How to Adjust the Governor on an Ariens Snowblower

Ariens is a manufacturer of a variety of lawn and garden equipment, including lawn tractors, walk-behind mowers and snowblowers. These garden implements are powered by Tecumseh engines, which have a governor that adjusts the engine throttle to compensate for the workload. When the workload increases, the governor opens the throttle a little to compensate, and when the workload lightens, the governor closes the throttle. If the engine isn't running smoothly, you may need to adjust the governor.

Things You'll Need

• Flathead screwdriver

Instructions

1. Pull on the black rubber boot covering the tip of the spark plug to disconnect the spark plug wire from the spark plug.

2. Inspect the linkage and spring between the governor arm on the side of the engine and the throttle on top of the carburetor. If either the linkage or the spring are damaged, replace with original Tecumseh replacement parts.

3. Rotate the governor arm back and forth to the left and right. The linkage should move freely, moving the throttle accordingly.

4. Loosen the governor arm mounting screw one full turn counterclockwise with a flathead screwdriver. Rotate the governor clockwise as far as it will go while simultaneously pushing the arm to the right. Hold both in position and tighten the mounting screw.

5. Check to see that the governor arm still moves relatively freely back and forth and that the throttle still moves accordingly.

6. Reconnect the spark plug wire to the spark plug and start the engine. Allow the engine to warm up for a few minutes then begin blowing snow at varying speeds. The engine should increase speed when under a heavy workload and lighten when under no load.

References

• Small Engine Suppliers: Understanding and Adjusting Your Governor
• Briggs & Stratton: Adjusting the Governor
• Ariens' Snowblower Operating Manual