Forum

Notifications
Clear all

This Forum is a place for Piper Comanche pilots to communicate and discuss technical issues

If you join or reset a password, please check your Spam Email box for emails from Admin at ComancheTechTalk.com

Please put your questions on the forum as well so everyone can read and respond. Someone else might be having similar questions.

All questions or topics on the Forums automatically get sent to the Tech team as well.

Engine ran rough at idle after heavy rain on approach

1 Posts
1 Users
0 Reactions
59 Views
Admin
Joined: 5 years ago
Posts: 1162
Topic starter  

Engine ran rough at idle after heavy rain on approach

Postby Randy Johnson » Tue Sep 03, 2013 2:35 pm

Shot an approach through a monsoon recently. Not an unusual condition during Florida summers. No turbulence just a lot of rain. After pulling into parking spot at ground idle the engine began to sputter badly. Didn't shut down on its own and there was no indication of a problem during powered up flight or post flight taxi.

Anyone else have this experience? Its a first for me. Have flown thru heavy rain before with no issues. Everything looked fine under the hood and Im about to go back and start her up now that she's dried out in the hangar. Want to make sure I'm not doing any harm with re-start.

Will check sump for water in fuel...any other thoughts?

User avatar
Randy Johnson
 
Posts: 176
Joined: Thu Apr 14, 2011 1:57 am
Location: Boston Area (BEV)

Re: Engine ran rough at idle after heavy rain on approach

Postby N3322G » Tue Sep 03, 2013 3:36 pm

Aside from water somewhere - long shot, maybe density altitude - too rich?
Pat

Patricia Jayne (Pat) Keefer ICS 08899
PA-39 #10 Texas

User avatar
N3322G
ICS member
ICS member
 
Posts: 1911
Joined: Thu May 08, 2008 1:58 pm
Location: Fort Worth, Texas area

Re: Engine ran rough at idle after heavy rain on approach

Postby md11flyer » Tue Sep 03, 2013 4:21 pm

Randy, did you run up the engine to 1800 rpm to see if the sputtering disappeared before shut down?
You might just have a fouled plug. How old are your ignition harnessess? Maybe some of the monsoon water
found a way to play havok with your wires. (you wouldn't notice a single plug missing above idle, but during taxi in
if your lower plug fouled a bit and the top plug was missing due to the water, you might get your symptoms.
Go ahead and start it up and if you still have the sputtering and if you have an engine monitor it will tell you where to look.
If you don't have a monitor, then do a normal runup and mag check and go from there. I think once you start up and clear the
possible fouled plug your symptoms will go away.

Gary

md11flyer
ICS member
ICS member
 
Posts: 330
Joined: Tue Mar 24, 2009 3:48 pm

Re: Engine ran rough at idle after heavy rain on approach

Postby Rick Langley » Tue Sep 03, 2013 7:05 pm

[quote= Didn't shut down on its own

Hello Randy,
What did you mean by this? Pulling mixture would not stop engine? Switching off mags would not stop engine? Or just that the "roughness" did not stop until engine shutdown?

Rick

Rick Langley
ICS member
ICS member
 
Posts: 10
Joined: Tue May 06, 2008 6:51 pm

Re: Engine ran rough at idle after heavy rain on approach

Postby Randy Johnson » Wed Sep 04, 2013 3:18 pm

Meant the engine didn't stall on its own at low idle just ran rough.
User avatar
Randy Johnson
 
Posts: 176
Joined: Thu Apr 14, 2011 1:57 am
Location: Boston Area (BEV)

Re: Engine ran rough at idle after heavy rain on approach

Postby Randy Johnson » Thu Oct 17, 2013 9:24 pm

As a follow up...fired up the engine 10 days later and no symptoms. Flown her several times since and haven't had any issues.

First and only time its happened since I have owned the plane.

User avatar
Randy Johnson
 
Posts: 176
Joined: Thu Apr 14, 2011 1:57 am
Location: Boston Area (BEV)

   
Quote
Share: