Another good one! When carbs give hunting issues 99.9% of the time it’s a blockage in the jet for the bypass circuit (also called the idle circuit). The carb needs fuel from both the bypass circuit AND the main circuit at the same time, both must be contributing fuel at a given ratio. If the bypass circuit becomes blocked the engine will starve for fuel, the governor will respond by opening the throttle to get fuel from the main circuit, then it over-revs and the governor slows it back down where it starves again because the bypass jet isn’t contributing enough fuel and the surging cycle continues. The ultra-sonic is great for general cleaning but a blocked fuel passage or clogged jet needs hands-on attention. Sometimes the bypass / idle jet is buried behind a removable plug, sometimes the plug is blocked in by an idle screw or other part that need to come out to get to it. Always focus in on the idle circuit when you get surging issues, but you’ve really gotta look because carb manufacturers are very good at hiding them!

I've been rebuilding/building engines since I was a kid, some 50 years ago. I've fixed just about everything from cars, boats, planes, computers and everything in-between but still learned a lot about generators from watching your videos. I fixed one of mine years ago, it had a bad diode. Your videos are excellent, good clarity, good sound and you are meticulous in making sure everything is correct before you consider the job completed.

Excellent video. Thank you . I have the same generator that had been sitting in my garage for over 4 years with only 30 min of running time. Followed your video, drained 4 years old fuel , changed oil and filters, checked and replaced the battery. After several tries the generator worked. At first the engine worked for 5 min and then it turned off. Finally it worked. The engine was hunting a bit so I plugged a hair dryer and it helped. Thanks again for posting this video

We have used the kzfaq.infoUgkxOTeIs0vv4_9B5hsmnLsk9r930uDQLu_Y for probably 30 hours with our camper and it’s been great! The noise level is really only noticeable when running the AC and other appliances like the microwave, hair dryer, or coffee pot. It’s not huge like other ones and it has wheels so even at 90lbs, I can move it!

A " Meeting of the Minds" Fantastic video! There is many lessons learned here! Well Done Sir!

Knowledge is power, any you have plenty of knowledge, love the vids, I learn alot from your videos! Thanks!

Great video! Patience is a definite virtue when troubleshooting and repairing what others have touched. "Tailing out" a single lead on recepticles to a connection point is the way effectively join multiple leads.

I had already watched this one sometime ago. However I met a young man the other day who has begun repairing gensets, tools, welders, etc. He had one of these XG10000's in his shop and was telling me about some of the stuff that he had done and others had tried before him to try and repair it. I mentioned your youtube channel to him and have sent him the links to these particular videos on this genset. So therefore, James, I'm sure you're going to have another subscriber. Thanks again for sharing your knowledge.

Yeah I've watched a lot of generator repair videos. I am generally impressed with the enthusiasm level. Your voice overs are very listenable. You are very understandable and pleasant. Now I have done plenty of carb rebuilds for cars. There are two things that bugged me about most of you generator fellows. 1. As a group, you guys are not anywhere near fussy enough about your carb cleaning. I have so much to say there. Suffice it to say you should all be far more Swiss (thorough and immaculate) about it. Like immaculate down to every tiny hole. And you should get off all the outside dirt you can BEFORE you immerse all the parts in the ultrasonic. 2. Every fuel line should have a good filter fairly close to the carb but away from any heat source. There were some really good ideas about fuel system maintenance tricks back before 1948 like on my dad's Ford pickup truck which had a visible and easily drainable bowl on the fender wall BEFORE the carb. I think this idea could be put to good use on today's generators in which the gas is going to get so badly contaminated. The equipment designers obviously want today's generators to break. The filthy gas tanks are another story. Obviously the industry makes a lot of garbage components with the tanks being the worst. As to oscillations (hunting)... in negative-feedback control and amplifier systems, irregularities in the smooth linear operation of components is a recipe for hunting. Industrially, I think some really good control system education (yeah with the math) could help all you fellows. Taking the irregularities out of the carbs would be the place to start. And that starts with being immaculate. Keep up the good work - I really enjoy your shows.

Outstanding video!!! Really appreciate the excellent commentary and especially the deliberate way you approach the problem. Your expertise in determining the step by step tear down without yanking things apart was great!

Nice job figuring out the linkage problems.

you amaze me every day. and i hope the Manufacture is watching this. i'd be embarrassed to be them. keep up the great work.

You are a Godsend. Thank you for your great repair video. I was able to take the carb off and clean it without taking the gas tank off or messing with the springs. Mines wasn’t nearly as dirty as yours though.

Nice to watch a surgeon at work. I'm more of a butcher, but most of my victims survive.

Good video! I found from wrkg on my 91 Harley, if it seemed to run lean, spray starter fluid near intake gasket, if it speeded up I had a manifold leak.

Brilliant dedication on the linkage problems 🇦🇺

Loved your detective work on figuring out what was wrong with the carb & governor, you are a patient man!

You have the best channel for troubleshooting and repair there is.

Mr. Condon I like watching you because you have fixed so many of the or all the Generators you have Videoed on here & you definitely know what you are doing that is what I like about watching you every new Video you come out with I watch it & enjoy every minute of it KUDOS & A BIG THUMBS UP to you sir

I am always amazed to see you put all those parts back together. Especially the carburator. It is a pleasure to see you working. You are very professional and have a lot of knowledge. Electrical and mechanical. Good job! I am a professional engineer working mainly on the marine business.

James I always soaked the Carbs in Carb Cleaner overnight to clean them & that always worked to fix them.

One of my favorite portable generators. These have a great V Twin engine on it as well as an oil cooler and other features for a decent price new. Loads of power as well for its size..

yo thanku sir 4 not being a clown in ur videos.. cant stand every time u click on a video 4 for training or info.. the person conducting the video also thinks i subcribed to for them 2 waste 90% of video clowing or making jokes.. if i wanted excessive clowing i would picked that video.. but with ur videos u give exact info as subcribe on titles of ur vid plz keep up the good work..man... thanks for another excellent vid..

By watching most of your videos I can see that most of the problems with all the equipment have problems with carburetors the manufacturers make more money on carb- repairs but you seem to handle all the repairs like a real pro enjoy all your shows great job ! Keep them coming !

I'll let you into a little secret. Twin choke carbs have a tendency to warp on the manifold end between the longest distance of the mounting bolts. Check it with a straight edge and if it's warped I used to draw file them flat again many years ago before fuel injection on cars.

I can't get enough of these videos! I love stuff like this.

I don't know why I m watching, I m not mechanic i have no idea what this gentleman doing if I was woman I can't even change my own tampon that s how bad my knowledge when comes to fixing stuff but those videos so satisfying...

Some of the best videos on the internet. Well explained!

Excellent video with helpful explanations. I have a Generac XG7000 and after cleaning ethanol corrosion out of the carb, I run Ethanol-free fuel and Techron in it and it has been fine.

You never miss a beat James !!

Dude, you’re awesome. New follower here. I have the exact same generator and issues. Mine sat for a couple of years without running. I was scared to try and clean the carb, but your video gave me confidence to try it. Outstanding filming and explanation every step of the way. 👍👍👍

Always informative. Well done James

I was hoping voltage would be out of line so I could find out how voltage is adjusted when no AVR is present. Great video thanks James.

Good video Jim! I liked the music during the quiet times...soothing!

hi james good job mate , you have taught me a lot over the last year,and iam still shielding and in lockdown and recovering for cancer, i watch you videos a lot, if you ever come to the uk i would like to stand you a beer or too

Possibly my favorite of your works. Not sure I would have caught that linkage issue. That is intense troubleshooting. Looks like someones brother in law who can "fix anything" was in there. He wasn't even close. Great job

You find great deals. I can never find a deal like that.

So relaxing to watch your excellent videos.

What a great find. That's one beautiful genset. That engine was purrrrring!

I watch a lot of your videos and in many I see snow or it seems cold out. Really enjoy your videos by the way.

Dang man you would put Sherlock Holmes to shame you would be a great police detective

Great video. I will definitely use your knowledge. A neighbor just gave me a generator.

This is a great channel. You've taught me a lot.

I think I'd have given everything else a try before I removed the carburetor on this machine. I'm glad you did it though because I was considering purchasing one of these. But now not in a million years.

I absolutely learned a lot! Thank you! It is hard to believe that those linkages could be so messed up when it is so difficult to access them! I guess someone got in there though. Nice going on the GFCI from your local store. If that receptacle cost you $75 from Generac, I can't image what it would cost us up here in Canada.

James you have some skills great video. I bet the fuel inlet elbow on the carb you had the yellow pipe on probably had a screen behind it and the ultrasonic cleaned it enough second time around.

You are the Andrew Camarata of the small engine world. Out standing!!!!!

I love the double nutting trick. That's a new one to me and wish I'd been shown that before! What a great tip....!

Great job on the carburetor diagnostics

Good job, you really know your stuff around a generator. Thanks.

Good video. I find aftermarket carbs (Chinese) often have main jets that are smaller than original. They cause the engine to surge. I clean and use the original main jet and it has always worked. You can see the difference in jet size when comparing them.

Nice video! One other solution for your short ground screw on the new receptacle would have been to run a dedicated wire from the ground lug in the panel, replacing the daisy chain. I also think there may be a recall on the handles due to pinch hazard.

A nice warm work shop with a small lift would be ok,away from the house.Keep up the good work.

great video ,well explained .man your a genius keep it up with good work and thank you

Nicely done. Too bad you had to pretty much re-engineer this to make it work. I think is was clear someone was in there before and did not pay attention to how they took it apart as it was not re-assembled properly. At least the power head was not an issue.

Nice find James 😊

i know im kinda late on this but on these carbs there is a security screw on top next to fuel inlet with a big round washer under it are the 2 black plastic pilot jets that sometimes get clogged and cause it to surge when i pull them sometimes i change the o'rings to viton o'rings and use a dab of dielectric grease to lube them so they don't distort and tear going back in. you got lucky and got them clean when you cleaned the tiny holes in their circuit in the carb throat also 2 top brass inlet holes go through these too. anyways awesome job i've been binge watching your video really enjoy them.

Someone that can Reason! Love it.

You had me worried about those bottom carb mount bolts until about 2/3rds of the way through when I saw you replace them. LOL That carb is a monster. If I ever come across one of those, I will be thinking of you. Good One...!

That flexible tube from the exhaust is old school automotive technology. It helps the engine warm up in cold weather. Really common with a carburetor on a car.

I have a 15KW version of this generator (I think it a 2010 model - I purchased from a small business that used it for 3 days and never used it again. Have had zero issues with it. I was doing some searches for Generac comments and found your channel. You did a great job with this video - very impressed - very imformative. Keep that low key soft spoken delivery that you have! - and the way that you keep the "audience" involved. I've ordered a propane "bi-fuel" conversion kit for mine - my biggest concern is that carb gumming up over time. You really need to do some PM work twice a year - put fresh gas in it and let it run a bit. I never could get a definitive answer about should I run the carb dry (you never can - there will always be a bit in the bottom of the bowl) - or keep it full and just run fresh gas in it couple times a year. I wish they had put a drain plug on the carb bowl - that would have helped a lot. But again - great vid!

My sympathies to the previous guy who was strughling alone I guess. In your case, the adage that 'Practice makes Perfect' applies. And that practice in your case is over your astounding calmness. For example, to clean then reclean the carburetors was heroic: the detritus that seemingly was removed on the second go must have been invisible, albeit the wire brush wire treatment! Again, hurrah and thanks!

Very good videos Thank You!

Boy! Hate to follow someone into something. You da man on that BadBoy! Congradulations.

BRILLIANCE..... is what that junked pieces of metal getting alived and still kicking good!👌 ps... in my little experience on a single cylinder small engine surging issue, i only clean the pilot jet and carb cleaner the carb. but on that engine, it's so much complicated for me and it takes brilliant elec/mech mechanic like you to make it alive in a right installation👌

James!! Your repair videos are getting me in trouble! I started looking for generators to repair, inspired by your excellent work. This had me stumble onto a 2003 Winnebago Volkswagon Rialta camper; the generator isn't working. LOL, so now my wife and I are going to drive 2 hours to Jacksonville, Fl. to look at it. They're asking $10,500, not quite as good as the $75 for this Generac. LOL, at $10,500, it's an excellent price, so I'm leary of what else may be going on with this Rialta. But it's a nice size camper for my wife and me. My guess is, at that price, it will be gone before we get there... This was another great repair video from you. I learned about the surging, how the springs work, and saw that Generac has strange engineering, placing that carb and air filter in a lousy location for maintenance! Not sure if someone got in there to work on it before you, but some of the problems look like it may have been from poor work on an assembly line. I really enjoy watching you work, excellent video quality, and great explanations along the way. I've subbed and am watching your videos. Which means I'm not getting anything done...

Has a cold weather kit. Great video as always

I have a suggestion, as I see you like useing water base detergent in your ultrasonic cleaner. Try using SPRAY NINE. It is the strongest cleaner I have ever used. Stronger than fantastic, formula 409, or anything. I let it puddle on a painted surface, and it took the enamel paint off...!!!!! I would not dilute it. I buy it at HOME DEPOT in half gallon jugs.

Not a big thing but if you are like most you hate to clean out the ultrasonic cleaner, what i found is that is you fill it with water, put the dirty parts in a jar with cleaning solution the outcome will be the same. You can save the used cleaner in a jar for reuse and as a bonus the ultrasonic cleaner is still clean. I have a few Jars of different sizes and it works great.

Pretty good video. The heat riser tube and the yellow lever on the air box is for cold weather operation to prevent carb icing. A customer brought me one of these generators that likely needs the carb cleaned we will see. I like to use lemon pine sol in my ultrasonic cleaner. pinning that handle was a idea of mine also. they should have just made it that way factory. Sure miss the adjustable carbs! Thanks for a great video.

That’s why the bottom two carb bolts were loose -they were trying to make it throttle loose. Not knowing the throttle shaft and linkage was the problem. I would be worried they had not bent the governor linkage, too, and they probably had put the governor spring on wrong, too.

Another good presentation. I wondered what those orange sediment were and how they get in the carb.

yr vids are interesting to watch. thanks

Very nice work.

You got a killer deal on that genny, the last one I got like that 15kw version, I picked up for $500, it wouldn't start the shop the guy took it too had it for two weeks and said the control board was bad and said it wasn't worth fixing, they offered him $200 for it as a parts machine, luckily he didn't leave it there, he posted it on craigslist two hours an hour drive from me, I was the first of 5 people interested to show up. I stopped for coffee and looked at the barrel fuse on the way home. It was blown, walked over to a napa replaced the 10 fuse with a 15 and it fired up. Sold it a week later for $1250. It only had 10 run hours on it.

great job done as always!

The gas cap has blue shipping plastic on it. If it were mine, I'd take it off. If I was going to sell it, I'd leave it for the new owner to remove. Nice fix. The latest model of those is selling for $1500.

Love the channel. Your like Mustie 1, but with a dinner jacket if you catch my drift. Lol. Also, you need a lift platform to work off of at a better height. My back hurts just watching, lol

Hey James, I recently acquired a similar Generac, just a larger unit. One thing that I found out while working on it is that the main jets are different sizes. Something to keep in mind for future units. You may have had them backwards on the first try and lucked out on the next if you didn't notice? BTW, great vids keep them coming.

BTW, you didn't have to remove the two top bolts, I just pulled the carbs on 2 of these gens, there is enough room when the carb comes all the way forward.

Looks like a "heat riser", possibly for cold weather starting.

Great Video James. I own this exact model and mine does the same hunting thing when it's cold. I haven't noticed that it does the hunting when it's warmed up, but then I typically run it outside the garage door and close the insulated doors so that muffles the sound quite a bit. Last year I didn't run the system for 4 months and then the battery was dead. I forgot about it for a number of reasons and after six more months of not being started I'm guessing the fuel in the carburetor looked very much like yours did. I don't work on engines at all so that fiasco cost me a lot more than it did you. What would have cost you $150 buying the carb cost me $260 with their markup and that doesn't include the super high price of labor. Overall it's a decent unit and a full fuel tank should get you around 9 hours of use, depending on the load you have on the unit.

My rule of thumb when using carb. Cleaner is when spraying in a orifice or tube it must come out somewhere else or it’s plugged up . . . PPE

great job thank you

Load testing 👌 is fine, however most people use multiple extention cords when operating their machines, which adds a lot more resistance to the loads.

Great video makes me think twice about buying a generac generator when the factory does not build it correctly

Great video! Hey I liked the music! Never heard you do that before on your later videos…. Cheers

when I purchased my little 2.5kw generator, the owners manual clearly says "recommended fuel is high octane, ethanol free if possible".............it is so much better for the carbies on small engines.

Very informative(is that a word?) video, thank you.

Well done! I can't believe how much effort the previous owner took to take the whole thing apart to put everything in the wrong way! Haha... it seemed like a ton of effort to mess everything up!

At the 12:09 time stamp when you crack open the float bowl and we all see the pink / orange / yellow sometimes greenish Jello-turned-crusty and that seemed to surprise you. Simple answer is that it's common when someone uses way too much fuel stabilizer ("Stabil" or the equivalent) . Too, too much mixed into the fuel results in gelling the fuel while in extended storage. I just drain the tank and run everything dry --- and then leave the fuel cap off for just a day or two, leaving the system dry for the next time needed. Also changing the oil before storage means that it's all ready to add gasoline and fire it up in a New York minute when you need it next time.

Have same issue on my skag zero turn with vtwin Kawasaki motor. First time it had issues with surging, I took it to dealership to fix it. When I got it back, it had a brand new carburetor. 2 years later, warranty is over, and its surging again. Only when no load above idle. Guess I will take the carb off and clean the shit out of it. Ty very much.

James on carbs like that and you can’t get them to stop surging you can drill a hole in those round blanks on top and adjust the jets

Awesome job sir!! It is amazing what an ultra sonic cleaner does. In fact I now need to purchase one. What fluid do you use in it?

Hey James, I have the 15KW version of this generator. About 3 years ago I installed a propane conversion/adapter kit on mine. Some modifications were required - one was an attachment to the front of the carb (where the propane was fed in). This attachment required the carb to be moved back about 1.5 inches - so spacers that same thickness had to be inserted between the engine and the intake manifold. Had no problems with it - used it for the last 3 years. Recently I tried to just run gas - it started up fine - 3600 RPM - I put a light load on it (probably 2400 watts - and within about 30 seconds the speed went way down (I saw 47Hz on my watt device) - not quite stalling but struggling. I immediately opened the breaker and shut it down. Tried it couple more time over the next few hours - same thing. Switched over to propane - could not get it to fail. So carb issue right? - but I wonder if the extra length added to the intake manifold could in some way be the issue. One thing that stands out is when I using gas the intake manifold is VERY cold - when I use propane it pretty much ambient temperature (70F). Maybe that normal but I certainly never noticed in several years of using that generator via gas that the intake manifolds got very cold. When I first installed the kit I never tried to run in on gas until this week. I disassembled the carb - it looks great - the 2 jets and emulsion tubes are clean. The float valve looks fine. I always cut the gas supply off and let the generator run out of gas as part of the shutdown process. Sprayed out all of the passages with carb cleaner. I'm going to re-assembled in the morning and test again. If I get the same result I'm removing the kit and seeing if that makes any difference. Feel free to ignore this question - I know you are not providing support :-)...but thanks loads if you do !

Thank You

Holeeeeee crap! a 10 KW for parts due to needing a new carb and wires that could be replaced? Dayum! unbelievable how someone could write off a good gen for not much work to be done.

Thanks

id glady buy that unit for 75 bucks and fix it. i have a little old 3,200 watt el cheapo unit i bought new probably a decade ago. it doesnt have a massive amount of run time, but it got me through a few power outages. it would be nice to have something that can run the whole house.

Watched a dozen of your videos, first time i saw your face. lol