Small Engines (Lawn Mowers, etc.): 5 horsepower Briggs & Stratton engine, wood chipper shredder, briggs stratton engine

Question

Wood chipper Hi. I have a Craftsman wood-chipper/shredder that has a 5 horse B&S engine. I can't get it started. It has spark, it has compression, the engine turns over freely, and I have no idea why it won't start. I tried putting gas in the spark-plug hole, but it still wouldn't fire up. The throttle and choke both seem functional. I thought maybe because it was cold it was having a hard time, but I let it sit out in the sun for a couple of hours to warm up and that didn't help at all either. I'd appreciate if you could try to give me an idea of why it won't work; I've exhausted my personal knowledge on the subject.
Many thanks,

Jordan

Answer
Hi Jordan
I have the same machine at my house too. Remove the air filter and put a small amount of gas in the carb and see if it fires. If it does, then you need to remove the carb and give it a good cleaning, making sure all jets and ports are open. Also check the diaphram between the carb and tank for damage and the diaphram on the side of the carb. Hope this helps.