ZD1211 Stalling

[kevinshelton]

Need some help w fuel system. Mower shut down on me while cutting a ditch. Incline was mild. Found right side fuel tank empty and I can visually see the right side fuel filter is partially filled w air. Left side tank is completely full & left fuel filter has no air in it. Obviously the engine gulped some air but why would it suck in air from right tank as it went dry? Never had this problem before when either the left or right tank emptied out. Any suggestions?

 

[thepumpguysc]

Are the tanks supposed to remain equal.. meaning one feeds off the other or do you have to manually switch them??
If its the first, you obviously have a blockage in the cross-over line..
If its the 2nd, hit the switch, loosen the lines AT the injectors, crank the engine till you
get fuel squirting out & tighten.. & off ya go..

 

[kevinshelton]

I appreciate the replies. No valves to switchover, manual or electric. I will check for a line blockage but is it possible that a loose fuel cap could have allowed this to happen?? It’s just a wild guess on my part. Just really odd occurrence as I have been cutting same ditch the same way for at least a year. Got mower on level ground & no issue.

 

[MilkyWay]

.... Found right side fuel tank empty and I can visually see the right side fuel filter is partially filled w air. ....

Welcome to the forum KShelton! You will find friendly, knowledgeable help here. I can't help with your issue but I can comment/relate my personal experiences. As often as not, depending on the set-up, I have had in-line fuel filters work perfectly normally for YEARS half full of fuel; or half full of air, depending on how you wish to think of it. I think, but can not strongly argue, that it has something to do with how much pressure is on the fuel supply circuit. I can not think of a forced fuel, read pumped fuel system that I have ever had. Meaning gravity fed delivery only, reference to my claim.

 

[thepumpguysc]

A loose cap would have helped, not caused the problem.. Atmosph. pressure will push the fuel..
NOW IF the cap was clogged.. a fuel cap has to be vented, {small hole} otherwise it creates a vacuum in the tank..
That's why on a lot of threads w/ running problems, someone will suggest "Loosening the fuel tank cap." The tiny hole in the cap gets clogged w/ debris. {dirt, sand or grass}
So if I understand this correctly, the tanks SHOULD seek their own level?? Meaning, if the right is 1/2 full, the left should be 1/2 full.?? depending on where the cross-over pipe is located between the tanks..
If it happens again, you know where to look.. Happy Tractoring..

 

[lugbolt]

If I remember right, Kubota's engineers put a check valve on each of the lines coming out of the fuel tank on those mowers. The answer I got when I griped at 'em about it was that if an operator uses the mower on a hillside for any length of time, without a check valve, the fuel from high side will fill the low side tank...possibly overflow. And I understand that but Bad Boy has never used a check valve and to my knowledge, it's never been an issue....but again, that's Bad Boy...out of thousands of other issues, that's not been one of them.

Could be a stuck check valve. Can also be a carbon canister vent issue. Had that on a ZG332 a while back and that one was NOT fun to find.

No fuel shutoff or tank selector on the 1211's, thankfully. Those were a bit problematic on the ZD300's. Poor designing from a consumer's standpoint.

 

[kuboman]

If one tanks runs dry that will be the tank the engine sucks from. Path of least resistance. There is a shut off valve at the bottom of both tanks, just ahead of back wheel. Shut off the empty tank and get fuel flowing from the full tank. Purge the air and all should be fine.

 

[lugbolt]

If one tanks runs dry that will be the tank the engine sucks from. Path of least resistance. There is a shut off valve at the bottom of both tanks, just ahead of back wheel. Shut off the empty tank and get fuel flowing from the full tank. Purge the air and all should be fine.

YUP....shutoff valve on each tank. Found out the hard way today

Assembled one off of the crate, wouldn't feed from left tank. Messed with it for a while until another tech came by and said "turn the fuel on dummy"....I didn't know they had a valve. Found it, turned it on, went on with my business.

I can see a possibility that maybe a stick or something could turn the shutoff valve off being where the valves are located.

 

[HeartFixr]

My ZD1211 will stall after mowing for 20-30 minutes, shake violently and then resume working for a while only to repeat. I have full tanks of diesel, bled the lines of air and replaced filters x 3. I was told yesterday that it could be fuel cap not allowing venting, causing in essence vapor lock. The problem could be identified if I remove the fuel caps and cover with cloth (secured with zip tie). If that solves the problem, then I will either clean the cap or replace.

 

[whitetiger]

No valves to switchover, manual or electric.

Look under the fuel tanks where the fuel hose exits the tank. Each side has a shut-off valve.

 

[HeartFixr]

Sadly, removing the fuel cap and covering with cloth did not work to stop the loss of power and violent shaking. This would seem to exclude vapor lock from poor venting through the fuel cqp. I have checked the fuel tank valves (open) and used SeaFoam to no avail. Diesel fuel is fresh. My next thought is to drain the fuel tanks and replace all of the fuel filters. Any ideas?? The 72" deck makes it impossible to load on my trailer to take it for repairs.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

if this is what you have...

then running on a slope will drain the high side tank and engine will stop unless there's a lot of fuel in the low side tank to get fuel passed the tee fitting (#100). #080 are check valves.
test for this is run on level ground. can you do that 'forever' ?