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PA-28 D-EFWM catches fire at Speyer EDRY Germany

It’s a (carburetted) Archer II.

Biggin Hill

Returning to fire, was this aircraft carb or injection?
What would be the result of a high pressure fuel pipe burst?
I recall this happened to a Pa28 in the air.

Maoraigh
EGPE, United Kingdom

If the engine is flooded fuel drips out of the intake, not inside the cowling, particularly if the fuel was delivered through the accelerator pump directly into the inlet tract.

I’ll have to take a look at that some time on a Marvel carb, the float bowl vent must be high enough that overfilled fuel comes out the carb jet into the inlet tract first. That would work because it’s updraft carb below the engine and the fuel won’t fill the cylinder. On a motorcycle carb flooding fuel comes out of the carb vent pipe, to which is typically attached an overflow hose running to the ground. Unless of course it’s a old motorcycle in which you might flood the float bowl intentionally with the float depressor button provided for that purpose, until you see fuel coming out the vent (no hose).

Carb engines do start easily in relation to aircraft mechanically injected engines. However excess fuel in the inlet tract can be ignited by a backfire. Oiled foam air filters can also burn, I use them but not without some reservations.

Last Edited by Silvaire at 21 Oct 15:52

As with cars and houses, most repairs done to meet the requirements of a new buyer are done on a “minimal” basis This is why it is better to knock down the price by the same amount and get the work done yourself. And if you do a deal whereby the seller will do an Annual before the sale, get that Annual done by your engineer with the seller paying the cost, otherwise you are running a high risk of a dodgy Annual.

I also have too many stories, especially recently, of prebuy inspections having been done badly. There is currently nobody at all I know who offers this service and who I could recommend. My engineer is good but he would rarely travel outside the UK, and he spends 2 days on a prebuy so it would not be cheap.

Back to starting, there seem to be as many “best way to start” tips as there are pilots, especially for hot starts and especially for fuel injected engines. In most cases, however, the POH contains the best way.

What crappy fuel system design allows fuel to squirt out somewhere under the cowling if the wrong procedure is used? With the IO540 system there is nowhere for fuel to come out, unless you go completely mad and then you could get some coming out of the exhaust… but then the exhaust and possibly other stuff will explode when you do finally get it started. There is no “fuel vent” under the cowling in any case. Is there such a vent with a carb?

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

In the POH for my PA28-181 it is definitely fuel pump on for start. However I ignore that and this is what I do

  1. A quick burst on the fuel pump before starting where one will see fuel pressure on the gauge (proves that the pump works)
  2. Prime only (no pumping of the throttle) but luckily I have primers installed (not all PA28’s do)
  3. Start (it always starts first turn of the key)
  4. Taxi with pump off (which proves the mechanical pump works which I think is a sensible check – there is nothing wrong with leaving the pump on as the chamber in the carb will fill up and block the valve – I leave it off purely as it proves another check)
  5. Fuel pump on before takeoff (it is on the checklist)

I had 3 months with progressively worse starting problems and it transpired it was my mags had issues. The last IRAN was under the previous ownership as part of my pre-buy requirements.. Let’s just say that “inspection” wan’t done very well. I ended up putting two brand new mags on as the old ones were not worth rebuilding.

During those 4 months I was having to pump the throttle etc which I now realise is a bit of a dodgy path to go down.

United Kingdom

I operate a Robin DR400/180 and the POH states “Throttle…carry out 2 or 3 injections, then 1/4 travel forward”. We do not have a primer, so pumping the throttle (injections) is what we do. We have had starting problems in the past, and then the tendency is to pump more, but with properly serviced mags, it starts after two blades.

Propman
Nuthampstead , United Kingdom

I turn the electric pump off before starting the engine, having listened to and watched its on/off operation and fuel line pressure rise without the engine running. As noted above its not doing anything useful once you have a couple of psi fuel pressure on the gauge. After turning the electric pump off but before starting the engine any decrease of fuel pressure can be noted, generally that results from a slightly leaky float valve. Then after startup with the electric pump still off, you can watch for degradation in fuel pressure as you taxi that would due to a faulty mechanical pump. With all that done, before runup and takeoff with both pumps now running you have done a basic check of the carb float/valve and both pumps independently.

Last Edited by Silvaire at 18 Oct 17:14

Aveling wrote:

The pump is not mentioned again in the POH until pre take-off, when it is to be ‘On’ again. Not neccessary if it’s meant to be left on all the time!

That is not an argument. Checking an item that is supposed to have been set before again at pre take-off makes sense and I’ve seen it in several checklists.

ELLX

Fly310 wrote:

On most of the checklist I find for the PA-28 at the aeroclubs in Sweden is that you have the pump on during engine start and then shut it off before you start taxi. I am not saying it is right or wrong but it is the most common practice here I think.

Same in our checklists in Switzerland.

LSZH, LSZF, Switzerland

Fly310 wrote:

On most of the checklist I find for the PA-28 at the aeroclubs in Sweden is that you have the pump on during engine start and then shut it off before you start taxi. I am not saying it is right or wrong but it is the most common practice here I think.

Agree.

ESKC (Uppsala/Sundbro), Sweden
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