Problems With FeatherLite Weed Eaters

FeatherLite Weed Eaters are a line of lightweight string trimmers that the Poulan company manufactures alongside its Poulan and Poulan Pro outdoor product lines. Examples of FeatherLite Weed Eaters include the 20 cc two-stroke FeatherLite FL20C and the 25 cc two-stroke FeatherLite SST25C. Like all string trimmers, FeatherLite Weed Eaters are susceptible to problems, many of which you can remedy yourself.

If you are having difficulty starting a the model, you may need to make adjustments to the choke lever, which controls the amount of air flowing into the fuel mixture, and the throttle, which controls the amount of fuel flowing into the machine's engine. On your next ignition attempt, try moving the choke lever to the full position and holding the throttle in the "on" position before you pull the starter rope.

Depressing the primer bulb -- if present on your Weed Eater model -- four or five times before pulling the rope can also help. Not following these steps could be a cause for start failures. However, if you have been moving the choke lever to full and holding down the throttle when conducting your starts, to no avail, try moving the choke lever to the half position before pulling the rope.

According to the official Weed Eater website, the cutting line or string of a FeatherLite Weed Eater -- when it does break -- usually breaks as a result of line crowding. Line crowding occurs when an operator holds the cutting-head of a Weed Eater too close to a hard surface, such as a brick, rock or patch of cement, which forces the line to bend. To prevent line crowding, always keep the cutting-head of the Weed Eater away from hard objects and keep its cutting-line fully extended. Most Weed Eater models are equipped with a Tap N' Go line extension system, requiring that you tap the bottom of the cutting-head on the ground to release new line.

In addition to a lack of fuel causing start or run problems for a FeatherLite Weed Eater, a lack of fresh fuel can also be problematic. The Weed Eater website recommends using fuel that is no older than 90 days. In addition, an improper mixture of fuel in a Weed Eater could cause problems. For best results, use a fuel mixture ratio of 40 to 1, with 40 the gasoline amount and 1 the amount of motor oil.

Just like in a car, a faulty spark plug, which is responsible for igniting an engine's fuel, can prevent a FeatherLite Weed Eater from starting and functioning properly. If you notice that the spark plug in your Weed Eater is dirty or corroded, try cleaning it off with a wire brush. If this fails to produce results, replace the spark plug with a new one.