, but it cranks on every attempt, so I am not sure how that is?
I have not replaced the filters or fluids yet as this just happened yesterday and I have only removed and drained. There was oil in my fuel filter on the engine side and I noticed a little oil in my carb. Oil has a lot of gas in it!
I changed all filters-fuel/air/oil-several mowings ago and it did fine for several weeks. I have also changed the spark plug. When this started I put another new plug in it and it was immediately scorched/black on the tip and the smoke had a burnt smell from the exhaust….HELP!
 
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Old 10-10-16, 11:03 AM
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The float needle in the carburetor is leaking. I'd take it apart, clean it and replace the needle. Once the gas leak is stopped, change the oil again if it has gas in it again and run it a little while. It will probably take a few minutes to stop smoking entirely.
 
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Old 10-10-16, 11:11 AM
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Smoking Deer!

thanks for the feedback!..I am VERY amateur w/ any internal carb/engine work. I will see if I can't find a tutorial on "how to" to try your recommendation. thanks again.
 
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Old 10-10-16, 08:42 PM
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It only requires the removal of one bolt, the one that holds the bowl on the carburetor. A pin holds the float on, pull it out and the float and needle will drop out. Clean the area where the needle goes with a q-tip soaked with carburetor cleaner and replace the needle.
 
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Old 10-12-16, 08:21 AM
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when i remove the fuel shutoff solenoid the bowl just comes off (no other bolt holding it on), the float drops loosely and hangs by the pin. Does the fuel solenoid act in place of where a pin would be, or it seems the pin would just fall out? Thanks again!
 
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Old 10-12-16, 10:14 AM
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When I say it seems as though the pin would fall out with the float hanging half open once the bowl comes off, I mean the needle would seem to fall out. thanks
 
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Old 10-12-16, 11:24 AM
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There is a pin that the float hinges on that comes out, then the float and needle valve will drop out allowing you to clean.
Yes the fuel solenoid acts as the bowl nut/bolt.
 
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Old 10-12-16, 05:22 PM
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You can't get the needle out without dropping the float. The solenoid doesn't act as the needle.
 
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Old 10-14-16, 11:55 AM
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removed the needle, it looked clean, no gunk or debris so not sure if that was the issue?...swabbed out the chamber where it went into and it came out fairly clean...cleaned whole carb good. will refill w/ fluids today and see if any difference. thanks for the help.
 
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Old 10-14-16, 05:46 PM
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The needle not seating is or at least was the issue. If you did not replace it, you may find that the problem returns in a few weeks or months.
 
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Old 11-14-16, 11:48 AM
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Smoking Deer!

been a couple of weeks wanted to post current findings. I replaced the needle and of course oil change/filter/etc-all of that -again. same issue-gas in oil. I took it to my local Deer service shop, they said carb needed cleaning. they done that-and oil change/etc/etc...called me said it was running fine. got it home 30 minutes into use-gas in the oil..very strong on dip stick...only difference is-it is not smoking? runs like crap. so I thought maybe residue left behind from the gas/oil mixture...changed oil/filter/etc...as always runs like a champ for about 30 minutes then starts spitting and sputtering and losing power. checked oil stick-GAS again....any other thoughts before I take back to the folks who did not fix it. thanks
 
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Old 11-14-16, 03:48 PM
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Take it back. The needle is still not seating. I have had many of these come through that just will not take a repair with a new needle and the seat has to be replaced to solve the problem in those cases.
 
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Old 11-14-16, 04:25 PM
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I agree. I also was a beginner when I had this same engine, had the same issue (gas in oil) & although it had been 30 years since I had rebuilt a carb, I took it apart, cleaned it up from top to bottom, side to side, put it back together, same problem. Went & bought a rebuild kit, cleaned again, installed ALL new parts with the kit... no problem. Sometimes it just takes a kit.
In the end, I had taken this thing apart & put back together about 3 times. Its pretty basic.

However, since you took it to the dealer & it didn't fix it, I'd consider taking it back to be fixed right. Only thing is, they may tell you it needs a new carb when in reality a kit would most likely fix it. I'd tell them to put a kit in it, if they didn't do it before.

Good luck.
 
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Old 11-14-16, 05:29 PM
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The normal carb kit doesn't come with a seat, you have to get the seat kit specifically if you want that.
 
 

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