Leaking fuel filter shut off valve.

[JohnAnemone]

Hi, I have a Branson 3820. I was brush cutting today and suddenly it started losing power and shut off. I was able to get it running, but zero power, even fuel pedal fully depressed - nothing. I did notice that the engine begins to rev up, but immediately drops back to a rough idle.
I noticed fuel dripping from the fuel filter - near the shut off valve.
The fuel filter only has about 10 hours on it, and I haven't had any issues like this until today.
Could the leaking fuel filter / shut off valve cause the power loss? Or could there be a "clog" of some sort preventing the fuel from flowing and backing up? I suspect the leak is from the fuel filter /shut off valve and not an actual clog.
The tractor is a bit of a distance away, so I want to go with a lot of ideas to check.

Thanks,

John

 

[K5lwq]

Definitely could be the issue. Is the filter tight? Maybe just snugging it up a bit will work. Either way the leak needs to be fixed so start there for sure.

 

[Zork]

This was the first thing I abandoned due to hose fittings that were a tapered press-fit and apparently sealed with clear glue. One of my hose fittings was damp and when I touched the fitting it moved. I put a plain clear auto type filter in its place and haven't had any problems since.

 

[Zork]

My system was under a positive pressure since the pump was just before it on the upper firewall.

 

[Zork]

That revving up is typical of air. Knowing you have a leak I would suspect air first.

 

[5030]

One of the best investment I ever made was a drop in fuel strainer that fits in the tank filler neck on both my Kubota's. Kubota sells them and they will fit 100% of all filler necks, come with an assortment of various sized sealing rings. I bought mine a couple years ago, think they were about 10 bucks each and keep any crud from getting in the fuel tanks and you can pull them out and clean the collected crud out of them.

No matter how hard you try not to get anything in the fuel tank, you will anyway and that cud settles down eventually and blocks fuel flow and it don't take much either. I bulk fill mine from my 500 gallon diesel tank but I still collect crud in the strainer no matter how hard I try and I run fuel polishing filters on my tractors as well (Racor) but that does nothing for crud in the bottom of the fuel tank(s). My philosophy is no crud in when filling equals no blocked fuel line from the tank to the fuel filters.

 

[Zork]

You are right about debris. My Branson came with that strainer as standard equipment. But a super small grain sized piece of debris stopped my original fuel pump and it's replacement. Now I have a clear inline auto filter before the pump (forgot to mention earlier).

 

[5030]

My M's use too much diesel to warrant an inline clear filter like you use. Why I went with a Racor as it removes everything, water included and you can drain the bottom bowl easily.

In fact, all new Kubota tractors have Racor style filters installed factory now.

 

[JohnAnemone]

Hi All, thanks for the feedback. My fuel pump was bad - replaced. I thought the leak was from the fuel shutoff, so I replaced the O ring - but the issue was actually a broken fuel bowl. A replacement is on order.