White exhaust

[ddeboer]

Hi, just started my 1983 GS1100e today after it sat for 10 days in the garage (heated). I placed the bike on the centerstand, applied the choke and ran the bike. It blew white exhaust out of each pipe for about 3 mins., then the smoke disappeared.There was no blue smoke visible.
Is this normal?

Thankyou

[blowerbike]

check your oil level.
sounds like fuel was in your pipes.

[ddeboer]

White exhaust

Hi Blowerbike. The oil level is okay. How can fuel get into the pipes?Would th ewhite smoke possibly be condensation

[blowerbike]

well sense you have an air cooled motorcycle..
3 minutes is a lot of time to burn out a little moisture.
someone left the gas on for me on a non GS bike over the winter.
when i went to start it it white smoked for a few minutes because it had fuel in the cylinders and pipes.

[Clone]

It was burning antifreeze.

[ddeboer]

Fuel in pipes

Since the fuel supply to the carbs only occurs via a vaccuum line when the engine is running, how can fuel gather in the cylinders, carb and exhaust while the bike is parked?

Could the white smoke be the remnants of fuel that was once in the carbs but now evaporated somewhat to the point where there is excess moisture in the carbs and that moisture being burned off?

Or could the white smoke be water being converted to steam from water that has accumualted in the pipes and not drained or evaporated?

Just want to know I I have an engine problem at hand or not.

Thankyou......

[TheCafeKid]

If you perhaps left your petcock on prime (which does NOT need vacuum to flow) OR your petcock is going bad (more likely)

It doesnt have to be COMPLETELY bad. If the diaphragm is starting to fail, or getting weak, or the spring cannot hold back the pressure like it used to, it can start to leak slowly. One particular cause: Say you filled up before you put the bike up for the night/day/week... Nice cool gasoline in the tank. Takes up less room in the tank. You stow the bike in the shed/garage. It gets hot in there... Over the course of a few days, the gas gets hot, expands, the weak petcock lets a few dribbles past...Fills up the carbs... into the cylinders.. airbox.. onto the ground.. The stuff on the ground would evaporate in a few short hours..faster if the shed is hot. Then, night falls, the gas cools.. The pressure is now less, and the petcock is able to hold it back again. The next day..it gets hot again... etc etc etc... Over the course of a few days, or a week.. There could be a few teaspoons of gas in your cylinders.. Especially the number on if you parked it on the sidestand. My petcock was recently doing this very same thing. Most days it was fine.. One day I came out to take off.. gas in the floor. Just a little. Pulled the #1 plug.. cycled the motor, and a pretty good stream of gas was blown out of the plug hole. Enough to soak my tool cabinet..

Give it a check. With the help of another member, we pulled my petcock apart and actually stretched the spring out a bit, and its held fine since. (Waiting on a new one..I would have just tossed it rather than taking it apart, but needed the bike for a trip...I kept an eye on it, and its been fine, but im not taking any chances long term)