Top tips for keeping your petrol strimmer running like a ‘Rolls Royce’
- Make sure the fuel you have in the tank is fresh and not from three years ago (it goes off)
- Keep the spark plug gap set within the manufacturer’s tolerances
- Lubricate all moving parts lightly with a generic spray oil each time you use the strimmer
Someone got in touch with a strimmer that would not start. Anything that involves moving parts and petrol always gets my attention, so I accepted the challenge. Once in the workshop, I tried to start it using the pull cord and as predicted, it wouldn’t run, not even a cough. A little bit of carb cleaner sprayed in to the barrel, a pull of the starter cord and the engine did fire, suggesting that the engine could run. More analysis was required.
The strimmer had not been started for many years, so the first job was to remove the old fuel from the tank as old fuel goes off after a while. The engine on this strimmer is a two-stroke design, so the special two-stroke oil must be pre-mixed with the fuel in the right proportion before re-filling the tank.
While sorting the fuel out, I noticed the first fault. Both flow and return fuel pipes were cracked and one had come apart in the fuel tank, meaning that no fuel would flow to the carburettor. No fuel, no work.
To start most petrol strimmers, mowers and chainsaws from cold, a petrol primer pump is usually used to fill the carburettor with the right amount of fuel and this one was no different, but in this case, the pump was cracked.
After fitting some new fuel lines, a fuel filter and primer pump, the engine fired up and ran well again, ready for more garden work. See slide show.
Cost of replacement: £80 and up. Cost of repair: £7.53 plus my time and custard creams.
Hi hope anyone can help I’m doing a repair on my qualcast strimmer replacing the pull cord any ideas how I get it of cheers davie
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Maybe send me a picture by getting in touch using the contact us link. I might be able to help.
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how do you change fuel pipe on a qualcast strimmer there is no grommet two pipes going in to fuel tank
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Hi Alex, the two pipes are an interference fit to the tank… not elegant, but that’s how they seem to be.
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Can they be replaced or can you get a grommit to fit ???
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Hi Alex, it’s best to replace these pipes with fresh new ones as they degrade with age… new ones are tricky, but possible to fit. Have a look on ebay and measure the pipes carefully before ordering.
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Many thanks
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Hi, I’ve just inherited a similar Qualcast Petrol Strimmer. Replaced the broken primer bulb, put in fresh fuel, and managed to start it, and run it for a while at idle, but when I try to throttle up, it dies. The fuel lines are old, but seem to work, and I will change the fuel filter, but the problem seems to be connected to the throttle. Any pointers as to where the problem is likely to be?
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Hi Dominic, it could be the diaphragm within the carburetor. They are susceptible to splitting. Might be worth fitting a service spare.
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Thanks – I stripped down and cleaned the carburettor, and the diaphragm was fine. Still won’t run for more than 5 seconds. The only thing I haven’t tried is a new spark plug – could that be it?
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Hi Dominic, thanks for getting in touch. I would check the hoses as they can break down. Use fresh petrol too. Good luck.
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