EZ 225 no fuel ?

[bertsmobile1]

gat a head scratcher here that is driving me mad and even worse it is a good customers EZ 225 with a B & S 31P707 engine
SO last year they suffered a leaking float needle which allowed the sump to fill with fuel
So it was a double oil change & Nikki rebuild
For once I did not field test it as I was about to go away for 2 weeks.
Got a call 2 weeks latter that it had died on the grass
Picked it up expecting to find a blown head gasket but it leak down tested fine .
Noticed the fuel filter was empty and knowing that hubby had removed & cleaned out the fuel tank I suspected the fuel pick up tube so pulled the tank to remove the tube but it was fine , removed & checked the carb, it was working fine .
Checked the fuel pump , both check valves seemed to be OK & diaphragm held vacuum & pressure ( when the appropriate tube was blocked ) checked the crankcase breather , no problem there either , pressure tested all fuel lines, no problem there either .
In a fit of defeatism I popped in a new Stens pump & the darn thing fired up then ran fine while I did a 3 hour test drive .
next day checked it would start from cold , it do so it got returned to the customer .
Drove it off the trailer & parked it in her machinery shed
She mowed once , about 2 hours with no problems then the next time it dies after 3 minutes & refused to start
Decided to do an on site, and suspecting the Stens pump, I grabbed another , fitted it & the mower fired right up
A week latter she was back on the phone.
Filter bone dry so I replaced the filter & the Stens pump with a genuine Walbro under warranty

Two weeks latter she is back on the phone , did one full mow , about 3 hours then the next time she got 1/2 way through her 2 acres & it died again.
So before I go back & replace all of the fuel lines & clips any one see some thing I am missing ?
Right now I am out of ideas

 

[StarTech]

Didn't find a EZ225 listed on JD Parts but did find a Z225. If it is actually an EZ225 then JD USA site is not listing it and I would have no idea how it is set up.

Sounds like you got a floater in the fuel tank randomly blocking the pickup tube. Just a guess but I have seen a couple cases here where an insect got into the tank and were being randomly suck up into the pick up tube which narrows at the elbow. The later tank on the Z225 does appear to be more prone for a floater to be further away from the pickup at times. The early tank everything would settle right around the pickup.

Also had one case on my personal rider where the fuel line liner had came loose and would block the line at random times so it would not hurt to try replacing the fuel line.

Either way it sounds you got one pita of a problem as I hate intermittent problems as they are so had to pin down as to the cause.

 

[Hammermechanicman]

Does it have a vented fuel cap or an emissions canister vent? Had one where the vent line to the emissions canister went soft and would collapse and not vent the tank.

 

[bertsmobile1]

Star
It is listed on the JD site as Z225 ( now obsolete ) MUZ225AD032467 DOM 27-06-07
All of the domestic JD ZTR's down here are listed as EZ series .( Easy Zero Turn )
The owners took the tank out, drained & cleaned it
Hubby is a recyclers so quite handy with the tools
I found a little water in the bottom when I took it out and cleaned it a second time so no floaters as I took the the pick up tube right out of the tank to pressure test it and it is a strait tube I could see through

Very well vented cap Hammer as the sealing washer had started to fall apart due to the junk fuel we get down here which is basically a mix of whatever volatile solvents the "petrol" companies can get cheap so I removed the remainder of it & instructed the owner not to fill above 1/2 way till the new fuel cap arrives
So it is pick up tube > hose >fuel tap ( already replaced it )>hose>filter >hose>pump>hose>carb
I have been servicing this mower for over 10 years with the fuel lines laid out like this .

I was thinking of replacing the dip stick tube grommet but I pressure washed it last year when it had the fuel leak cause there was oil every where and there is not a drop of oil to be seen externally .

I am thinking of moving the filter to the output side of the fuel pump when I redo the fuel lines .
I put it on the tank side because it was easy to get to there and could be seen easily where as on the other side you can neither see nor get to it without removing the blower housing

 

[CraigH]

Have you replaced any fuel lines on the mower before? If not, I'd be betting it would be a collapsed fuel line somewhere before the filter or the pickup pipe collapsing (if it's a rubber pipe).
My dad had a similar issue with a Stihl wood boss last year, he had a carb and fuel line fitted about 2 years ago and all was well, but the end of last year it would run for a random amount of time then die and not start for sometimes a day, sometimes a week. We checked it over an discovered the new (2 year old) fuel line had gone soft and was collapsing under the vacuum of the saw trying to draw fuel from the tank. New genuine fuel line and filter fitted, not had a single issue since. Got a second spare fuel line and filter in the garage now ready for the next time.....

 

[CraigH]

Also, have you tested the pumps that have 'failed' once removed to check if they are at fault?

 

[bertsmobile1]

Yes
Initial test was the simple blow suck test ( yum )
Both of the check valves appear to be working
Got home and did a proper one both held 10psi so they were fine & the diaphragm held 10 psi in pressure and held vacuum so the pumps appear to be fine but the acid test will be to fit them to another mower
It is a mower with 1/4 rubber fuel lines not a chainsaw with 1/16 fuel lines so collapsing fuel lines are highly unlikely and would be noticeable .
However I will move the fuel filer to the delivery side of the pump.
When I had it in the shop I cut the expanded section off each fuel line section so the fuel line was nice & tight again
But I got a 50' roll so another 4' is not going to kill me .
I promised the customer to have a look at it on Monday so I will get back & let you know