I bought a 15 year old high-end pressure washer with a 16hp Briggs Vanguard on it. It would run for awhile then shut-down. I took it to the local shop, because we were very busy. They replaced the carb, and tuned it up.

It would fire up right away, but still died. It also didn't charge the battery. I found the red lead from the alternator detached without an end, and just laying on the deck. That explains the charging problem, although I'm not sure where to connect the wire, and I didn't test it for output.

I had pulled the ignition switch cover off and had the switch laying on the tire, and my son went to move the washer. All of the wires pulled off the switch, which is an aftermarket so it doesn't match the wiring diagram in my repair manual. The switch has some dark brown spots around the base of the connectors so I think I want to put an oem switch in it. But, I need to know how to wire it. My switch is a 5 lead switch, and my repair manual shows a 6, although why I'm not sure since I only find 4 wires that have no home.

Here is a summary of the 4 wires that I have... orange goes to the battery side of the solenoid, yellow goes to start side of solenoid, red goes to alternator, black goes to low-oil shut-down. I have tried several scenarios, and am unable to make another generic switch work. Please help!

Thanks,
Al

The power from the battery goes to the battery side of the solenoid, then up to the ignition switch. From here the wire from the 'start' position goes back to the start side of the solenoid.

The power runs from the 'run' output of the starter switch to the engine.

The alternator output can go directly to the battery side of the start solenoid, bypassing the ignition switch altogether.

The black wire from the motor is a 'kill', it needs to ground when you turn the ignition switch off, and be open while it is running.

You can get away with a double-pull double-throw (DPDT) switch, connecting the wires from the battery side of the solenoid and the 'run' wires in one position, and breaking that connection while connecting the 'kill' wire to ground in the other position. Then just use a momentary push-button start switch (available at any auto store) to connect the battery power to the start side of the solenoid.