# Predator 3500 - Is fuel starve a good idea?



## UnclePen (Mar 2, 2020)

I just bought a Predator (Harbor Freight) 3,500 Inverter. I have had a Coleman 5,000 watt generator for 15+ years. It's not that fancy - I just used it for emergency power and probably left old gas in the tank during the times when it was not being used - in other words I did not treat it gingerly. 

The Coleman has an easy fuel shutoff and what I would always do is fuel starve the engine when I was shutting it down. Of course I would remove any load, turn the petcock to shutoff the fuel supply, and let the engine run until it was fuel starved. My idea was that I would keep fuel from sitting in the carburetor while it was idle. My minimal procedure worked for 15 years - I probably changed the oil once. (Don't judge me :tango_face_smile

The Predator doesn't seem to make it easy to shutoff the fuel that way - you have to take off the side panel and use a screwdriver to allow the fuel to escape at the bottom of the generator. On the old one I would just turn the fuel off and let it run out what was in the carburetor

My question is this - *what is the "best practice?"* How should I get the fuel out of the generator during non use times? I am only using this for emergency power in my house, so I won't be cranking it every week.

Any advice will be much appreciated.


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## speedy2019 (Jan 29, 2019)

I bought a generator a year ago for the same reason, for when I have powercuts.. I dont empty the fuel tank or carburetor, all I do is run it monthly with a light load for 20mins or so, then turn off the fuel shutoff lever after I have switched off the engine. Ah yeah I alway make sure put in stuff in the tank to stop the petrol going off, when I fill/top it up.

I have fond the longer you leave my generator sitting, the longer it takes to start engine, so thats why I give the generator a run every month, or there abouts. But as soon as it starts, it purrs like a kitten straight away, as some engines takes a few seconds to run smoothly once started.


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## drmerdp (Apr 10, 2018)

If You are going to store it without use for longer then say 6 months, you should drain it entirely of gasoline. 

When I do long term storage I follow a specific procedure. I personally have a Mightyvac fluid evaluator that makes draining fuel tanks effortless. I strongly recommend something like it. 

Drain all of the fuel tank and the carb then add a small amount of non ethanol fuel to the tank. Enough for it to run for a very limited time.

Run the machine under a load to make certain the carb doesn’t have any e10 ethanol gas remnants. (There are small passages where fuel WILL remain, its best that it isn’t ethanol gas. Pure gas will more reliably evaporate without first gumming or corroding the passages. 

Drain any remaining gas from the tank and run the machine with no loads attached until the engine dies.

Drain the remaining gas from the bowl of the carb. 

Remove spark plug spray a small amount of engine-stor or pour a tiny amount of engine oil Into the cylinder. Pull the engine over a fuel times to distribute the oil then set the piston to top dead center. Reinstall the spark plug.

No harm in changing the oil at this time. It’s nice piece of mind to have fresh oil in it.

Store in a dry location if possible.

This method is suitable for indefinite storage. The only caveat is failure to exercise any generator can potentially allow corrosion to build up on the windings of the stator and rotor, same with standard generators with alternators.


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