Outdoor Power Equipment and Small Engines - Craftsman Snowblower

I have a Craftsman Snowblower that I left out all summer with gas left in the tank . The gasoline smelled like varnish before I changed it out. It doesnt start but when you put a bit of fuel in the spark plug hole it runs untill that bit of gas is used up and than shuts right down. It used to run like a champ untill I made the mistake of leaving gas in the tank. There is a new spark plug installed please advise Ol man winter is near and I dont have the money to have it fixed at a shop:blah:

The best bet is to put stabil in your tank before leaving it for the year, 1st remove and wash out your gas tank, use carb cleaner spray it inside and swish it around and do the same with gas, use the carb cleaner to blow thru your fuel line, take off the carb, pull it apart,pay attention to how it comes apart, count the number of turns for the fuel and air wixture screws so you can install them back the same, shoot carb cleaner thru all holes and bowl, blow all the holes with air, you can get a carb rebuild kit for about 8 bucks, install it , put it all together and you should be good to go, add stabil to the fuel tank, this is what I have done to all my carbs, snowblower , snowmobile , lawn mower

If you have heavy varnish buildup then spray cleaner likely will not be enough to clean the carburetor well enough. You would need to soak the carb in a bath cleaner such as Napa's #6402 and then spray it off with spray cleaner then recondition the carb with the proper rebuild kit and also a new mounting gasket.